At six o’clock, Vickie called out the back door of the daycare, “Pres-toooooon! Mrs. Blendon’s here!” Preston laid in dirt under a tree poking at an ant with a piece of thick bark. He grasped the bark in his hand and plunged it, driving the ant into the ground. He got up, dusted himself off, and jogged into the daycare.
“Hi, Preston,” said Mrs. Blendon who was just entering the daycare. She was a plump, harried-looking woman. “Your mom and dad are running just a little late tonight. You ready to go?”
“Yeah.”
“Let’s go then. Bye, Vicki.”
Vicki smiled and wiggled her fingers in the air. After they left, she let her head fall into her arms and sighed, “They don’t pay me enough.”
Mrs. Blendon and Preston got into her minivan, which already contained her three children. Two young girls sat in the middle seat, perhaps six and three years old, the younger one in a car seat. An older boy of about eight sat in the back seat. The boy leaned on the back of the girls’ seat aiming a toy gun at the back of Preston’s seat, and luringly called Preston’s name.
“Preeeeeeestoooon...”
Preston looked back and the boy fired, striking him right between the eyes with a foam rubber dart. As the boy hooted with glee, Preston got out of his seat, red with anger.
“Why you little...”
Mrs. Blendon’s arm prevented Preston from advancing on the boy. “Preston, sit down! Kyle, give me that gun right now.”
Kyle whined, “But it’s my gun...”
“Give it to me.”
“No, it’s my gun...I won’t shoot it anymore.”
“I don’t care. Give it to me.”
“Moooom, come on...I won’t shoot it anymore.”
“Give it to me.”
“I won’t shoot it anymore!”
“You promise?”
The boy nodded.
“All right, then. Both of you just sit back quietly until we get home.”
Kyle eased back in his seat, satisfied. Preston slowly sat back in his seat with a brooding frown on his face.
The Blendon’s lived on the same street as Preston, about four blocks away. Mrs. Blendon parked on the street in front of the house. Preston quickly exited the van and squatted low beside the side door. Kyle slid the door open, and as he was about to step out, Preston grabbed him by the shirt and yanked him out. He sprawled onto the sidewalk with a thump and bawled in pain.
Mrs. Blendon rushed around the van to the boy. “What happened?”
“Preston threw me onto the sidewalk!”
“I did not! I was just helping him out and he tripped.”
“You liar!”
“I am not. It’s the truth.”
“You’re a liar!”
“No sir. You’re the liar!”
“That’s enough!” Mrs. Blendon helped her son off the ground. “Now I want both of you to stop this bickering and get along with each other.” She stood back and surveyed her son’s injuries. “Oh, you’ve just got a few scrapes. Let’s get in the house and get you some bandages.”
As they went into house, Kyle glared at Preston, who smiled slightly.
“Come on, girls. Preston, can you help them, please? Your mother should be here any time.”
Preston unbuckled the younger girl and lifted her out of the van, then helped the older one out too. The two young girls followed their mother and brother into the house. Preston closed the side door of the van, then began walking up the street to his house. When he covered half the distance, his mother pulled up beside him.
“Want a ride, honey?” she asked.
He glanced at his mother, but did not slow his pace. “No, I’ll just walk the rest of the way.”
“OK, see you there.”
He watched his mother drive ahead. She turned into their driveway as the garage door opened and pulled into the garage. He continued at the same pace until he reached the house and entered it.
“Is that you, Preston?” his mother called from upstairs.
“Yes.”
“Don’t get comfortable. Your father should be home any minute. He says he’s got a surprise, and he wants to take us out to eat.”
Preston went into the living room, picked up the TV remote, and flopped down onto the couch. He turned on the TV and started to click through channels with a vacant stare on his face. He reached channel 156 when he heard his father open the front door.
His father called out, “Hey-ho! It’s time to go! It’s party time!”
Preston’s mother fairly skipped down the steps and into his arms. “What’s the surprise?” she asked with a wide grin.
“Now, now…I’ll tell you when we get to the restaurant. Let’s go.”
They both began to leave, when almost as an afterthought, Preston’s mother called down to him.
“Preston! Come on! We’re going out to eat now.”
Preston clicked off the TV and forced himself up out of the couch. He trudged up the steps and out the front. His mother gave him a light push out the door.
“Hurry up, honey. Don’t you want to know what the surprise is?”
Preston’s father grinned at his mother, and Preston mustered a small smile.
The trio drove to a nice restaurant where Preston’s father had made reservations. They were no sooner seated than Preston’s mother clamored for his father to reveal the surprise.
“So? What is it? What’s the surprise? Tell me!”
He laughed at her excitement. “Now calm down, calm down. OK, here it is: you happen to be dining with the man in charge of the initial European expansion of the Epcotron Pump Company!”
“You got it? You got it! Oh, honey!” She flung her arms around his neck as he laughed, and Preston smiled.
“You bet I got it! But wait…it gets better.”
“What?”
“Well, as the man in charge, they want to send me and a few others to Europe to build a good sales foundation. I’ll be spending the entire summer in Europe. We’ll be leaving this Friday.”
Preston’s mother withdrew from him a bit and her smile faded. “The entire summer?”
He wagged his finger at her. “Ah-ah-ah…I’m not finished. They also told me to hire a secretary who will accompany me all over Europe. Your job offers a sabbatical, doesn’t it? How’s your secretarial skills, young lady? You want to come with me to Europe for the summer?”
She sat stunned for a few seconds before understanding and excitement washed over her face.
“Ooooooh myyyyyy gosh…Omigosh! OH, HONEY!” She flung herself at him again, squeezing him in a tight hug.
He laughed delightedly as he tried to lessen her grip on him. “We’ll go to all the good restaurants and see all the sights and take romantic walks in the evening. And at night…” he whispered huskily into her ear, “you can be my undercover sexretary.”
“Omigosh! Omigosh! Omigooo-o-o-osh!” She bounced up and down in the booth.
Preston laughed to see his mother so happy and excited. He looked as if he had to say something to join in the happiness, so he did.
“This is great! Europe! I’ve never been to Europe before!”
Preston’s father and mother stopped laughing and slowly turned to look at him with their smiles frozen on their faces. Then they faced each other with the same frozen faces and a strained “uh-heh” escaped their throats as their smiles dropped a bit.