The Morning After
(June 8 07:30) Lilliana Fargo was awoken by the beam of sunlight that
peeked through the space in the curtains directly into her eyes. Blinking and
blocking it with her hand, she noticed a warm fuzzy weight at her side. Looking
down she saw the little kangaroo mouse, still wrapped in her towel, curled up
in a ball next to her. She must have abandoned the game sometime late that
morning and fallen asleep. She picked up her pocket watch off the bedside table and
flipped it open. Six hours, that is plenty sleep for one night, can always get
more on the road later. Looking at the mouse again, first some new plans need
to be made. Slowly sliding out from under the mouse girl, she slipped on some
panties and sat down at the little complimentary desk/table and opened her laptop
and went to work on her changes. --- (09:00) Cecily opened her eyes, looking around slightly disoriented,
she saw the liger sitting with her back turned looking at a computer screen.
The entire night was all a fog in her mind, but she remembered the liger, she
was nice. What was her name, some kind of flower? Quietly she tried to slip out
of the bed and make her way to the bathroom; her clothes must be dry by now.
Trying not to disturb the liger any more than she already must have, Cecily
just wanted to make her escape and be done with it. No one ever really wanted
her around anyway, not even that boy that begged her to come out here, once he
got what he wanted even he tossed her
out on the street. Surely this woman had better things to do with her life than
look after her also. Startled by the sound of the armchair scraping on the floor,
Cecily squeaked and tripped over her feet. Catching herself with the door to
the bathroom, she looked over her shoulder. Looking directly at her the liger
had a huge toothy smile on her face. "Good morning Sisy. Sleep well?" Lily asked watching her
stand up slowly. "Cecily." she replied softly "What?" "My name is Cecily" She said just a bit louder. "Well, Sisy. I think I have come up with yet another stupid
plan. You have three years before you age out of the system, but you need
someone to take responsibility for you until then. It is too early to make
phone calls out west, but I think I can pull a few strings and get something
arranged." Watching the fragile mouse
start to shake, "Are you OK?" Lilly stood up and started to walk over as the
mouse darted into the bathroom slamming the door behind her. What does she want?
No one is really this nice, not to me. She thought to herself as
she shook leaning against the door. What does she mean 'pull some strings'? Who
is she going to drop me on this
time? She slid down the door, hugging her knees to her chest and
wrapping her long tail around her. If
only I had gotten out while she was sleeping. Cecily squeaked as she
heard a knock at the door. "Hey in there. I didn't mean to scare you" The liger said
from the other side. "If you want, get dressed and we can go get some
breakfast, and your stuff. By the way, where are you staying? You really didn't
tell me last night." Sitting silently, Cecily hugged her knees tighter. She felt
the thud of the liger's body hitting the door, but not trying to get in. "Look,
I am not good at this talking to people thing." Lilly said, her voice much
closer to the floor. "And I don't know what I am thinking these days. I ran
into you in that alley for a reason. I am not sure why, but everything I have
done in this last month put me right there. We're kinda in the same boat here.
You don't have a family, and what's left of mine could care less what happens
to me. So I was thinking..." She paused trying to figure out how to say what was
on her mind. "Maybe we could help each other out here. But before we can figure
these things out, I need breakfast." She finished as both their stomachs
growled almost in unison causing them both to giggle. --- (10:00) Leading Cecily to the parking garage where the Camaro
waited, "Come on Squeaky, Breakfast awaits." She said as she slid the key into
the lock on the trunk. "Toss that shit in here and lets get going. What do you
want for breakfast? Denny's, IHOP? Anything but BK, I need my grits, and their
's sucks sweaty man balls." Walking to the driver door, "Get in, it's not
locked." Sitting in the passenger seat, which was made for a much
larger person, Cecily buckled the seat belt and looked at the sparse dash. Every
car she had been in had all sorts of gadgets that she had never had a chance to
figure out. This one looked simple yet intimidating to the kangaroo mouse.
There was only a classic radio with knobs to tune the channels, no CD player or
satellite radio, yet the instrument panel was covered with gauges, she counted
nine total. Cecily yelped and covered her ears as the finely tuned muscle car
roared to life. "Help me turn on the A/C could you." Lilliana asked as she
rolled down her window. Cecily looked around the dash for the controls, but only
found two levers marked "Vent". Confused she meekly asked, "Where is the
switch?" "Right there on the door beside you. Its a 60-2 model A/C,
we roll down two windows and get this thing up to 60." Lily said pointing at
the crank for the window. 'We gots ArmStrong power windows too. Powering these
windows will make your arms strong."
Looking at the confused expression on the mouse's face, "So what's for
eats squeaker?" Tapping the shifter into reverse, Lilly threw one arm over the back of Cecily's seat
and turned almost completely around while backing the car out of the spot. Swinging back forward,
paw landing on the shifter she looked at her companion. "OK Cecily, you ready
to feel what a real car is like?" She said with the biggest grin her face could possibly manage. Dropping the
beast into first gears, and giving it gas and releasing the clutch, the engine
revved with rear tires spinning, letting off smoke and the smell of hot rubber.
The Camaro suddenly launched forward, causing Cecily to squeak and cover her
eyes. When they had finally entered the street, Lilly slowed the car to a
normal pace and looked over at the cowering kid in her passenger seat. "Shit,
I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you again. I am making a shitty role model
already." Thinking for a moment at the stoplight, "Fuck, I should probably stop
cursing too. This is going to be harder than I thought." --- (10:30) The pair sat at a table in the IHOP looking over the menu,
Lilly already knew what she wanted, the Biscuit & Gravy combo with extra
bacon and sausage. She sat her menu down and looked over at the teen mouse in
front of her. She looked so small for her age, here in the restaurant, shielded
by the menu, she looked like a small child no older the seven or eight years. Tears started forming
in her eyes as she thought about the past night. She must have gone through a
lot in her short life. But if Lilly had anything to do with it, things were
going to be different, for them both. "You can have anything you want, Sisy." She said just wanting to break the silence. A
small eep came from behind the menu, "No rush either. It's not like we have to
be anywhere any time soon." "I will have some pancakes." Cecily said setting her menu on
the table. "Pancake? Is that all you want? Not Chocolate chip, or fruit toppings? I said
anything," "Just pancakes, ma'am." She said just above a whisper. "Now don't start that mam shit with me. My name's Lilly, if
you come up with something better try it out and see if it fits." Leaning back
in her chair and crossing her arms, "Here's the deal, I am not going to leave
you alone in this city, I would not wish that on anyone your age. So you have a
choice, and I am going to leave it up to you. I can either, take you back to
Oregon and drop you off at Family services," the look of dismay on Cecily's
face was agonizing, "or we can make some calls and see what we can do about you
staying with me." Lilly saw a sparkle in Cecily's eye that quickly vanished,
replaced by the melancholy face she had seen all morning. "Either way you're
going to be spending a lot of time with me for the next month." "Why?" Cecily asked timidly. "Well, here's the thing. I just quit my job and decided to
take a break from the grind for the next month or so. And I am not giving that
up just to drive you back to a place you don't even want to be. "Leaning her
elbows on the table and folding her hands. "Look, I have twenty five days till
I get on a cruise to Hawaii, and a vacation fund that has been building for ten
years. I plan on stopping at every amusement park, tourist trap and natural
wonder I can think up between now and then. For me to take you back you will
have to suffer with me though the horrific fun and excitement I plan on
having." Looking Cecily in the eyes, "I am giving you a choice of the end of
this adventure, not whether I am taking you with me or not." Flipping back in her
chair again, "But there are going to be some rules." Just then the waiter came to take their order. Piping up
loudly Lilly said "I will take the biscuit and gravy combo, add three scrambled
eggs, extra bacon and sausage, and cover it all in enough gravy to drown a
cow." Then pointing over at Cecily," And she will have the three stack
chocolate chip pancakes with the whipped cream smiley face on it. O.J. around
the table, even the empty seats, and two cups of coffee." As the waiter left
she hears a faint whisper form the other side of the table. "I am half deaf in
both ears, you will have to speak up a bit for me to hear you," Just loud enough to hear across the table, Cecily said,
"Thank you... Lilly" "You're welcome." She replied. "Now my rules are simple.
Rule 1. I am rude, blunt, opinionated and foul mouthed. If I say or do
something that offends you, you need to tell me. If you don't, how am I
supposed to know not to do or say that again?" She waited for a response. When
none came she continued, "Rule 2. No running off. Both my and your vacation
will be ruined if I have to hunt you down in some strange city that neither of
us know. And I will come looking for you." Lilly paused for another moment.
"That's it, simple. I will only make other rules if they are necessary. Let's
hope they're not." A barely audible "Yes, mam." Came from the other side of the
table. "Polite and mannered young critter, aren't you?" Pulling out
her phone, "Now where have you been staying so we can get your stuff?" Cecily squeaked
out an address that Lilly quickly typed into the navigator on her phone.
Looking at the location on the map, "Um, we will get you new stuff. I am not
going there." Putting the Droid 4 back in its holster, "I guess that sets our
plans for the day. I wanted to see Potomac Mills anyway. Shopping will be good
for us, girl bonding time." ---(17:00) After hours of shopping, Lilly dressing the little mouse in
every outfit she could find in every
clothing store they passed, Lilliana finally dropped herself on a bench. She
looked over at the mouse girl, who for the entire trip had not been much more
than a shadow and dress up doll for Lilly, and said "I don't know about you but
this is boring." Getting only a nod, which was the peak of any conversation or
question asked all day. "How about a round of Lazer Tag. I saw one outside when
we drove around." She heard an eep come from the kangaroo mouse who was holding
a bag full of new clothes. "Ok, maybe a bit much for you, Squeaker. What would
you like to do? Anything within driving distance." Looking down at the ground, Cecily mumbled something too
quietly to be heard over the bustle of the mall on a Saturday afternoon.
Leaning in close to hear what the meek mouse girl said, she could barely make
out 'FYE'. Leaning back and looking across the walk, Lilly saw the
entertainment media outlet, "Sure, let's check it out. I haven't gotten any new
tunes in a few months." When they
entered the store, Lilly saw the first burst of energy and excitement from
Cecily, as she leaped nearly ten feet forward to the CD displays, feet never
hitting the ground until arrival. The girl bounced around from Pop to Rock, to
instrumental and classical. Lilly stood back, watching the sparkle in her eyes
as she passed each CD under the scanner of the sampler headphones. She walked
over to the wall and grabbed a CD player and cassette adapter before going back
to where the Mouse was bouncing to the beat of some random song. "Well, little
miss D.J, have you made a road selection?" When Lilly spoke, Cecily dropped the headphones and took a
few steps back, "I'm sorry." Kneeling down to get to her eye level, Lilly told her, "You
have nothing to be sorry for. You did nothing wrong. We have a long trip ahead
of us, and music would make the hours on the road go by faster. I am pretty
sure you don't want to listen to old lady music, so pick you out about ten or
so CDs. We still have to hit up Wal-Mart for a sleeping bag for you. I plan on
camping tonight. Our next stop is Busch Gardens in the morning, then on to
Orlando." Stepping back in cautiously, watching Lilly, Cecily picked
out a wide variety of music, some country, pop, rock, classical, Celtic, as
well as a few that Lilly did not really pick up on. They walked to the counter
together, and Lilly paid for the selection without paying much attention to the
cost. Exiting the store, Cecily hugged
the bag of music tightly, as if it would run away if she let go. --- (20:00) After picking up a slightly bigger tent and other hygienic
necessities, the two drove to a nearby KOA camp. Setting up camp by the light
of a campfire on a Saturday night was not Lilly's original plan, but with the
music playing and other campers still wake, it was not that big of an issue.
She was just happy that Cecily seemed more at ease now than she had been all
day. While Lilliana cooked fish over the camp stove, she watched Cecily dance
to the music playing through the car stereo. The music came to an end as Cecily sat down next to Lilly in
a camp chair. The question caught Lilly completely off guard, "Why?" Looking over at Cecily as she pulled the fish off the
cooker, "What was that, Sisy?" "Why? Why do you want to take me? What's in it for you? It
can't be the money, the way you spent it today, and everyone has a reason to
want me around. What is yours?" Cecily asked, being more direct than Lilly was
ready for. Thinking for a moment, Lilly really had no idea how to
answer the question. Looking down at the fish, she gave the only answer she
could think of, "I don't know. Nothing I guess. I never really thought about it
that way." "I need to know why you are doing this. You're being nice to
me, spending money you don't have to. I don't get it. Either you are crazy or
you are getting something out of it." "You know what, you're right. I am crazy. I was thinking the
same thing when I started looking up the information this morning. But, to be
honest, I really could not leave you in D.C.. I would not be able to sleep at
night, thinking you were right back there behind that club defenseless. When I
look at you it makes me angry. I can see the pain and neglect in your eyes. I don't know what
happened to you before now, but just looking at you makes me want to hurt
whoever hurt you. I hate seeing that look of fear on your face every time I say
something. I guess I have just gone soft." Looking over at Cecily she continued, "What I want to see is
what I saw in the music store, a happy girl without a care in the world. You
deserve that. Whatever you have been through is in the past. I don't care what
it was, hell; I won't even ask if you don't want to talk about it. What I want
for you is just to have what every girl your age should have, a safe place to
stay and whatever makes you happy." Looking back down at the food, "I guess my
motives are selfish. I want to help you because I could not live with myself if
I didn't." Cecily sat in silence
for a moment, picking at the food in front of her. "I guess I can live with
that. Can't be any worse than other places I have stayed." Eating a small bit
of the fish. "Besides, you can always send me back like the rest." "Hold on a second, I think you missed a small detail here. I
am not an Oregon resident, so I can't take you on as a foster child. I would
have to adopt you. Once that is done, there is no going back." Lilly was amazed
by the shocked look in Cecily's eyes. "If you want me to do this we are going
to be stuck together for at least until you are out of high school. And the
amusing thing is, I have no clue where that will be. I can make a few calls
tomorrow to get the temporary custody ball rolling. I know a few people in the
state from a contract a few years back." Finishing off her small meal she went
on, " I think they will need physical signatures, so we will have to be in the
state for that, but I might get Susan to walk some of the paperwork though, if
I can FedEx it to her." The look of disbelief still vivid on her face, Cecily asked,
"What the hell are you talking about? That stuff take months." "Sure it takes months to finalize, but if I can get the
paperwork pushed through, you can stay with me until then. The only problem is,
you will have to suffer through my road trip craziness and a cruise to Hawaii.
Yea, I know, who would want to go to Hawaii when you can just live on the
streets?" Looking at her again, "Damned if I am not fixin' to do the second
stupidest thing in my life. So what will it be Sisy, try living with a crazy
liger who is currently jobless and homeless, or try and strike it out on your
own again?" "Why would you do that? It's crazy, you don't even know me." "I am going to do it, because I believe in doing the right
thing, and leaving you out there by yourself is wrong." Tossing her paper plate
into the slowly dying fire, Lilly started walking to the two man tent. "Think
about it, Sisy. Finish your food, and when the fire dies, get some sleep. We
have Busch Gardens in the morning." Cecily sat there for a long time looking into the smoldering
ashes. What is wrong with this woman?
No one really thinks like that. Kneeling down, she poked at the embers
with a stick, causing them to crumble to ashes. Even if it is real, it will fall apart like everything else someday.
When will it hurt more, to leave now or wait till she pushes me away? Cecily
dozed off in the hot summer night there by the fire while contemplating and
arguing with herself. Lilly sat in the tent, watching Cecily until she fell
asleep. Hearing the young girl whimper in a dream, Lilly went out and laid down
with her, wrapping her arm over the small frame and pulling her close. She felt the shivering stop and tense muscle
relax. Together they slept there on the ground, the liger and the mouse that
had captured an once empty part of her heart.