Page 2 of The Parent Pick-Up
“You have got to be kidding me,” I mutter.
We peer down between the slats. I kneel and try to wedge my hand through the crack, but it’s too narrow, and the distance to the ground is too far.
“What do we do now?” Olivia’s voice wobbles.
Normally, she’s all sparkles and sunshine. But lately? The sparkle fades fast. She's been quick to tears, quiet in the car, clingier at night.
Something’s going on beneath that heedful of springy blond curls. Something I haven’t had the courage to face.
Not now, though. Right now, we need to get into our house before the sky opens up.
I pull out my phone. “We’ll call the realtor.”
It rings once. Twice. “Thank you for calling Starlight Bay Realty. Our office is currently closed. Please leave a message—”
“Hello.” I try to keep my voice steady. “This is Ivy Ickerson. I just bought the place up on Seaside Ridge and I need another set of keys. I seem to have lost mine in a bit of a predicament…”
My voice trails off and I hang up.
Olivia’s eyes fill. “Now what?”
I place a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Now…we check the back door. It will be an adventure.”
We tromp around the house, dodging more jungle. The air gets heavier by the second.
Olivia sprints ahead. I trample over a thorny bush that wraps around my ankle. Slapping at the angry vine, I lose sight of Olivia.
“Stay where I can see you!” I call, but she’s already gone.
After untangling myself from the bush, I race to catch up. By the time I spot Olivia, she’s halfway through a small open window.
“Whoa! What are you doing?”
A cold wind blows up from the sea, and the first splats of rain drop from the sky.
“I found a way in!” Olivia shouts.
“I don’t think so! This is how every horror movie starts. All that’s missing is the creepy music.”
Olivia pushes all the way through the small opening and turns around to peer at me. “You said it’s an adventure.”
“Wait!” I hand her my phone. “Use the flashlight. And go straight to the front door. I’ll meet you there.”
A fat raindrop nails me right in the eye.
I race back around to the front, my sandals slipping in the wet grass. As I sprint to the front of the house, the sky splits open, and rain comes down in sheets.
At least Olivia isn’t getting wet.
The cold rain bites through my baggy overalls, and it’s hard to see through the hair plastered to my face. I finally make it to the shelter of the drooping porch and stand shivering while Olivia makes her way through the house to open the door for me.
She’s taking forever.What if something happened?There could be a rabid raccoon in the piano, or a snake in the curtains.
My stomach knots as my mind runs through all the things that could possibly go wrong. I never should’ve let her go in alone. I’m a terrible, irresponsible, no-good mother.
Finally, I hear the lock click and the front door creaks open.
Olivia stands there grinning triumphantly. “We’re in!”
