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Dear Ex-Girlfriend

Chapter 2

  June, 2002

  The alarm clock was beginning to beep when I slammed my palm against the button. The covers were thrown off. One of my socks was missing when I swung my feet off the bed.

  I took a quick glance to the window and smiled wolfishly. It was still dark out. Still too early. First day of summer, here I come.

  After brushing my teeth in record time and finding my missing sock, I crept out of the room, ninja style. Across the hall, dad's door was closed. There were no lights coming from the crack. His snores were loud enough to wake the neighbors. If we had neighbors.

  I made it down the stairs without a problem, all thanks to the Converse I had on. After begging dad to buy it for ages, he finally surrendered and gave it yesterday. Not bad for a 10th birthday present. Not bad at all.

  I checked my surroundings, deciding what to do. There wasn't much to look at. After the stairs, there were a few steps to reach the kitchen and dining room. After the kitchen, you could cartwheel to the living room. Other kids would wish for a bigger crib with a pool and a garden. But this was more than enough for us. There was only dad and me.

  Going to the kitchen, I grabbed an apple from the table and took a bite. Next stop, the living room.

  My backpack was sitting innocently on the sofa when I came in. It was heavy when I lifted it to my shoulder.

  It wasn't heavy yesterday. I made sure to donate all my books to the library before leaving school. I mean, academics was great and all, as Ester would say. But in summer? That wasn't fly. That was child abuse, as Spencer would say.

  I perched the bag on the couch rest and unzipped it to check what was inside. The apple dropped from my hand.

  "Boy! Girl!" I squealed.

  I froze and checked the hallway. Great going, dufus. Now Dad would wake up and think robbers broke into the house.

  After making sure that he wasn't coming down, I turned back to the bag and took the puppets out. There they were. Boy and Girl, my best of friends.

  Long, long, ago, before the members of Destiny's Child were fetuses, my grandfather's grandfather was a puppeteer in Ireland. Together with his team, he traveled the world while performing, then later settled in the States. Not only did he pass his porcelain Irish skin and light reddish hair to us, the art of puppeteering was also handed-down.

  Dad courted mom using his puppetry skills. He'd make models from small woods and let them perform in front of her. Boy and Girl were one of his many creations. The special thing about them was mom pitched in with the design. They were both planning to give it to me, but since that wasn't possible anymore, I just make sure to take care of them like they were real people.

  "When did you guys get back?" I hugged the puppets to my chest, then pulled them back so I could see if they were alright.

  A week ago, while Ester, Spencer, and I were at school, my backpack strap got caught on a loose bolt on the stairs railing. We were on the third floor when that happened. I could only watch from above as the backpack containing Boy and Girl dropped to the ground.

  Ester said they'd be fine. Spencer patted me on the back and offered me condolences.

  But I wasn't giving up on my babies. I gave them to dad and pestered him to use his puppetry magic to revive Boy and Girl.

  All he said was. "The materials used for them are special. We don't have it here. If you want them to be alright again, I have to ship them to my friend in the city."

  "But daaaaad! You're a puppeteer."

  "My grandfather was a puppeteer. Not me." He brushed his calloused hand over his face. "I'm a woodcraftsman. That's what puts food on our table."

  I pouted at him. "So use your wood. We have a whole shop of them next door."

  The store was what made our house small. Dad divided the lot to accommodate his woodworking office, the materials, and the handcrafted pieces he was selling. Sometimes, on the weekends, I could hear him and his employees working on a project next door. It was oddly comforting.

  He tousled my hair. "They won't be gone long. Boy and Girl will be here before you know it."

  I guess he was going to surprise me yesterday but had forgotten about it.

  With a smile, I checked the puppets and nodded to myself. Boy and Girl were what you called marionets. They had slim limbs and movable joints, held back by strings. While Boy had blue hair, Girl had red hair. Both were wearing jean jumper suits and black shoes.

  I returned them inside the bag carefully, as careful as I would an egg. I've broken them once. I'd never part with them again.

  Taking the backpack, I bent for the fallen apple and headed to the door. Dad would kill me when he finds out I left the house at five o'clock. But Ester and Spencer told me to meet them early. They wouldn't let me live it down if I was a no-show.

  Welcome to Bear Creek Falls. A town where there were no falls, and definitely no bears. I didn't know where we got the name. But it sounded fly, so I wasn't complaining.

  The chilly morning touched my face as I stepped out of the house. And by the time I closed the door, I was straight on shivering. But never you worry. In a few minutes when the sun comes out, the place would be as hot as a microwave oven. Close. That's why people here didn't wear anything other than t-shirts, tank tops, jeans, or shorts. It was summer all year round.

  After walking a couple of blocks, I stopped in front of the bakery. Its light was on, and the sign on the door said that it was open.

  I took a deep sniff and closed my eyes. Warm and tasty cinnamon rolls were waiting for me on the other side. What was I still doing here?

  The chimes hanging on the door tinkled when I came in. And Bertha, the English woman who owned the place, sauntered to me with her cap and apron on. "Good morning, Destiny," she said. "Too early, innit? Did your papa ask you to run an errand?"

  My eyes went from her big waist, to her reprimanding smile, to the mustache on her upper lip. "So bushy," I murmured.

  "Pardon?"

  I shook out of my trance and gave her a sheepish smile. "Dad didn't ask me for anything."

  Bertha studied me for a moment before bending down, her thick mustache ruffling with every exhale. "I see," she said. "The wee kid is not supposed to be out of bed."

  My heart skipped when she stopped. Her eyes were leveled to mine.

  A grin broke on her face. "This is our secret, yeah?"

  My shoulders relaxed. "Yeah."