Chapter VIII: A Rooster Calls

Jaci awoke just as the rooster started to call. Rubbing her eyes, she sat up in bed. She scowled at the window in the direction of the noise and tossed her pillow at it.

Shut up! She mentally yelled at it.

She put her hands behind her and leaned back, yawning. Looking around, she noticed that half of her blankets were on the floor instead of the bed.

Might as well get up anyway. She said, swinging her feet over the bed. Standing up, she

tossed the fallen blankets back onto her bed. As she made her way down the hallway to the bathroom, she was surprised to see that there were no lights on downstairs. It was odd seeing that MeMa and Pa were always up before the sun was.

Jaci undressed and got into the shower, turning the water all the way to cold to wake herself up. She stood, numb from the cold water, staring at the shower wall in front of her.

She blinked rapidly, bringing herself back to reality. She shook her head, rubbing her

temples in a futile attempt to get rid of the stabbing pain. Turning off the water, she got out of the shower and quickly got into clean clothes. She grabbed her sweatshirt from her suitcase in her room and pulled it over her head, leaving her hood up. She was cold, shivering as she walked down the stairs.

As she neared the bottom, her pace slowed. Where was MeMa and Pa? Looking around, she looked through the whole bottom level of the house before walking back to the kitchen. The green neon lights on the stove caught her attention.

4:26.

Jaci face palmed herself.

Idiot! Why didn’t you look at the time before even getting out of bed? She mentally asked herself.

I’m going to murder that rooster. Was her next thought.

She weighed her options. She could either go back to bed and sleep for four more hours or she could stay up and do something. Looking around the kitchen, she tried to think.

I can’t go back to bed. She told herself. I’m already awake.

She rolled her head to the side and then back, the vertebrae cracking all the way down to her shoulders.

I could make something to eat. She said, sliding her hand along the counter, walking around the counter so she was looking out the window above the sink, her back against the counter.

Jaci couldn’t see the moon but she could the see the stars. She smiled, taking a step forward and leaning up against the sink so she could get a better look.

Hello, what’s it like up there?

She inwardly laughed at herself as she pushed off from the sink.

I’m stupid, talking to the stars like they can hear me. She said. She walked around the kitchen one more time, trying to decide what to do. She absentmindedly played with her phone, picking at the frayed edges of her case.

Getting an idea, she opened the pantry and grabbed a bag of already popped popcorn and searched for a minute, looking for chocolate. Finally finding it, she made her way the the sliding door on the side of the house. As she passed the couch, she grabbed a blanket and tucked it under her arm. She closed the door behind her and did this awkward shuffle walk over to the hanging swing. Balancing the chocolate, popcorn, and blanket, she plopped down and sighed.

She set the popcorn and chocolate over to the side and stood up, opening the blanket as she did so. She wrapped it around herself and sat back down, grabbing the popcorn as she did so. She opened the bag and grabbed a decent sized handful which she immediately stuffed in her mouth.

She stopped for a moment, listening to the quiet chirps of the crickets. They seemed to be singing a lullaby to the rest of the quiet world, keeping it asleep while the earth spun through space.

It all goes on.

The thought randomly popped into her head. It was true. Thing change.

Small things change such as her. She changed yet it hadn’t affected the world nor the way it moved.

Jaci opened the chocolate and took a bite, chewing thoughtfully.

It all goes on.

With or without me. She stopped chewing, thinking about it for a moment before

shrugging. It’d be better with me.

*******

MeMa opened the sliding door to the side door and smiled at the sleeping form on the swing. Jaci had the blanket pulled tight around her, curled up as tightly as possible without falling off the swingset.

Shutting the door slowly as not to make any noise, she turned to her husband who was

sitting on the couch, a Bible in his lap.

“She’s just like her father,” she said with a hint of a sigh in her voice.

Pa was silent for a second before looking up. “Let’s hope she comes out differently.”

******

The rooster called.

Again.

Jaci woke with a start, arms flailing every which way. Her sudden movement upset the swings center of gravity and she toppled onto the deck with a solid thud. She lay there for a moment, her back aching and eyes shut in confusion.

Remembering how she got there, she picked herself up with a groan and tossed the blanket back onto the swing. She walked to the edge of the porch and looked around the corner of the house. Tiny rays of sunlight were already peeking over the edge of the hill and she could see the silhouette of THomas standing at the top, waiting and watching.

Forgetting her shoes, she jumped over the railing of the porch and broke into a run. Going around the corner of the house, she held onto the edge of the siding, swinging herself wide before shooting herself forward. She ran at full speed up the hill almost knocking into Thomas as he turned around. He caught her arm just as she flew by, stopping her and keeping her from falling. Once she regained her balance, he let her go and stood beside her.

“I was wondering if you were gonna make it,” he said.

“Oh,” she said, catching her breath. “The stupid rooster got me up at four and then.... You know what, never mind, it’s a long story.”

They stood, side by side, watching as the sun rose once more. The sun always rose. It never failed to show it’s shining face. The thought gave Jaci a feeling of security and she crossed her arms, satisfied.

Her phone buzzed in her back pocket and she pulled it out. Looking at the text, she smiled.

Drew: Hey, I’m calling in a favor.

Jaci: what is it

Drew: I need a place to stay for the summer…

Jaci: I’ll ask MeMa and Pa. I’m sure it’ll be fine.

Drew: Jay, you’ve got to pull this off or I’m spending the summer with my aunt.

Jaci smiled. He hated his aunt. His aunt had never had any children and had the opinion that everyone should be well behaved wherever they were at whatever occasion. If the child spoke when not spoken too, she saw it as sign of disrespect and rebellion.

Jaci: I’ll make it work. I’ll let you know when I get an answer, okay?

Drew: Thanks.

Jaci put her phone back in her pocket and leaned back on her heels, smiling. Life was looking up.

The moon, our own, earthly moon is bitterly lonely, because it is alone in the sky, always alone, and there is no one to turn to, no one to turn to it. All it can do is ache across the weightless airy ice, across thousands of versts, toward those who are equally lonely on earth, and listen to the endless howling of dogs. (“A Story About The Most Important Thing”) -Yevgeny Zamyatin, The Dragon: Fifteen Stories