Courage

Chapter Fifteen

[Francesca]

I woke up at five-thirty to get ready to go out and find some drawing incentive. Since Maya wakes up late, she was practically half asleep. I even had to sit her on my vanity and brush her teeth for her. I also took the opportunity to dress her as well, laying out a burgundy denim skirt, and long sleeve white shirt on her bed.

The first place we went to was the cemetery, it was still a little dark out.

"Fran, why are we here?" Maya inquired as we walked through the gravestones.

"So I can find some inspiration, duh."

"In a cemetery? What if something bad happens?"

"Ugh, Maya, I won't let anything happen to you. Now hush," I demanded.

We spent thirty-two minutes walking around that cemetery and I didn't get any ideas on what to draw.

We drove around for a while and I got hungry.

"What do you want for breakfast?" I asked Maya.

"There's a McDonald's coming up, go there."

I pulled into the driveway.

"What do you want?"

"A Hash-brown, Egg McMuffin, and an orange juice."

"Fran, you didn't order anything," Maya said after I gave her order.

"I don't eat fast food," I informed her.

"So what are you going to eat?"

"I'll just wait 'till lunch," I assured her, but that wasn't enough for her.

"No, you need to eat something now. Did you just not eat breakfast in high-school?"

"In high-school I had a maid/ cook, Dorothy. I'm not putting that in my system. God knows what goes on in that kitchen."

Maya ate when I drove off.

"Don't make a mess," I chided.

"Franny, eat," Maya advised, putting the hash-brown in front of my face.

"Maya, I'm driving," I reminded her.

"Just one bite." She moved the hash-brown in a circular motion. "Come on."

"Fine!"

Irritated, I pulled over and snatch the hash-brown from her hand. I made a face of disgust when I realized what I was about to do. I bit the hash-brown, chewed slowly and swallowed.

"Did it kill you?" Maya teased. I gave her a pointed look.

Our next location was Trillium Trail. I had no map or compass. Maya stumbled behind me down the trail. I began to feel contrite for picking out a skirt for her, even though I was wearing one as well.

"Wait . . . Fran, I . . . I need a break," Maya said in between breaths. I looked back at her, she was about ten feet behind me. "Damn, I'm out of shape." She sighed and put her hands on her hips.

I turned around to grab her hand to lead her forward. Her stagnant walk quickly made me impatient.

"Just get on my back," I directed.

I put my backpack on Maya's back, Maya then put her hands on my shoulder, jumped, wrapped her legs around my waist, her and put her hands together in front of my chest. I advanced forward.

"Franny?" Maya asked.

"Hmm?"

"What are you doing for Thanksgiving and Christmas?"

"Well," I began. "For Thanksgiving, my siblings and I are spending it at our uncle's house. And for Christmas, we're going to Alaska."

"Well, at least you're going to have fun during those two holidays," she grumbled.

"Aren't you going home for Thanksgiving and Christmas break?"

"Yeah, but I don't want to."

"Why not?"

"'Cause my brother's girlfriend is going come with her kids, then my mom's going to badger me about when I'm going to have kids, and I just don't want to deal with that."

"You don't want kids?" Maya sort of did strike me as the maternal type.

"No. God no. Hell no. Having a kid is scary. Do you want kids?"

Do I want kids? No, definitely not.

"No."

"I honestly just don't trust myself to take care of another person," she admitted.

"Crying, and yelling, and tantrums, I wouldn't be able to tolerate that. Besides, I don't think I would be able to handle I little version of me. I was an awesome but terrible child."

"Awesome how?"

"Awesome, because I was acute for my age, very apt."

"What schools did you go to before Lakeside?"

"I was homeschooled, remember, my siblings and I had private tutors who went to Ivy schools."

"Oh, yeah. Did you like being homeschooled? I mean, did it ever get boring, not being able to have a normal high-school experience?"

"I actually hated being homeschooled. Waking up everyday just to sit at a table with your siblings was just mentally draining. It definitely got boring, I was not all the way happy that I had to go to Lakeside, but at least I got to go to a real school for once."

"Franny, where are we going?"

I stopped by a tree trunk and let Maya down. I looked around at all the trees and leaves and dirt.

"I have no idea," I realized.

She was going to yell at me. She should yell at me, I deserve it; I basically woke her up early for no reason. I'd yell at me, too.

Maya's response surprised me and alleviated me at the same time; she laughed. And I laughed with her.