“This isn’t vodka. This is melted plastic in alcohol.”
I don’t bother replying. Right now, all I want is to stop thinking about what Ms. Barcom-Tancredi meant when she said they were headed to bed.
They. She and Dad? Together?
“They’re kind of cute together,” Hannah says, vodka glass already half-empty. It’s her second one.
“Dad and Ms. Barcom-Tancredi?”
“You mean his new girlfriend?”
All three of us stop to let those words sink in.
“Laura,” I say.
“Laura,” my sisters repeat, like we’re just down from outer space and we’ve never encountered human speech before.
A knock at the door makes all three of us jump. We don’tmove under the blankets, because who the hell is at this door at midnight?
“It’s Sam! I know you’re there!” A pause. “I’ve brought offerings.” Another couple of seconds go by. “And explanations.”
Otty and Hannah both give me considering looks.
“Go ahead,” I whisper to Otty, who crawls to the front door and opens it. “What kind of offerings, Tank Girl?”
“Vodka.”
“What flavor?” yells Hannah.
“They didn’t have watermelon, so I got plain.”
“Hallelujah.” My sister clambers her way to the entrance.
“What else?”
A sheepish, exhausted-looking Sam squats down so she can see me. She’s carrying two huge bags, which she sets down like a tribute to the local beast.
That’s me. I’m the local beast.
“Cranberry, limes, soda water. Diet Coke…”
I open my mouth to ask which kind, and she quickly says, “Gas station. Also, those lemon sandwich cookies you like.”
One of the bags disappears from view, clearly carried off by one of my scavenging sisters.
“Clementines, pickles, chips, special cocoa… and… three bags of jalapeño Cheetos.”
Oh, she knows she had me with those Cheetos. They’re hard to find nowadays, and they are my absolute favorite junk food. Also, the clementines were a master stroke because there’s always a moment when we’re tired of eating the crap and need something fresh.
“Fine. You can stay.”
Her grin is huge as she passes the other bag off to my sisters.I relinquish a piece of blanket fort, and without hesitation, Sam’s got her shoes and coat off, and she’s ducked down and squished in with me.
“Nice digs. You’ve managed to make the smallest home in the city seem even smaller.”
“It’s cozy.”
“Sure is, Beanie.”
