Waiting at the Back Door

Waiting at the Back Door

     Cecian stared out the back door with his arms crossed across his chest. “She should have been home by now.”

     Jessina stood parallel to Cecian’s side. Only she stood just outside the frame of the back door. “She isn’t going to come home through the back door if you are standing there.”

     “That’s why I’m here,” said Cecian. “I want her to see me waiting for her so she knows we know she has been sneaking out.”

     “It’s all your fault she has been sneaking out for the last seven months,” said Jessina. “You shouldn’t have forbidden her to go out with him.”

     “She was barely thirteen, and he’s almost seventeen. Males at that age is only interested in one thing,” replied Cecian.

     “I agree with you, she’s too young to get involved with anyone,” said Jessina. “you still shouldn’t have handle it like – a father.”

     “What should I have done?” asked Cecian. “Let them get involved. You’ve seen the Hover Transport he’s controlling.”

     “We have known his family long before he was born,” said Jessina. “He’s one of the good ones. He isn’t going to get involved with her for those reasons.

     “I hope you are right, but I have overheard whispers about her, and I don’t like what I have been secretly hearing. That’s why I’m here,” said Cecian. “I going to confront her about those whispers, and find out what’s going on once and for all.”

     “That’s not going to happen with you standing in the back door like you are,” responded Jessina. “She will just find another way into the house.”

     Cecian didn’t budge. He still remained in the doorway, but after a minute he did step back out of sight a little. “She isn’t going to see me. Sharrie has been staying close to the house so that Home Protection wouldn’t spot her on video.”

     Before Jessina could respond to that a snapping of a twig made them both shut their mouths. A few seconds later Sharrie entered the house. She bumped right into her father because she didn’t see him in the near darkness. Sharrie turned to leave, but Jessina had positioned herself in the doorway to the back entrance into their house.

     “Hi mother,” said Sharrie. Then she looked over her shoulder toward Cecian. “Hi father.”

     “You smell of involvement,” said Cecian. “A lot of it.”

     “Is that what you have been doing for the last six hours with Moric?” Jessina asked.

     “That’s not involvement you are smelling,” replied Sharrie. “I smell like this because I haven’t had a Body Wash in a couple of days.”

     “I’m not smelling a lack of a Body Wash,” said Cecian. “It’s involvement I’m smelling.”

     “your father isn’t the only one,” said Jessina. “I can smell it too.”

     “If your mother can smell it, it must be a strong smell,” said Cecian. “How long have you and Moric been involved?”

     “Moric isn’t like that,” said Sharrie. “The closest we have gotten to involvement is holding hands and a little cuddling.”

     “I don’t believe you,” said Jessina. Now her arms were crossed in front of her. “If it hasn’t been Moric then who has it been with?”

     “Nobody. I’ve been over at my friend’s, Porini, house. We were having so much fun I just lost track of the time,” said Sharrie.

     Cecian cocked his head to look over Sharrie’s shoulder at Jessina. “You don’t have to sneak out of the house to go over to a friend’s house. Even if it in the middle of the night when you get back home.”

     “I sneaked out to make it look like I was seeing Moric,” responded Sharrie. “If you must know, I have been helping him to cover up his involvement with someone his parents don’t like.

     “Let’s see if I got this right,” said Jessina. “You sneaked out to be with Moric, but you didn’t actually meet up with him. Instead you went over to Porini’s house.”

     “That’s exactly what happened,” said Sharrie. “Now can I go to sleep. I’m very tired.”

     “I bet you are after your involvement,” confronted Cecian. “There is one way to find out where you really were tonight.”

     It was Jessina who hit a button on a small control box next to the door. “Connect me to Porini Veniah, daughter, at 326 Withwaye.”

     A few seconds later they heard a series of brief buzzing sounds. After about five of them Larrim could be heard. “Hello.”

     “Who is this?” Cecian asked.

     “I’m Larrim,” said Larrim. “Who are you?”

     Before Cecian could answer Jessina did. “I’m Jessina – Sharrie’s mother.”

     “I had a feeling you would be contacting me,” said Larrim. “It’s my fault Sharrie was here so long. I was supposed to be watching them, but I fell asleep while watching the Video Monitor.”

     “How old are you, and where are your parents?” Cecian asked.

     “I’m nineteen. Will be twenty in a couple of months. As for where my parents are they are here,” said Larrim. “They just went to sleep early. Do you want to talk to them?”

     “I don’t think we need to do that,” said Jessina. “They were there the whole night – right?”

     “Of course, they were. Are you sure you don’t want to talk to them?” Larrim said then asked.

     “That won’t be necessary,” said Cecian. “Thanks for your help.”

     A single buzz, and Larrim was gone. “I told you so,” said Sharrie. “Now can I go to sleep?”

     “I guess so,” said Jessina. “Only from now on no more sneaking out. If you want to help Moric that’s fine. You don’t have to sneak out to do it anymore.”

     Sharrie walked past her father. Once pass him a big smile appeared on her face as she continued on.


Note – don’t let the ages in this story sway your opinion. Most planets aren’t
       as strict about involvement as Earth is. Besides, adulthood on Bannoth is
       twenty-five.

The Word Count, including this line, is 997