Last Day of Summer Vacation

 

For the final assignment of my writer.com class, I chose images and descriptions from my notebook and crafted these into a flash fiction.  There were other things I was supposed to do with the story after I wrote it, but it took me so long to write this story that I decided to call it done.  You should read this if you want to.

            Lala got in line at the County Kitchen truck parked at the corner.  In front of her in line stood Chase, softly snapping his fingers and tapping his slippered feet.   "Have you found Benjamin Beagle yet?" he asked Lala.

            "Not yet," groaned Lala. It had been 3 days since she lost Benjamin Beagle, the only client of her summer dog-walking business.   All summer long they'd walked all over town like best friends, but three days ago, Lala didn't snap the leash on all the way.  Benjamin Beagle smelled something tantalizing and took off like a rocket. Lala ran after him, but couldn't keep up.  She called for him, but he abandoned her without looking back.  When he crossed bustling 17th Street, Lala lost sight of him. Myrtle and Ed, who paid her fifteen dollars a week, didn't seem angry or even sad when Lala told them that Benjamin was lost. 

            "He always comes back," said Ed, without looking up from his computer screen. Lala cried her way home. 

            "Wanna help me look for him?" Lala asked Chase. 

            "Can't.  Ran out of my meds and my dad wants to get more before school starts tomorrow.  After my doctor appointment, I have to get a haircut because my dad says my hair looks wild.  Then we're going to SchoolSmart for supplies. My dad is ticked off about how much stuff is on the fifth grade supply list. Epic last day of summer vacation, am I right?" He grabbed his sandwich and ran off toward his house.

            Lala thanked Ms. Roberta for the brown bag and walked west. She checked the light poles to make sure her Lost Dog posters weren't covered up.  She passed the screaming kids at Baker Park pool. Lena, who had invited Lala to join her for a final summer swim, spotted Lala from the diving board.  "Lala!" she screamed.  After her cannonball, she rushed to the chain link fence. "Hope you find Benjamin! See you tomorrow!"

            "See you tomorrow!" Lala waved back and kept on toward the dog park.   She sat on the cement path next to a row of rocky cairns.  She gathered rocks to make her own cairn for luck. She saw Mr. Terrence, his bald head sweaty shiny, struggling with a large cooler.  "I've been carrying this cooler of drinks for over a mile," he told Lala, when he got closer.  

            "You're strong," Lala replied. "Did you see Benjamin?" Mr. Terence shook his head, set the cooler down and sat on it.  Lala handed him the lunch bag and said, "I'm going back to school tomorrow." 

            "Yeah, First Day of your Fifth Grade Magical Mystery Tour.  You're going to rock it.   Did I tell you I carried this cooler of drinks for over a mile?" he asked, tapping the side of the cooler with his flattened hand. 

            Lala nodded and stacked the last rock on her cairn.  "See you at the crosswalk, Mr. Terence," she said, standing to go. "Glad I got to see you on our last day of freedom."

            "Freedom's not going anywhere, Fifth Grader," smiled Mr. Terrence. 

            Lala said good bye with a fist bump and headed home. Her mom would be back from her day job at Betty's Bakehouse. Maybe they could drive around and look for Benjamin before dinner time.             

            When Lala walked in, her mom was right where she knew she would be, on the plaid couch, watching Judge Judy.  Lala sat down and leaned her head on her mom's shoulder. She smelled of scones and pecan pie and fudge brownies. They held hands while they watched Judge Judy praising a man for bringing correct documentation to court. Right before the delivery of her verdict, the courtroom drama was interrupted with breaking news.  "Dog rescued from Gorilla Enclosure at the Indianapolis Zoo" announced a voice while video of Benjamin being chased by a gorilla appeared.  "Zoo workers intervened with a retrieval protocol to draw the gorillas away from the dog.  No one knows how the beagle found his way into the enclosure, but he's safe and looking for his family."

            "Benjamin?" whispered Lala and her Mom at the same time.

            They jumped up, hands squeezed together, linking them in a happy dance that lasted even after the station had returned to the regularly scheduled program.  Mom grabbed her car keys.  Lala shuffled in to her sneakers.  They headed off to retrieve Benjamin the Beagle on this epic last day of summer vacation.