Michael Perry climbed aboard bus 312 on a mission. The bus driver, Big Max, as he was known, smiled and greeted him with a, “How’s my favorite kindergartner today?”
“Good,” Michael smiled, hoping his dimple was especially adorable this afternoon. “I have a note from my dad. I’m supposed to go to his friend Miss Melody’s house today instead of Ms. Karen’s.” He held out the carefully typewritten note he’d taken most of the evening before to create, hoping it sounded like something a grown up might write, and waited.
“Is that a fact?” Big Max asked, taking the note from his mittened hand. “Let’s see here.” He read over the note and then looked at Michael, who was doing his best to look innocent. “Well, okay then. That’s on my route. Take a seat, kiddo.”
Michael nodded and made his way to his usual seat next to
Melody was upstairs in the hallway shuffling some boxes around so that she could get the antique school desk to the stairs when she heard the front door open. Thinking it odd that her mother would be home so early, she put the box of collectibles she had in her hands down carefully on the ground and slid her way through the mess to the stairs. “Mom?” she shouted from the top of the stairs.She wasn’t expecting the sound she heard next.“Hi, Miss Melody! It’s me—Michael!” came a familiar high-pitched voice, and Melody’s eyes doubled in size.“Michael?” she shouted, hurrying down the stairs. She saw him standing next to the front door about the time she made it halfway down the stairs. He was still wearing his backpack, and since Reid didn’t appear to be with him, she was completely confused. “What are you doing here? Where’s your dad?”
Reid finished tightening a loose spindle near the top of the steep stairwell when he realized his cell phone was ringing. It was about time for Michael to get to Ms. Karen’s house, so he decided he better check and make sure everything was okay. Pulling it out of his pocket and glancing at the display, he saw that it was the sitter calling and answered the phone immediately.“Hello?” he said, and the panic in Ms. Karen’s voice when she responded lit every one of his nerves on fire.“Reid, it’s Karen. Do you have Michael with you today?”“No, he’s not there?” Reid asked, dropping his tools and rising to his full height.“No, the school bus came by, but it didn’t stop. I called the school, and Michael’s teacher said that he got on the bus like he always does. They’re trying to get ahold of the bus driver, but… Rei
Michael was sprawled across from her on her father’s favorite oriental rug, studying the checkerboard with the scrutiny of a general poring over his battle plans. She’d called her mother to let her know Michael’s dad was on his way so she wouldn’t worry. Now, Melody couldn’t help but smile watching Michael stick his tongue out of the side of his mouth in concentration as if that would help him to decide which move to make next.“I think you’re stalling,” she said with a wink. It had been a long time since she’d played checkers, and while she intended to let him win, she at least wanted to make it a challenge.“I’m not stalling,” he replied, looking up at her with those big blue eyes. “I’m thinkin’.” He finally made a move, and Melody began to contemplate what she should do next to set him up for subtler success. “Do you really think San
Melody straightened the hem of her pink sweater and brushed her hair back over her shoulders. Upon opening the door, she could tell immediately that he was a bit frazzled, and she couldn’t blame him. Despite the fact that he had been trying to sound calm on the phone, she knew he must have been moments away from a panic attack the second he found out Michael hadn’t made it to Ms. Karen’s house. “Hi, Reid,” she said, smiling and attempting to keep her own voice cheerful. If she didn’t think it was a big deal that his son had sought her out because Michael thought she was “nice and pretty,” maybe Reid wouldn’t either.“Melody, hi,” he said, stepping through the doorway. “It’s nice to see you again, though I didn’t expect it to be under these circumstances.”He was smiling politely, and she giggled at his comment, hoping she didn’t sound like a
They reached the top of the stairs, and she remembered just what a disaster she had created earlier that day. It looked even worse than it had the week before. She stopped so abruptly at the top of the stairs that he bumped into her. “Sorry,” he said, and Melody took a step forward. “It’s no problem, Melody. It’s the least I could do after how cool you’ve been about Michael just dropping by.”His hand had briefly touched her hip when he ran into her, and she knew her eyes were probably twice their regular size as she stood staring at him, inches away from her again. The scent of pine and leather filled her lungs, and it took her a moment to process what he had just said. After a lengthy pause, she said, “What are friends for?” flashed him a smile, and began to pick her way through the maze.“You’ve been busy,” he said politely, following her.&ldqu
Melody pushed open the door to Delaney’s Delights and braced herself for the barrage of Christmas music. There was no avoiding it now; it was everywhere she went, and though she did her best to tune it out, there were times when particular songs came on that memories of her father flooded her senses, and she needed to step away or turn it off. Luckily, this afternoon, her entrance was greeted by a particularly poppy rendition of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” and there was nothing specifically remarkable about that song.Delaney was sliding a muffin across the counter on a bright red plate to a customer as Melody walked in. She looked up and smiled. “Hey, two days in a row! How did I get so lucky?”Laughing, Melody crossed the crowded room to the counter. “I was just dropping some boxes off at Mom’s shop and thought I’d come by and ask you a quick question.”&ldquo
Reid found Mrs. Gregory in her kitchen sipping a cup of coffee with a catalogue in front of her on the island, the heavenly aroma of sugar cookies radiating out of the oven. She looked up as he walked in, and setting her cup down said, “Did you get it all patched up?”“I did,” he assured her with a smile. “I think it’s in pretty good shape, and I trimmed the tree back a bit more while I was up there so you shouldn’t have to worry about it anymore for a while.”“Oh, thank goodness,” she exclaimed with a smile. “One less thing to worry about.”“Do you mind if I use your sink?” he asked. He’d taken his work gloves off for part of the more delicate repairs and now his hands were dirty.“Not at all,” she said, hopping up to fetch him a clean towel. “You’ll sit a spell with me and have a cup of
Bible study started at 5:30 and was over by 6:30 so that the choir—or this time of year, those who would be participating in the Christmas Festival—could get an hour’s worth of practice in before little ones needed to head off to bed. Melody had made several friends in her study group and knew others from high school, but she was so busy these days trying to keep the shop open, she rarely saw any of them outside of their Wednesday night meetings and Sunday service. This time of year, it was hard for her to focus because the lessons were always about how to be thankful and appreciate the ones you loved, the sort of themes that went along with the Christmas spirit, and since she spent most of the hour thinking about her father, she was seriously considering skipping from now until after the new year.A few of the girls in her group called her over to chat once the leader, Dan, dismissed them, but she made an excuse and headed out the clas