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Chapter 1
Sadie
Dad’sfreakingout,andit’s very telling. He really does care about Freddy. Since this morning, Dad’s been hyper-focused on cleaning everything before Freddy’s arrival. He started cleaning the bathroom earlier, but then Mom took over. Mom doesn’t like anyone else’s version of a “clean bathroom” but her own. This led Dad to randomly set the table, forgetting we may want to play a game before dinner. Then he cleaned the TV screen with Windex, which left gigantic streaks on it, and that’s when he threw the paper towel across the room and threw his hands up.
If I didn’t know my family, I’d think we were living in a pig sty or had filthy habits that needed to be scrubbed off before a major inspection.
That is definitely not the case.
Freddy, my dad’s foster brother, is visiting. That’s it. It’s close to five in the evening, two hours away from Freddy’s expected arrival. And I don’t think Dad is satisfied knowing I’ve been rearranging my living space (the garage) and not tending to random chores in the house.
But this is your life when you’re twenty-five years old, single with no children, and living in Hillpike, Illinois. We’re fairly rural here: a quarter of us are farmers, another quarter works at the factory, and the rest keeps the town running. In this town, you live with your parents until you meet “the one” or save enough money to get out of town. The latter is my goal. Although having both would be a dream.
Until then, I’ll sporadically rearrange my garage. A woman must add excitement to her life, like the array of scarves draped across my bed for a pop of color. I hung two thrifted Salvador Dali replicas on my wall and turned my treasure trunk into a standing cabinet. I sure did: I flipped it vertically and opened it, and now I need Dad’s help putting in the wooden slabs for shelving.
I figure it’s best to get him to do something I know he knows how to do. He’s not the town’s carpenter for nothing.
“Sadie, your timing! Why now?” Dad’s over it. But he does it hastily and huffing.
“It’s you running around here like a crazy man that’s inspired me to do the same.” I laugh.
“But you’re stuck in here doing things and not helping us out there.”
“Dad, you say Freddy is like a brother to you. So why not treat him like one and not care what this place looks like? I know I wouldn’t be running around straightening things up for Savannah.”
And that’s the truth. My little sister, Savannah, is just one year short of being a decade younger than me; she’s sixteen. She still hasn’t mastered how to properly brush her back teeth. No way in hell I’ll care what she thinks about my home.
“Freddy hasn’t been to our house in years and not since me and your mother’s visit to his place in Chicago. I’ve learned it’s good to take pride in your home.”
Of course. This all has to do with Freddy’s well-to-do occupation and his big-city living. Freddy’s about a decade younger than my dad, the same nine-year age gap between Savannah and me. They were both foster kids and saw a lot together. There are a few things my dad hasn’t shared with me about what they endured.
“Freddy’s getting over a messy divorce. I want this home to feel good for him.”
“I suppose, but he’s only staying for one night. Stopping by after a business trip this way, right? I think he really wants to see you before heading home, not judge how clean your windows are.”
“Sadie, one day, when you hopefully have a place of your own, you’ll understand the feeling.”
Well, that was quite a burn.
“If that’s the case, do you think Freddy will be comfortable on the couch, Dad?”
“We don’t have another option, Sadie.”
I follow Dad out of my room and into the kitchen. “I guess for one night, that’s good enough.”
“The couch is cozy,” Mom adds as she flips the chicken she’s marinating for dinner.
“Well, I’m excited to pick Freddy’s brain about Chicago,” I admit.
“I don’t know why. That city’s saturated with crime,” Dad barks.
“Not true,” I say. “Chicago is too huge to brush it with one ol’ assumption.” I read a lot of Chicago news, and that city is pretty freaking exciting.
“Well, I guess Freddy will know. Don’t ask about his relationships or son.”
“Wouldn’t want to touch that,” I exclaim.
I’m not clear about the details of Freddy’s relationship. Aside from knowing he’s divorced, I’ve heard it has something to do with his ex-wife having an affair. And I think they sent their only son to live with her parents for the summer as they figured out living situations and custody. Is marriage even worth it these days?
