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I hear some rustling in the kitchen and try to pretend I’m still sleeping when Granny starts yelling.

“Come on, rise and shine,” she calls through the house. “Breakfast is ready. Get up. You don’t want to sleep your life away.”

That actually doesn’t seem like such a bad way to go since she mentioned it.

I pull the blanket over my face and squeeze my eyes shut. This doesn’t work though because Granny comes over, rips the cover down, and keeps up her relentless taunt about me getting up. I groan and then roll over and push myself up because it’s obvious there’s no sleeping late in this house.

We’re having another huge meal this morning and it kills me to eat like this again. You’d think she would’ve learned not to make so much food since she’s lived alone all these years, but she tells me that she’s always made meals like this. Granny comes from a big family of eight brothers and sisters, and her mom was the one who taught her to cook, which was for a family of ten. I’m going to turn into a beached whale if I don’t get back on my normal diet soon. I’ll have to stop at a store somewhere so I can buy stuff that I’m used to eating.

The moment Granny’s delicious home cooking hits my mouth, I close my eyes and fight back the urge to go into a full-on food orgasm in front of my father. It tastes that damn good. I know I’ll regret it later, but right now I allow myself to indulge a little.

Dad and I eat while we listen to Granny rattle on about the local gossip. I don’t know any of the people that she’s talking about, so I zone out, staring at a scuff on the kitchen table and wondering if Dad put it there when he was a little kid.

“Avery? Avery? Did you hear anything I said?” Granny growls.

“Huh? About what?” I rush the words out.

“About your chore list.”

“Chores?” My eyes widen. “You’re giving me a chore list?”

“Well, you’ll have some duties around here,” Granny says sternly. “Everyone has to earn their keep.”

I never did anything remotely close to a chore back in Columbus. We had a cleaning service that came in and did everything, but I guess that’s not an option here, since we’re poor and all now. I shift uneasily in my chair while Granny reads me a list of things I’m supposed to do every day.

One thing on the list turns my st

omach and I have to protest.

“Whoa, clean stalls? That’s like cleaning up their shit, right? I don’t know a thing about horses,” I complain.

“Well, it’s time you learn about them,” she lectures. “And watch the language. It’s not right for a young lady to curse.” Granny gives me a wink and I chuckle. Ha, it’s fine for her to cuss all she wants, but I’m not even allowed to say shit? Not fair and she knows it.

After I help with the dishes, I make my way outside for a bit of fresh air.

I plop down on the front porch steps and stare into the green nothingness that surrounds the house. I guess I should be grateful for Granny’s chore list. At least it will give me something to do.

I stare down at my nails. I’m in desperate need of a manicure, but that’s just one more thing that I can no longer have.

“There’s no money for frivolous things,” Dad told me on the way down here. “We’ll have to just make do, and learn to live within our meager means now.”

“You ready?” my dad calls as he pushes open the screen door and steps out onto the porch with me.

“For what?” I ask, completely caught off guard because I’m still sulking over cleaning the horse stalls.

“To go to the lumberyard . . . remember? I’m going to start building your new room today.”

“Oh. Right.” I’d nearly forgotten about that.

I push myself up and Dad wraps an arm around my shoulders. “I know things are tough right now, but things can only go up from here.” He kisses me on the top of my head. “Come on, kiddo.”

I follow Dad out to Granny’s truck and then jump inside the cab with him. He twists the key in the ignition and the engine roars to life. Granny doesn’t drive it much, but it still seems to be in perfectly good condition.

Dad pats the dash of the truck. “This was your grandpa’s pride and joy. He bought it new in eighty-eight, and it was the first new vehicle that he’d ever owned. I remember the day he bought it. He was so proud, and he turned to me and told me that working hard is how you can afford to have nice things. I took that statement to heart.”

Dad hasn’t talked about his family in such a fond way in a long time, so it’s nice to hear this story about him and his father. I want him to keep going, so I ask, “Is that what motivated you to go to college and move to the city?”

He puts the truck in drive and heads down the driveway. “It is. I always idolized the people I saw on television and all the nice things they had. I figured out early that if I wanted to have the kind of life I grew up dreaming about that I would have to be a successful businessman, so that’s what I worked for.”

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