Read Online Residue by Laury Falter - Free Book Online
Authors: Laury Falter
Tags: Young Adult
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love it,” said Aunt Lizzy. “All right. We have a special dinner prepared tonight. It is Jocelyn’s sixteenth birthday so let’s make it memorable.”
That started another exuberant commotion from my cousins surrounding me until Aunt Lizzy cleared her throat. “Clear off that table and take your seats.”
A few minutes later, as I stood awkwardly off to the side, my cousins raced their heavy-laden, supply-filled canvas bags up to their rooms and returned. Then commands were issued by Aunt Lizzy as the commotion continued to swirl around me.
“ Placemats. Silverware.” She pointed around the room. “Distribute,” she said to a short, thin girl with strawberry-blond hair while shoving a stack of plates in her hands.
The girl didn’t lift a foot to follow the order.
Instead, she remained in place, whispered something under her breath, and the plates began rising one after the other on their own and moving across the room and landing on a placemat before each chair.
I stood across the room certain I was witnessing an optical illusion or maybe the imperceptible snap of her hand so that the plates landed where she wanted. It occurred in the midst of two boys elbowing each other and another girl shouting for Miss Mabelle to make her soup spicy. No one took a second look at the plates.
As everyone was pulling out their chairs and Miss Mabelle began bringing in the soup bowls, something else caught my attention.
“ Oh…” Aunt Lizzy grumbled, realizing she’d forgotten something. “Candles, Estelle.”
The girl who had liked the purple candles she’d received in her bag of school supplies earlier, tossed back her dark brown hair, mumbled something that sounded like Latin and pursed her thick lips together before lightly blowing through them. As if it were an everyday occurrence, the rest of the table went about their business while the wicks began to flicker with flame, without a matchstick or a lighter in the room.
As if that wasn’t enough to make everyone I know run for the door, with a quick lift of Aunt Lizzy’s finger jazz music began filtering softly in from the living room.
Stunned into silence, I tried to rationalize what was happening. Maybe tricks were being played? Wires had carried the dishes and the candles had special timers. And these things had all been set up before they’d left for camp just to fool with me. But I knew this wasn’t the case. How could it be? No one knew I’d be coming.
Then it dawned on me…
Jameson had been correct.
I was witnessing the mysticism I had been mocking all day long. This realization stayed with me throughout dinner, which was a four course meal and probably the most delicious food I’d ever tasted. And while I would have preferred to sit quietly throughout the meal, giving me time to enjoy it and to better comprehend what I had observed here and in the French Quarter shops, that turned out to be an impossible expectation. I was peppered with questions about myself, my life to-date, and my mother for the first half of the meal. Only one thing broke the conversation, something that settled in and didn’t leave me throughout the meal. When I’d mentioned that Aunt Lizzy had slept the entire day and I’d gone shopping on my own, Miss Mabelle happened to be in the room, collecting empty soup bowls. Overhearing me, she muttered under her breath, “Mmmmhmmm, kin thank me for that…” Then she was gone, the door between the kitchen and dining room swinging back in its place.
It unnerved me.
She had just admitted to ensuring that the only person who could possibly escort me around this unfamiliar city was indisposed; and that during Aunt Lizzy’s absence Miss Mabelle had ushered me toward shopping for school supplies that could have been bought in advance, or even piecemealed together from the other school supplies until ones could be bought to replace them. Instead, Miss Mabelle had guaranteed that I would be shopping on my own. What happened to
That started another exuberant commotion from my cousins surrounding me until Aunt Lizzy cleared her throat. “Clear off that table and take your seats.”
A few minutes later, as I stood awkwardly off to the side, my cousins raced their heavy-laden, supply-filled canvas bags up to their rooms and returned. Then commands were issued by Aunt Lizzy as the commotion continued to swirl around me.
“ Placemats. Silverware.” She pointed around the room. “Distribute,” she said to a short, thin girl with strawberry-blond hair while shoving a stack of plates in her hands.
The girl didn’t lift a foot to follow the order.
Instead, she remained in place, whispered something under her breath, and the plates began rising one after the other on their own and moving across the room and landing on a placemat before each chair.
I stood across the room certain I was witnessing an optical illusion or maybe the imperceptible snap of her hand so that the plates landed where she wanted. It occurred in the midst of two boys elbowing each other and another girl shouting for Miss Mabelle to make her soup spicy. No one took a second look at the plates.
As everyone was pulling out their chairs and Miss Mabelle began bringing in the soup bowls, something else caught my attention.
“ Oh…” Aunt Lizzy grumbled, realizing she’d forgotten something. “Candles, Estelle.”
The girl who had liked the purple candles she’d received in her bag of school supplies earlier, tossed back her dark brown hair, mumbled something that sounded like Latin and pursed her thick lips together before lightly blowing through them. As if it were an everyday occurrence, the rest of the table went about their business while the wicks began to flicker with flame, without a matchstick or a lighter in the room.
As if that wasn’t enough to make everyone I know run for the door, with a quick lift of Aunt Lizzy’s finger jazz music began filtering softly in from the living room.
Stunned into silence, I tried to rationalize what was happening. Maybe tricks were being played? Wires had carried the dishes and the candles had special timers. And these things had all been set up before they’d left for camp just to fool with me. But I knew this wasn’t the case. How could it be? No one knew I’d be coming.
Then it dawned on me…
Jameson had been correct.
I was witnessing the mysticism I had been mocking all day long. This realization stayed with me throughout dinner, which was a four course meal and probably the most delicious food I’d ever tasted. And while I would have preferred to sit quietly throughout the meal, giving me time to enjoy it and to better comprehend what I had observed here and in the French Quarter shops, that turned out to be an impossible expectation. I was peppered with questions about myself, my life to-date, and my mother for the first half of the meal. Only one thing broke the conversation, something that settled in and didn’t leave me throughout the meal. When I’d mentioned that Aunt Lizzy had slept the entire day and I’d gone shopping on my own, Miss Mabelle happened to be in the room, collecting empty soup bowls. Overhearing me, she muttered under her breath, “Mmmmhmmm, kin thank me for that…” Then she was gone, the door between the kitchen and dining room swinging back in its place.
It unnerved me.
She had just admitted to ensuring that the only person who could possibly escort me around this unfamiliar city was indisposed; and that during Aunt Lizzy’s absence Miss Mabelle had ushered me toward shopping for school supplies that could have been bought in advance, or even piecemealed together from the other school supplies until ones could be bought to replace them. Instead, Miss Mabelle had guaranteed that I would be shopping on my own. What happened to
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