The Summer of Cotton Candy

  “You might want to keep your voice down,” Ron said. “No need to share with everyone.” He grabbed her by the elbow and started maneuvering her toward the door.

  She yanked her arm free. “Let go of me!” she shouted. “You have no right to grab me like that. I do not do drugs. The test is wrong!”

  Ron was getting red in the face. It was clear that he was trying to get her to leave — and to leave quietly. That wasn’t going to happen. Dozens of other refs who were just getting to work or just leaving were now staring at both of them. On the other side of the room she saw someone take off running. They’re going to get security! she thought, panic setting in hard.

  “This is the second time this week I’ve been falsely accused of something, and I’m not going to stand for it,” she yelled, spurred on by fear and unable to stop herself. She knew she should just walk away and sort it out later, maybe when Martha was in on Monday. She wanted to quit, to throw the badge and the identification in Ron’s face, but then they’d all think she was guilty. She wasn’t about to give anyone that pleasure.

  “Don’t —” Ron started to say.

  “No, you don’t!” she shouted, interrupting him. “Don’t you ever lay your hand on me or another female employee ever again. If you do, I’ll yell sexual harassment and see how long it takes them to kick your butt out of here.”

  She saw fear in the man’s eyes, and like a shark smelling blood in the water, she went in for the kill. “Yeah, how does that sound, huh? Doesn’t feel so good being the one on the receiving end of the accusation, does it? If you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay as far away from me as you can. I want to speak to Martha. She’s my supervisor, not you. She’ll help me straighten this mess out because I DON’T DO DRUGS!”

  Vaguely she heard someone shouting her name. “Candace! Slow down, it’s okay!”

  She turned, and her eyes fastened on Josh. Suddenly she could feel tears stinging the back of her eyes, but she refused to cry in front of a room full of people — and especially in front of Ron.

  “Did you hear what this idiot accused me of?” she asked Josh.

  He nodded. “We all heard, and we all know that there is no way you do drugs. So, let’s just get out of here, and I’ll make sure this whole mess gets straightened out.” She looked into his eyes, and she trusted him. He would make it okay. She believed him. He was Josh, and he had never steered her wrong. He was a good friend. She nodded slowly.

  He put his arm around her shoulders, and together they walked out. Candace refused to look at anyone for fear she’d lose it, but she just stared straight ahead, jaw set and body quivering with anger.

  Josh walked her all the way out to her car, and she was grateful for his support. Once there, she turned to him. “I didn’t take any drugs.”

  “I know,” he assured her.

  “Thank you.”

  “Just go home and try to relax. I’m sure this will all be straightened out by Monday. Think of it this way: you actually get a weekend off.”

  “Yeah,” she managed to say weakly. Another fear rose up in her mind.

  “What will Kurt think?”

  “Kurt will know this is just as bogus as I do.”

  She nodded and wiped the tears from her eyes.

  “See you in a couple days?”

  “Yes,” she said, getting in her car.

  She started the engine and drove off, noticing that Josh watched her out of sight. He was a great guy. As she headed home, she tried to think what she would tell her parents. How could she break it to them without them going postal on her?

  When she walked in the door, she could tell they were way beyond postal. They were both sitting, facing the front door, legs crossed. In her mother’s hand was a letter, and she could just guess at what it said.

  “It’s not true,” she blurted out. “I just got to work and they told me, and I told them that it was impossible. I’ve never done drugs. Josh told me that they would figure everything out Monday when my supervisor gets back. There’s this girl at work who hates me and tried to get me in trouble a few days ago. I think she might have something to do with it. And then a guy named Ron grabbed me, and I told him if he touched me again I would sue him for sexual harassment.” The words came flowing out of her right before she burst into tears and sat down on the floor.

  Her parents were silent but Candace was beyond caring. This just had to be the worst day of her life, and it wasn’t over yet. All she wanted to do was climb into bed with Mr. Huggles, pull the covers over her head, and pray for the nightmare to end. Maybe she would wake up, and it would still be May, and she would have never gotten a job at The Zone. She would let Tamara pay for everything all summer, no matter how mad her dad got, because anything had to be better than this.

  It seemed a long, long time before she heard her dad, his voice floating somewhere above her. “Did this Ron hurt you?”

  She lifted her head and looked at him through her tears. He was next to her, down on one knee, and he had his scary lawyer face on. She shook her head slowly. “He just scared me when he grabbed me, but he didn’t hurt me. I wanted to throw my badge in his face and tell him I quit, but I was afraid that if I did, then everyone would think I really did do the drugs and nobody would straighten it all out.”

  She felt a hand brush her cheek, and she turned to see her mom kneeling on the other side of her. “I think you better tell us everything, starting from the beginning,” her mom said.

  It took two hours, but Candace managed to tell them everything that had happened from the day she had started work at The Zone. Her dad had been furious when he heard about how she had been injured on the railroad tracks, and her mother had some harsh words about Lisa. At some point they all moved into the kitchen where they continued talking over bowls of ice cream.

  Just about the time she was finished with her narrative, the doorbell rang. Her mother rose to get it, and her father gripped her hand tightly. Her mother came back a moment later.

  “It seems you have a visitor,” she said.

  Candace looked up as Josh followed her mom into the kitchen. She stared at him, slack jawed. If he had produced a hat and pulled a rabbit out of it, she couldn’t have been more surprised. “Hey, Candace. I got your address from Kurt. I hope you don’t mind.”

  She shook her head.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Thompson, I apologize for my appearance — I came straight from work.”

  Both her parents nodded as if his surfer attire and the very fact of his presence were completely normal to them.

  “My name is Josh, and I work at The Zone with Candace. I just wanted you to know that none of us who know her believe that she has had any involvement with drugs whatsoever. In fact, it looks like there might have been something wrong with all the tests they did that day because several others’ — even the park president’s — tests indicated drug use. They’ve got people working right now trying to figure out what went wrong. I just wanted to let all of you know as soon as I could.”

  “We appreciate that, Josh,” Candace’s father said, looking approvingly at him.

  “I also heard that the supervisor who grabbed Candace today is in a lot of trouble. He might not have a job anymore.”

  “I should hope so,” her dad said.

  “Well, if I hear anything else tomorrow, I’ll be sure to let you know.” He turned to leave but Candace’s mother spoke up.

  “Thank you, Josh. Would you like to stay for dinner?”

  “If it wouldn’t be an imposition and if Candace wouldn’t mind,” he said, eyeing her.

  Candace finally found her voice. “Please do,” she said.

  Both her parents nodded, and he grinned. “Thank you, I believe I will.”

  It had ended up being one of the strangest days of her entire life. She had gone from sobbing hysterically on the floor of the entryway to laughing hysterically with Josh and her parents around the kitchen table. He had stayed until late, and they had played some board games. It
was one of the best nights of her life. It was strange how things could change so dramatically in just a few hours.

  It turned out her parents had believed her right away, but they did lecture her later about not telling them when bad things happened, especially at work. They even hinted that it would be okay if she quit her job. Her dad was still mad that the park didn’t fire Pete after he tried to run people down. Candace was tempted to quit her job since she had her parents’ blessing, but decided to give it a couple of days.

  She tried calling Tamara before she went to bed, but she got her voicemail. She left a short message.

  God, help me know what to do about work, she prayed. After a moment she added, And Tamara too. I don’t know what’s going on with her.

  She kissed Mr. Huggles on his nose and fell asleep.

  12

  In the morning she checked her phone, but there were no messages. While she wasn’t really in the mood to talk to anybody else, she did want to talk to Tamara. She tried calling Tam’s phone but hung up when she got the recording. She chewed on her lip for a moment before finally calling the house.

  The maid answered.

  “Hi, Rosa. This is Candace. I was wondering if Tamara’s there?”

  “No, Miss Tamara is out. I believe she was going to get coffee.”

  “Thanks, Rosa,” Candace said before hanging up. If Tamara was going out for coffee, there was only one place she would be. Candace quickly got dressed and hurried over to the Coffee Garden, their favorite coffee hangout. Surrounded on three corners by Starbucks stores, the Coffee Garden managed to survive by offering great coffee and incredibly fast ser vice. They also had the comfiest chairs and couches around.

  Candace was relieved when she saw Tamara’s car in the parking lot, because it meant she was still there. She parked and then rushed inside, anxious to tell Tamara everything that had happened. It took her a while to see Tamara because the shop was crowded and she had expected to see her alone, not sitting with a guy, and especially not sitting with Kurt.

  Candace stared, stunned. There, in the far corner, were Kurt and Tamara sitting on a couch, their heads close together. She could tell Tamara was laughing at something he was saying, and she had her hand on his.

  Candace felt like she had been punched in the stomach and was going to be sick. She had wondered why Kurt hadn’t tried to call to find out if she was okay. Now she understood. Why would he waste time on her if he could spend it with Tamara? She thought about going over and confronting them but felt too overwhelmed. She could hear people laughing around her, and a couple at a nearby table glanced her way. It was as though everybody in the place was staring at her, like they knew that she’d been dumped and they were laughing. She turned and ran back outside.

  Inside the car, she pounded the steering wheel with her fist. “God, I know life isn’t fair, but what’s the deal?” she cried. “Tell me what I’m supposed to do.”

  She sat for a long time. The clock said 8:30, and she stared at it for a minute. It took her a moment to remember that it was Sunday. Since she couldn’t go to work today, it meant she could go to church. She wasn’t exactly dressed for it, but she drove there anyway.

  Once inside she breathed a heavy sigh, trying to connect with the peace of the place. “Candace, aren’t you working?” a girl from her youth group asked as she walked by.

  “Not today,” Candace answered, trying not to grimace. The last thing she wanted to do was talk to anybody about The Zone or Kurt or anything. She just wanted to feel some semblance of normality, to believe that everything was going to be okay.

  She chose a seat in the back, far from where she normally sat, and let the music wash over her. She saw her parents enter the sanctuary, but she didn’t want to talk to them either, so she slunk down farther in her seat. The sermon, it turned out, was on loving your neighbor as yourself. It did little to improve Candace’s mood.

  Fortunately, a special musical group was giving a mini-concert. This meant that the sermon was short and that the rest of the service was taken up by music. Candace half listened. The group was good, and their drummer was fantastic. The songs were mostly nothing special, until they started singing a ballad.

  Candace closed her eyes. The music was soothing, and the words talked about letting God’s love wash away the pain. Her tears began to flow freely as she listened.

  Why, God? My best friend and my boyfriend? My only real friend and my first boyfriend! This is a nightmare. If this is what becoming a mature, responsible adult is about, I want no part of it! Being an adult means having to do a bunch of things you don’t want to with people who are mean and accuse you of terrible things.

  She hurt so badly she thought she might die sitting right there in the pew. Suddenly someone tapped her on the shoulder. She opened her eyes and saw a little girl, probably about nine, who was staring at her very solemnly.

  “These are for you,” the little girl said, thrusting a handful of tissues at Candace.

  “Thank you,” Candace said, taking a tissue and beginning to wipe her eyes.

  “I saw you from over there,” the little girl said, pointing to the pew across the aisle.

  Candace had seen the little girl nearly every Sunday for years, but she didn’t know her name. “How did you know to bring me these?” she asked. It was a lame question, but she was embarrassed by the fact that she didn’t know the girl’s name.

  “I could tell you were crying. It’s okay, you know. God understands when you cry in his house. Nobody can be happy all the time. Last year when my mom died I cried every Sunday for a month.”

  The little girl gave her a brave smile and then scurried back over to sit next to her father. Candace stared after her in shock. It’s true. No matter how bad things look, there is always someone worse off, she thought. Thanks for the perspective, God.

  She continued to dry her tears, and at the end of the ser vice she slipped out quietly with a wave to the little girl. She spent the rest of the day trying not to think about Kurt and Tamara.

  Sometime around four, the phone rang and a minute later her mother came upstairs and handed her the house phone. “It’s for you,” she said.

  “Who is it?”

  “I didn’t ask.”

  “Hello, this is Candace.”

  “Candace, this is Martha from The Zone.”

  “Hi, Martha,” Candace said, her stomach twisting in knots. She hadn’t expected Martha to be at work until Monday. They must have called her at home.

  “Are you okay?”

  Candace took a deep breath. “I’m better than I was yesterday,” she admitted.

  “That probably wouldn’t take much,” Martha said.

  “Yeah. I kind of lost it.”

  “With good reason, so I hear.”

  “So, what’s the news?” Candace asked, dreading the answer.

  “First, a question. Have you ever tried the muffins at the Muffin Mansion?”

  It seemed like a strange question. “Sure, they’re great. I love the chocolate with the chocolate chips. They’ve got this new lemony one that’s really good too.”

  “That’s what I thought,” Martha said.

  “Why?”

  “Well, a couple of the employees of the Muffin Mansion also tested positive. It seems that everyone who tested positive, including you, has been eating their brand-new lemon poppy-seed muffins. It turns out, poppy seeds can make you test positive for drug use, since they come from the same plant that opium does.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yes.”

  “I told that guy I didn’t do drugs,” Candace said, relief flooding her to know the cause of the test results.

  “I know, and several of your coworkers argued quite persuasively in your defense before the wider problem was discovered.”

  “So, I can come back to work then.”

  “Yes.”

  “So Tuesday then?”

  “Actually tomorrow. New schedules came out Saturday. You just didn’t
have a chance to see yours.”

  “Oh, what are my hours?”

  “Monday through Thursday eight to five, Saturday ten to seven.”

  Candace blinked, not sure she had heard right. “Those are great hours,” she said at last.

  “Yeah, you got really lucky,” Martha said.

  “So, that’s it? Everything’s good?”

  “Yes.”

  “What about Ron?” Candace asked.

  “Let’s just say you won’t have any interactions with him again. You’re under my supervision, and if you need to know something, I’ll be the one to tell you.”

  “Thank you,” Candace said.

  As soon as she hung up, she ran downstairs to tell her parents the good news. They were overjoyed, but not nearly half as much as she was. She was also excited about her new schedule. Fridays and Sundays off so rocked! She ran back upstairs and picked up her cell to call Tamara, then stopped, remembering what had happened that morning. She felt a stab of pain, but pushed it aside, refusing to let it spoil her victory. She remembered the brave little girl in church and dialed the phone. It would be better to get the confrontation with Tamara over with so that they could hopefully move on with their lives.

  It went straight to voice mail, so she hung up and called Josh.

  “I told you everything would be okay,” he said as soon as he heard her news.

  “You were right, thank you. And thanks for coming over last night. That was awesome. My parents went on about how thoughtful you are.”

  He laughed. “Parents always like me.”

  “How do you manage that?”

  “I’m honest, respectful, and not afraid of them.”

  “It’s Josh magic,” she teased.

  “Call it what you like, it works. So, are you going out to celebrate?”

  “I don’t know. I guess I should.”

  “Absolutely.”

  “What would you recommend?” she asked.

  “A quick trip to Zone World in Florida with dinner at On Top of the World.”

  “Very funny. It would be breakfast by the time we got there.”