Lucille folded her legs on the window’s cushion. She inched her way closer to the glass, peering beyond the slightly fog covered pane. Squinting, she tried to differentiate between the darkness and actual objects. Her eyes caught the barest hint of movement but after a quick scan of the area she figured if there was something out there it was gone now. As darker shades of black fell, Lucille was suddenly aware of the sound of heavy rain splattering against the ground. She blinked, jumping slightly when what she could only guess was a big piece of hail smacked against the window pane. Dollops of water began to fly at Lucille, painting the window with tears.
“Don’t you know anything, woman?” A masculine voice questioned, followed by an exasperated sigh. Lucille threw a glance over her shoulder, gaze focused on the doorway that led to the kitchen. There seemed to be an argument coming from that direction.
“I know more than you, fool,” another voice shot back. Lucille huffed, realizing it was merely her aunt and uncle. She returned to her daydreaming, glancing back at the rain-splattered window. They weren’t worth her attention. She stretched her legs across the window seat, leaning back until her head sank into a nearby pillow.
The bickering continued, occasionally drowned out by Lucille’s varied thoughts or by the booming thunder from outside. Lucille found a certain comfort in the steady continuous pitter patter sounds of rainfall. The repetitive and familiar sound was something she could immediately identify and count on to offer her a soothing tone that helped to muffle the other “not so soothing” tones she could not escape that were nearly constantly audible in this home.
Soon, the fight ventured closer and she knew her family had moved into the study. Her aunt, Barbara, stormed in and her face flushed with fury. Barbara reminded Lucille of a teapot because not only did the older woman only measure up to Lucille’s shoulder but she was also a plump, temperamental character. One minute, her aunt was as cool as a cucumber but before you even knew what was happening Aunt Barbara would become enraged until she was noticeably steaming.
Barbara took a quick glance around the room, squinting when she was unable to find her niece. There was a long pause, until a sigh of relief was let out. “There you are, Lucy.” Her aunt grumbled, raising her dress’ hem in order to waddle over to Lucille. “Darling, what are you doing so close to the window? You’ll catch a cold,” she scolded, grabbing the younger girl by the elbow. “Come, now. What would your mother say?”
Lucille rolled her eyes, slipping off the window seat after only exuding a slight sign of reluctance. “Did you need something, Aunt Barbara?” She droned, following her aunt’s lead into the kitchen. The lighting in the room blinded Lucille, too great a contrast from the dimly lit study. She took in the kitchen’s source of light, allowing her eyes to dilate before noting the abundance of lanterns.
Her aunt continued to pull her closer to the kitchen table, pulling out a wooden chair and gesturing for her to sit. Lucille complied, glancing over at her uncle. He sat across from her, a newspaper in his hand and a cigar in his mouth. The smoke wafted in the air around him, swirling around his charcoal hair. She averted his gaze and turned back to her aunt, who was standing near the counter. “What is all this about?” Lucille questioned once more, a unsettling dip beginning to form in her stomach.
“Lucy, your uncle and I have been talking,” Barbara started, picking at the baby blue fabric of her dress. “We’ve come to the conclusion that maybe it’s time you moved back to your original home.” Before Lucille could protest, her aunt continued. “It’s not that we don’t enjoy your company, dear. It’s just that you haven’t been…”
Her uncle gave an irritated grunt, sitting up in his chair to interrupt his wife. “You haven’t been any use to us. We once had the money to afford the extra mouth to feed, but times have become rough.” His eyes flicked over to his wife that he had cut off, a faint flush spreading onto his cheeks when he noticed the steam rising from her face.
