Page 25 of Crossing the Line
JANICE: I took today off. I’m not sure that I’ll be able to take off again
HAMMERHEAD: huh, that sucks. Sorry
And that’s when he stopped responding to her texts.
Grumpy and more than a little ticked off, Janice decided to go to the backyard while she called around to find another contractor.
As soon as she sat down at her table she let out a huff. Did she really want to waste her day calling around for another contractor?
No.
She was in the mood to watch the coop build and then she was doing to pick up the chicks that Samantha said were ready.
She decided against looking for another contractor at the moment and lifted her phone to call Samantha instead.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Samantha. It’s Janice.”
“Hey! Uh… why do you sound … not so happy?”
“That guy who was going to build the coop today cancelled this morning.”
“This morning?” Samantha let out a huff. “That’s… that’s… that sucks!”
Janice tipped her head back and looked up into the rafters. “I was going to start calling around for someone else, but I just… I can’t.”
She wanted to be angry, and honestly, she was. But yelling?
She just didn’t have it in her.
It felt like the ground had gone out from under her feet, a sinkhole that had pulled out every ounce of the excitement that she'd felt when she crawled into bed the night before.
"So, what are you going to do, Janice? Are you still coming to get the chicks?"
She sat upright in a rush as panic flooded through her. "Of course I still want them! They can't go outside yet. I have a box with a heat lamp in my laundry room ready for them. I've collected a bunch of old newspapers ready to change it in and out in the box. And I have the feeder and watering system ready for the chicks. When can I come over?"
"How about I pack up the girls and bring them over. I don't think you're in a mood to drive right now."
Janice deflated a little.
Samantha was right. She wasn't in a mood to drive.
"If you don't mind," she sighed, "please bring them over. If you have time to eat with me, we'll figure out what you want when you come over. Since we won't have any construction happening we can have a good talk."
"Sounds like a plan."
"It’s what we do when our original plans fall into the cracks, right?" Janice was trying to lift her own spirits and if Samantha was coming over, she didn't want her to suffer as well. "I'll go and double check that I've set everything up for the chicks."
"Sweet! I'll be there in less than an hour, 'kay?"
"Sounds great! Thanks, Samantha!"
"For you? Anytime."
The call ended and Janice's shoulders sagged.
She was going to have fun once Samantha got there. Especially when she got to see the chicks. She couldn't remember exactly how many chicks they'd decided that she would take, but at this point she was just excited to take that next step.
