Part 2

“At the Cabin” Part 2

Jessica had been up since six getting ready for the party.  The first thing she did was pack the cooler with all the hotdogs and hamburger meat that she had prepared the night before.  She counted and recounted the bags of buns and arranged them in a separate box with the condiments that Brian’s mother already had at the cabin, but which Jessica always brought anyway, on principle.  If they were going to do the meat, they were going to do the meat.  Ketchup, mustard, and relish was simply part of the hamburger-hotdog package, just like the lettuce, tomato, and onion that they would also have too much of.

Jessica took a shower and did her makeup, then woke up Brian by turning on his radio-alarm.  Then she started the griddle warming up and told the girls to get dressed.  They’d chosen their red, white, and blue outfits last night, though Amber had not been happy about dressing to match her sisters again.  Amber was going into sixth grade and getting far too smart for her shoes, quieter too, which worried Jessica.  Once Amber learned self-control, there would be no way at all to tell what she was thinking.

But there was no rebellion today.  Amber, Emily, and Amy ate their pancakes and shared the syrup courteously, without even dripping any on their star-spangled skirts.  “When are we picking up Cassie?” Amber asked.

Brian, entering the kitchen, answered the question.  “Lisa is bringing her over before we leave.”  To Jessica, he said, “Actually, I think she’s driving herself, and Lisa’s driving back.”  He shook his head.  Driving already.

Jessica never spoke directly to Lisa unless necessary, preferring to communicate through Cassie or one of her own daughters.  It hadn’t been an ugly breakup, but it had been an uncomfortable one, and Jessica never liked to be reminded that she had once been the other woman.  Fortunately, Amber was all too happy to call her half-sister on any pretense.  She was developing a pretty serious hero-crush.

Cassie arrived almost fifteen minutes late, which was exactly what Jessica had expected of Lisa, who knew that they had to drive two hours to get to Brian’s mother’s before noon.  Cassie wasn’t wearing American colors either, though that couldn’t be helped, as the poor girl had probably dressed herself.  Her makeup was heavy, her ponytail carefully disarranged.  Her tight purple t-shirt barely met the hem of her jeans, and any time she bent at the waist, a cool, slim strip of flesh shone out.

“Pancakes?” Jessica asked.

“No thanks,” Cassie said.

Jessica didn’t eat any either.

Amber attached herself to Cassie’s side, and they conducted a technical analysis of the contents of Cassie’s iPod while Jessica washed up and then braided Emily’s hair into pigtails.  When she started on Amy, Amy shook her hair free of Jessica’s hands.  “You’ll get hot if you leave your hair long when you play outside at Grandma’s,” Jessica argued.

Amy pointed at Cassie.  “Just one.”

Jessica consoled herself by decorating the single ponytail with a big red barrette.