May 2009 Story Contest

Jenna’s Lilac by SNGG

       The sunlight streamed through the windows of Parmalee Cottage. The shutters were partly open, and the birds flocking outside sang their morning songs as if the day was their last and thus they were to make the best of it.

       All this tranquility was shattered when the lovely, titian-haired girl asleep on the daybed opened her green eyes and screeched, “Shut up, you ugly fowls! Don’t you birdbrains know enough to keep quiet at this unearthly hour?”  Bunch of stupid old biddies, she thought. Got me awake and now I’m starving.

       She trudged through the still house towards the kitchen, and then she opened the refrigerator to look for something to eat.

       “Hi.” The girl spoke to the picture of her family, complete, with mom and dad, still alive, grinning like a bunch of piano keyboards. She touched it softly, and her fingers lingered on her mother’s face.

       “Mom.” She gazed at them, said, “Mornin’, Mom, I’m up early. Those ******** of birds awoke me.”

       “They ain’t ********* of birds.”

       The girl sighed. “Mom, since you and dad left, the world isn’t the same anymore. No-one, nothing’s beautiful or fair. It’s—” she suddenly froze. Mom never said ‘Aint’. So…

       She whipped around. And stared.

       There, sitting on the wooden chest, was a boy. A brown-faced, dark-blond-haired boy. Who was he? What was he doing here? Her mind swam with questions, yet she could only stand and gape.

       “Hi. Name’s Lucas.” He extended a big, brown, sun-baked paw.

       She stared at it, then weakly shook it.

       He chuckled. “Reckon ya got a name?” she listened. His voice was scruffy, yet mellow, deep.

       She frowned. “Janella. But I’ll skin you alive if you don’t call me Jenna.”

       More laughter.

       “Shall I get Aunt?” in an icy tone.

       “No, thanks. Came to see you.” See her? Heck, she hadn’t even tried to make friends after the Accident. She’d been grouchy and mean, and nobody dared take a step toward her. So why was this hooting maniac coming to see her?

       “Well, what?” Jenna snapped. He smiled. She stared at his teeth. They were white, pearly. A startling difference from his dark, tanned face.

       “Mrs. Parm’lee told me you were coming. Said maybe I could cheer you up, you sounded like such a sourpuss in your letters and the phone. Apparently, all that’s gonna happen, Janella, is that I’m gonna get skinned alive, and my hide nailed to the barn door, if I’m lucky. Done by such a lovely damsel, too.”

       Her green eyes flashed, her mane seemed to roar as she sprung at his throat.

       He somehow managed to nimble out the back door, and Jenna, with a spurt of morning energy, chased him around the yard.
With a sudden burst of speed, Lucas leapt over the gate and down the path to the lake. With a petrifying howl, Jenna followed her prey.

       People who looked out their windows saw a most extraordinary sight: a yowling girl with streaming hair chasing a brown-faced, long-legged boy, looking for all the world as if she could pull his hair out. Which she could, and wanted to, even.

       They reached the lake, with Jenna gaining on Lucas. At the edge, he paused, uncertain where to go. She came upon him, and stuck out her hand, intending to grab him. Instead, Lucas ducked and Jenna fell headlong into the lake.

       Lucas lost his balance, following her. Thankfully, both of them were a heck of a swimmer, and they soon reached the raft in the middle of the lake.

       Jenna sat, scowling, and wringing out her hair. Lucas stretched out to bask in the sun.

       “Another hour and I’ll have you for thanksgiving.” Her crisp voice startled the silence.

       “Huh?”

       “You’re almost as good as a roasted turkey, and after another hour of sun, I’ll just need to stuff you.”

       His burst of laughter produced a bigger smile (his), and an even sourer scowl (hers).

       “And that stupid business about being a damsel. I ain’t no fairytale, and don’t you forget.” At this, Lucas sat up, and Jenna promptly shoved him off the raft as an example that she wasn’t ‘a stupid little pampered princess’.

       “Hey, I was just beginning to bake!” came the protest from below.

       “Suit yourself, b***head!” was the shout in reply.

       He climbed up again, and, wanting conversation, said, “Nice weather in these parts, eh? Sunny, breezy. Nice, light, rain.”

       She turned to him, poking her finger in his chest. “If you say anything more about this place and weather, I swear I’ll strangle you.”

       Lucas leaned forward, studying Jenna’s face with intense curiosity and an ounce of caring. “What’s wrong, Jenn? I heard about your parents, but something’s really, very wrong. Something I don’t know.”

       For a moment, as she stared at his puzzled, brown face, she wanted to tell him, she really did. But her cold, hard outside kicked in. “None of your business, poke nose. You wouldn’t care or understand.” As she said this, she turned herself away.

       “Jenna.” His hand came and touched her arm lightly.

       Jenna froze. Her father had used to touch her that way, too: soft, gentle, tender, when she was angry and he knew talking about it would help.

       She turned to him, eyes brimming with tears. “I—” her voice caught in a sob, and she moved to cover her face with her hand.

       She started to cry, cried for her father, her mother, and the unspoken goodbye that was strangling her. She cried because of loss, of sorrow, and of the self-hatred she had trapped inside her.

       Lucas knew just what to do. He gently enveloped her in his long arms, acting as a protecting shield, and stroked her head as her mother would have done. She wept even harder, clinging to him.

       “It’s okay, Jenn. Everything’s okay,” came the soothing voice.

       “No, it’s not,” she wailed. “I never had the chance to say goodbye. Never looked up, or hugged them back, when they left me to go to Boston.”

       She buried her head in his shoulder, and, calming down, looked at him. He smiled a sad smile at her, and she scowled at him for being so trustworthy.

       “Look what you’ve done, stupid. What a weasel you are, prying the truth from me.” And with that, she dove in and showered Lucas in an almighty splash.

       Lucas dove in after her, and, with only a moment’s hesitation, the two began to race to shore.

       As they began to walk back to Parmalee cottage, Lucas slid his hand into Jenna’s.

       “Now don’t you try any of that stuff on me,” she said gruffly, but held on.

       “Jenn, not all people are bad and unforgiving. You have to accept your parents’ death as part of a natural cycle.”

       “Lucas, you are such a wimp. So you think unspoken goodbyes are part of a natural cycle, too?” sneered Jenna, wrenching her hand from Lucas’s.

       They walked in silence. Jenna noticed all the flowers around them, and doing her best to seem uninterested, said, “Luke, are there any lilacs around here?”

       Lucas peered at her, confused. “No, they’re rare, except one can find them in secret glades and such. Why?"

       The reply came in a whisper as soft as the wind: “they were my father’s favorite. He said they matched my mother’s eyes.”

       Lucas saw, through her drawn hair, the glimmer of tears. He patted Jenna’s hand to comfort her.

       “Look!” Jenna’s wild leap and cry surprised Lucas. “Horses!”

       There seems to be one thing you like, Jenn, Lucas thought to himself, but instead he said, “They belong to Mr. Craviolli, a kindly old Italian who loves horses. C’mon, he loves to meet new kids.”

       They went to a stable, where Mr. Craviolli stood grooming a chestnut.

       After the introductions, he nodded to the stalls and the children headed for them.

       The names were lovingly painted on the stall doors, so Jenna addressed the handsome animals directly, crooning their names.

       She came to a palomino, and stopped short. “Oh, you’re beautiful,” she breathed, and the horse snorted in agreement.

       “What’s her name?” Lucas asked, coming up behind her.

       Jenna gasped. “Lilac.”

       “You seem to have found your horse,” Mr. Craviolli said, walking towards them.

       “Yes, Mr. Craviolli. Oh, can I ride her?”

       “Yes, But on one condition. You must call me Piet from now on. I will respond only to that.”

       As Jenna nodded enthusiastically, Lucas, smiled, noted her change in attitude.

       As if reading his mind, Jenna turned to him, scowling. “How about you, Smiley, you gonna ride one?” she snarled.

       “Yeah. Snaffle. He fathered several of Lilac’s foals.” He headed into the next stall, greeting the horse.

       When the kids were saddled up, they rode the ponies into the meadow.

       Snaffle nosed a geranium, before it disappeared into his eager mouth. Lilac, too, nibbled a few, though with lacking enthusi

       “She wants a Lilac,” said Jenna, sadly.

       “You really want her to have some?” pondered Lucas.

       “Yeah, but you yourself said there aren’t any.”

       “I said around here.”

       “What!”

       Lucas stared at her. “Can you keep a secret?” he whispered.

       Jenna’s eyes widened. She nodded.

       “I have my own special place for thinking,” said Lucas softly. “I go there whenever I’m lonely, or sad.”

       Jenna nodded. “Me, too. I used to have one, in my closet.”

       Lucas smiled. Jenna was opening up. “I’ll show it to you,” he said quietly.

       They rode across the field, and into the forest. They gazed at the majestic trees, branches so high and sweeping, massive trunks, and small saplings. They crossed a stream (After the horses drank) and didn’t stop riding until Lucas and Snaffle abruptly halted.
Jenna peered ahead. There was nothing but thick spruce in front of them.

       Lucas rode around the mass of thick branches, and suddenly disappeared. Jenna looked closely, and saw a nearly invisible gap between two trees. She followed, and her mouth fell open at the new scenery.

       It was a small, quaint, place, with sunlight making patterns on the grassy floor. The trees around varied greatly, but all brought a cool breeze. Butterflies flitted in and out of wild flowers, and a stream tinkled nearby.

       Though the beauty was overwhelming, just one thought filled Jenna’s mind. Her mother and father had been so keen on discovering such a place. And now she had.

       Lucas rode softly up behind her, and, dismounting, they left the horses to graze and drink.

       Jenna turned to Lucas, her eyes shining with tears. “Thank you,” was all she could muster, yet Lucas seemed to understand and smiled.

       “Sometimes, I can find Lilacs here,” he murmured.

       “Are there any now?” Jenna asked curiously.

       “No,” was the short, simple, reply.

       It was 1:00 by the time Jenna came home. She was surprised to observe that Aunt wasn’t cross, but only smiled and nodded knowingly in Lucas’s direction.

       As the days passed, Jenna found in Lucas a new, fresh, good friend. He seemed to understand any nonsense she said, knew just what to say, and seemed to have a good choice as to nod gravely or laugh in reply.

       Lucas observed that Jenna seemed to progress. She only called him names twice or thrice a day and talked about her parents more freely. But the one thing she couldn’t seem to do was smile.

       Even so, everyday they found themselves becoming better and better friends.

       But an unfortunate event was soon to change all that.

       Jenna came to Lucas one hot, dreary afternoon. She was sobbing.

       Lucas felt a flash of guilt stab through him. Jenna saw it in his eyes, and her face turned to him, contorted with rage.

       “How could you,” she screamed, tears streaming down her face. “The only thing I had left was Lilac, and you took her from me.”

       Lucas took a deep breath and said, “Jenna, I can explain. I—”

       “Shut up, you!” she screeched. “I don’t want to hear it! I don’t want your bogus friendship and your forest and your smile. I don’t want anything to do with you!”

       And she staggered away. Lucas hung his head, knowing it was his fault that Mrs. Badgers had found out about Lilac, and taken her away.

       Lucas had walked into her shop, and the next thing he knew, he was telling her about how beautiful the mare was.

       That very afternoon, Mrs. Badger had walked into Piet Craviolli’s stables and offered him $500 on the spot. And she wouldn’t take no for an answer.

       Jenna was weeding Aunt Viv’s vegetable patch when she heard soft footsteps on the grass. “I wont be long, Aunt. Just another row of this darned garden, and I can only see a few more weeds.”

       She heard someone clear their throat, and looking up, saw Lucas with a hand behind his back.

       She frowned at him, and resuming weeding, throwing dirt on his bare toes on purpose.

       “Jenna.” She froze. “I’m sorry.”

       “You should be,” she sneered.

       “I am. That’s why I brought you this.”

       She stared as Lucas brought his hand to the front. It clutched a small bouquet of flowers. Not just any flowers, but— “Lilacs,” said Lucas.

       Jenna heard a whinny. She whipped around.

       There, looking dreamy in the golden sunshine, stood Lilac.

       “Lilac!” Shouted Jenna

       She raced to the filly, embracing her in a hug known only to the lucky members of a long and lasting bond.

       She turned around, and there was Lucas, smiling.

       She gasped, then said, “Lucas, how?”

       Grinning, he told his tale. “I went up to Mrs. Badgers, and told her I was gonna give her a charming little patch of land worth about $600 in exchange for Lilac.”

       Silence.

       Then, “Lucas, that $600 was your Secret Place, wasn’t it?”

       “Yeah.”

       “But how come when I asked Mr. Cra—Piet,” she cringed. “He said Lilac was bought for $500.”

       Lucas grinned even wider. “I know. But wouldn’t you say that extra hundred dollars may be worth a friendship?”

       Jenna nodded. “But your Glade—”

       “Found a new one.” Lucas gestured to the Lilacs, and then handed them to a reddening Jenna.

       She hesitated only a second, then, taking them, smiled the first smile Lucas had ever seen on her face.

       It seemed there was no end to surprises, for Jenna threw her arms around the best best friend she had ever had, and kissed him on his grinning mouth.

       “Oops,” Giggled a voice, and there stood Aunt Viv, clearly trying to suppress her laughter at the sight of the two young lovers.

       Lucas turned as red as a beetroot, but Jenna smiled again and said, “Aunt, what do you say I give some carrots to my little Lilac?”

THE END