The City That Never Sleeps

it sound as though there was no other kind of music.

  “Everything else.” Sophie didn’t feel like talking. She placed a hand on her tummy and looked out at all the trees. She couldn’t wait until fall, when things calmed down and everything changed colors and nights could be warm and cozy instead of stagnant and unbearable.

  “Well here we are,” Vanessa informed, just when Sophie was considering throwing herself out of the car.

  Vanessa turned down a quiet, deserted street to a huge black gate where she stopped to punch in a code. The gates gave way to a pleasant drive between overgrown trees to the huge four-story house. The pool was surrounded by a large wooden fence. As soon as Sophie got out of the car she heard sounds coming from it, splashing, laughing and Justin Bieber music in the background.

  “I need to use the bathroom,” Sophie said as their dog came running up to her and then ran off just as restlessly.

  “Roadie!” Vanessa called the dog over. “I got you a sweater.”

  Roadie was a baby Rottweiler. He seemed housebroken enough but that type of dog still frightened Sophie, especially when he tried to sniff her crotch.

  “I need to use the bathroom,” Sophie repeated, trying to stay calm.

  “Okay, come on…” Vanessa looked over by the pool. “Leslie!! We’re here!”

  8

  “Well follow me, I’ll show you where everything is,” Vanessa told Sophie. The front door was wide open. The house was dark and cold and smelled nice. Natural light gushed in through the huge windows in the kitchen and the back and front doors.

  There was a boy who looked about twelve with freckles and shaggy blonde hair sitting at the kitchen counter. He seemed perfectly comfortable in his own dirty skin. He was eating potato chips and his face was shiny with grease. Bags of Ruffles were all over the place, paper plates and other necessities to feed six boys, two girls and any guests they would be having.

  “Stewart, please tell The Tornado I forgot his Trasher magazine. I will be going back out tomorrow,” Vanessa informed.

  Stewart laughed and yelled, “THRASHER!” obnoxiously, with his mouth still full. Sophie started to follow Vanessa up the stairs when Vanessa stopped.

  “Oh, dear, you need to take your shoes off at the door,” Vanessa informed. She sounded very distraught that Sophie hadn’t done this. Sophie went back and put her shoes next to all the grungy sneakers. The room was vacant except for the shoes, a coat rack and ballerina dress strewn on a huge wicker chair.

  “You’re lucky. The boys are staying on the third floor where I am. You and Leslie are on the second,” Vanessa let Sophie know as they climbed the stairs. Finally, Sophie thought, I’ll be alone soon.

  “Wow, I’m tired,” Vanessa sighed. “I got up at seven this morning.”

  “Thanks for picking me up,” Sophie remembered her manners. She couldn’t wait to be in her room alone with her book.

  “Oh its no problem, I would have had to go out anyway. When you’re a woman there’s always something to do. If there is nothing else you bet your butt there are some dirty dishes in the sink.” She turned to face Sophie when she stopped at the last door on the right. Sun pounded a little window next to it.

  “This is a brand new house. Isn’t it lovely?” Vanessa waited for Sophie to rain her with compliments.

  “Yes,” Sophie said. “Its so much bigger and prettier than your last house, and you have a pool.” Sophie wondered if Vanessa could detect the sarcasm in her voice.

  “We like to keep it this way,” Vanessa said, seeming like she thought Sophie was being sincere. “Nice – clean,” she said. “No bugs. No dirt tracked into the house. And I’d like for you to hang your swimsuit up on the fence to dry – don’t bring a wet swimsuit into the house,” she precisely ordered.

  “Okay…I won’t be swimming this afternoon anyway, I just want to lie down. My tummy hurts.”

  “Okay. Letting these boys stay here – I feel like a bulldozer is about to slam into the house.” She laughed. “All I’m saying is, I’m sure you’re neat…just always remember we want it to always look perfect.”

  “Okay. Vanessa, I’m sorry, I really have to pee.” Sophie could not hold the screams in any longer. She felt the anger stew inside her. She was going to burst soon.

  “Oh of course!” Vanessa threw her hands up and turned around and opened the door. “Feel free to make yourself at home. Everyone’s out by the pool and supper will be at seven.” Vanessa smiled once she said all of that. “Okay?”

  “Okay. Thanks.” Sophie waited, thinking this was it, Vanessa was finally going to go away. But she lingered.

  “So why aren’t you going to go swimming?”

  “I…have my period,” Sophie decided to share.

  “Oh, well that’s nothing to be ashamed of! I’ve gone on vacations to the beach before with mine. And The Tornado pees in the pool all the time. You should go swimming!”

  “Okay,” Sophie responded flatly.

  “Okay,” Vanessa smiled nervously. “See you at the pool.”

  “Yes.” Sophie was ten seconds away from slamming the door in Vanessa’s face but she finally turned and headed towards the stairs.

  Sophie went over and lied down in her bed and let out the stream of tears she’d been holding back since this morning. No one really wanted her around. They only wanted to feel comfortable with their lives again. Her mother managed to get rid of her after destroying the firefly house and now Vanessa was clearly uncomfortable having her here, and just as demanding and overbearing as her own mother. And Leslie hadn’t bothered saying hello to her yet. So much blood and tears ran from her she thought she’d be a shell of herself before long.

  9

  Sophie woke up a couple of hours later to screaming coming from downstairs. She recognized Leslie’s voice. She was hysterical. Sophie fought her way out of her groggy state to try and figure out what she was screaming about.

  “I FUCKING HATE HIM!” Leslie screamed. “HE THREW IT INTO THE POOL!” The high-pitched yelling was unnerving. Sophie walked out into the hallway to listen.

  “I know,” Vanessa responded, much calmer than her daughter. “He broke the TV too. Gotta get that fixed,” Vanessa responded. She didn’t sound all that upset.

  The TV?! Sophie ran down the stairs. She saw Leslie standing in the living room, hugging herself with her arms wrapped around her chest. She was taller than Sophie remembered, and very tanned and blonde and pretty.

  Leslie tried to get her emotions under control long enough to give Sophie a formal greeting.

  “Hey Sophie,” her voice was low and beat. “When did you get here?”

  “Hours ago,” Vanessa said, aggravated. “I told you that.”

  “No you didn’t,” Leslie snapped.

  “Oh my god, how I go unheard in this house.” Vanessa walked into the kitchen, shaking her head.

  “Mom, Brandon is going to ruin everything!” Leslie grew angry again. She looked at Sophie. “He threw my stereo into the pool! Yesterday he knocked the TV over playing football in the house.”

  “Is Brandon The Tornado?” Sophie wondered.

  “Yes,” Vanessa said. “No need to explain why now I guess. Sophie get dressed, we’re going out to dinner – I need to get out of this house.”

  “I’m not going,” Leslie said, insubordinate.

  “Yes you are, everyone is. Get dressed,” Vanessa demanded. Sophie did not want to go anywhere with these people.

  “Come on,” Leslie said to her. “I’ll show you around.”

  10

  Leslie took Sophie out by the pool, which was bigger than Sophie expected. The water looked clean and inviting.

  “This is the pool,” Leslie said, bored. She trudged over to a lawn chair surrounded by magazines and Perrier bottles.

  “It was my favorite place before my cousins got here,” Leslie continued. A cute but hateful looking boy suddenly appeared. He managed slipped through
the fence without anyone noticing. He glared at the girls as he made his way to the diving board.

  “Don’t look at us,” Leslie warned, though managing to be comely instead of hostile. “And you’re buying me a new stereo.”

  He gave a little condescending laugh before diving into the pool, rupturing the still water and getting the girls wet. Leslie scowled at him as he swam to the shallow end.

  “So this is my new house,” she sighed. “I was uprooted from my school for it. My dad is never, ever around. He works all the time and my mom invites the world over so she doesn’t feel lonely. Then, because she has so many people over to take care of, she busies herself with housework and grocery shopping so she feels needed. She creates these…situations,” Leslie placed some baby blonde hair behind her little ear, “So she feels like people need her around. Its pathetic. I smoke now, do you smoke?”

  Sophie shook her head and watched The Tornado do impressive laps like an Olympic swimmer. Everyone’s good at something, she guessed. So what are you good at, Sophie?

  “I’m sorry I haven’t been in touch,” Leslie said, turning her pretty brown eyes on Sophie. Sophie had forgotten how nice and honest Leslie was. Money hadn’t changed that. A new, prestigious school had not either. She spook in a calm tone and didn’t sugarcoat anything at all. She was respectful and yet totally honest all the time.

  “I’ve just been trying to come to terms with stuff,” Leslie added.

  “Yeah,” Sophie understood. “Me too. I hate my mom.”

  “I heard what she did, with your house.