I left the bathroom, went down the back hallway, and stepped into the kitchen. The basement door was to the right, the fridge next to it, then the stove, then a counter that made an L along that and the next wall. The sink was after the bend in the L, more counter space past that.
The dining area was connected to the far side of the kitchen, a long table with lots of chairs underneath a fancy-looking chandelier. The dining area had two doorways, one into the front hallway and the other into the parlor.
Most of the others were already eating at the table. It looked like someone had thrown food to a bunch of starving monkeys, a feeding frenzy. Hands darted in every direction to grab this or that, voices bounced all over the place.
"Hey, Words." Kit said. She smiled and waved me over. "You better hurry up before it's all gone."
Kit was not normal. Somehow, she had the energy to prepare every meal for everyone every day, make trips into town for groceries, do the laundry and other chores, and always be super nice and worried about everyone. Yeah, others usually pitched in, but she was the one who always made sure things got done, that everyone was taken care of. I don't think she ever had any time to herself, but she never complained or looked unhappy about it.
I walked over and sat between Evry and my brother. She was almost done with her food, but his plate still had a full breakfast burrito and peeled banana on it, a cup of milk off to the side. "It looks so yummy," he said.
There was a plate with a few burritos left on it. When I reached out for it, Evry stopped me.
"I'll get it for you, Words," she said over the noise. "I'll put a burrito on your plate for you." She picked one up and set it on my plate. Nothing stuck at all.
I'd already seen her not stick in the hallway, but I was still shocked to see her plastic-wrap-free and touching things like normal. "Thanks," I said.
"You're welcome." She smiled from ear to ear and then looked around to see if anyone had noticed.
"That was nice of you, Girl," Kit said, eyes on her burrito as she took a bite.
Evry slumped back in her chair.
"Wait. Wait!"
Everyone stopped eating and talking and turned to Kit, who was staring at The Girl who Stuck to Everything. She set down her burrito.
"Evry, did you just hand Words a burrito?"
Evry smiled and nodded. Her back straightened. "I did."
"Without plastic wrap?"
"Yup!"
Kit jumped up out of her chair and let out an excited scream. "Oh, my gosh! That's so great! How did you do that?"
"I've been practicing," she said.
There was a murmur of excitement from most of the others as they rushed to give Evry a hug that wouldn't pull off their skin when they let go. The only two that didn't seem excited were the twins. They stayed in their seats on the other side of the table and watched blankly.
"Pet Heady! You can pet Heady now!" Boy said. He clapped and jumped up and down on top of his chair. "Heady, go to Evry!" He bent down towards the dog and pointed. "You won't get her all gross anymore!"
The Headless Dog obeyed and rushed over to Evry. She sat back down and the dog scrambled up onto her lap. She started petting him, her hand coming away clean. She laughed and hugged The Headless Dog. It jumped over me to get back to my brother.
"Tell us everything," Kit said. She settled back into her chair. "Eat, guys! She can tell us while we eat."
Evry picked up her burrito, took a bite, and spoke with her mouth full. "I just think about not sticking and then I don't stick—most of the time. Sometimes I can't help it. Or sometimes I don't think hard enough. Oh, and watch this!" She turned to me with a devilish smile on her face. "High-five!" She held up her hand.
I didn't get it. Everyone had hugged her and hadn't gotten stuck. Why would she want to show us a high-five? But since I didn't want to ruin her mood, I gave her the high-five. Only, this time, my hand did stick.
"Try to pull your hand off," she said.
I pulled. My hand wouldn't come free.
"Come on. Don't be a baby," she said.
I pulled harder, so hard that her hand came towards me. She even leaned back and pulled, but I still didn't come free. I started getting worried.
"Come on! Pull!" Evry said.
I pulled so hard I almost pulled her onto my lap, but then I was free and flying backwards. I flew over my brother's lap and landed on the floor. Everyone laughed.
"I can be super sticky, too! If I think hard enough."
I got up from the floor, laughing along with the others. I was embarrassed but also relieved that I was free.
"What cool super powers you have," D-rip said. "Wow."
Kit turned sharply to him. The room fell silent.
Evry raised her chin. "Well, it's better than leaking all over everything!"
"Whoa," Kit said. "I think that's enough—"
"You're just jealous," Evry said.
And then D-rip threw a sock. It flew across the table and hit Evry's left cheek. The toe stuck and the free end swung down and then stuck to her neck.
D-rip turned to his brother. "Yeah. I'm really jealous. How about you?"
Z's mouth hung open.
Evry's chin quivered and her eyes got shiny. She glared at the twins, pinched her mouth shut, and closed her eyes. The sock started to slide down her cheek and neck. Everyone watch as she started straining. She squeezed her eyes tighter, her lips pinched even smaller. She held her breath. The part that stuck to her neck fell away, but the other end on her cheek stayed put. Her eyes popped open and she let out her breath in one big exhale.
Kit jumped up from her chair and rushed around the table. "Let me help you, Evry." She pulled on the sock and it came away with a ripping sound. White fuzz and a long string stayed behind on her cheek.
"Looks like she missed a spot shaving this morning," D-rip said. "So scraggly."
And that's when Evry burst into tears. She jumped up from her chair and sent it flying backwards into the wall. She ran out of the dining room, her hands over her face.
Kit spun toward the twins. "What is wrong with you?"
Z looked down at his hands.
"Nothing's wrong with me," D-rip said, keeping eye contact.
"Not everything is a joke."
"I disagree," D-rip said with a toss of his head.
Z almost looked like he was going to be sick. He'd always been the nicer one.
"Get out!" Kit had never screamed at anyone. Her face was red and her entire body shook. It was almost scary.
"Whoa. Whoa. Chill out." D-rip said.
"I said get out of here."
"He was just kidding around," Z said.
"You need to treat Evry with more respect. Or have you forgotten that the food you're eating came from her family's grocery store?" Kit said.
"Calm down," D-rip said. He crossed his arms in front of him. "There's no need to lose it."
"A little late for that," The Marionette said.
Kit spun to glare at The Marionette, who sat on the table next to Mair's plate. The Marionette threw his hands up in mock surrender and Mair's face turned bright red. Kit turned back to the twins and didn't notice Mair get up and leave, his food barely eaten.
"He's sorry, Kit," Z said. "He didn't mean to make her cry."
"Sorry, huh? Well, I'm not the one you should be apologizing to. And just so you know, you don't get to eat a single thing that came from Trimble's until you apologize to her!"
D-rip just stared at Kit until his brother elbowed him. Then he rolled his eyes and said, "Fine. Whatever."
"You better do better than that, Mister," Kit said. "I'm serious. No food until you give her an apology. A real one!"
"Fine. Fine." D-rip stood up. He looked at his brother, who stood up, too. "Let's do this."
Kit followed them out and up the stairs. "I can't believe you could be so mean. She shows us something important to her, something amazing, and you're just terrible! You better make this a good apology, or I swear you'll regret it."
When her voice was gone, everyone sat in silence for a little while. Eyes stood up to leave without finishing her plate. Light slowly finished his burrito.
After seeing her so fired up, I didn't know if I wanted to talk to Kit just then. Maybe I'd need to let her cool off first. Then again, I'd like to just get it over with. I knew if I put it off too long I might not actually do it. I sneaked a glance at my brother next to me and decided, yes, I'd talk to her when she came back.
Legs started cleaning up as the others trailed out of the dining area. She carried a stack of plates over to the double sink, Rope on her seat, and started filling one side with water.
"I'm going to take Heady outside," Boy said.
"Okay," I said. I watched him go down the front hallway and out the front door.
Across the kitchen, Legs reached into the sink and pulled back her hand. There was a small pile of bubbles on her open palm. She wiped a few on Rope's nose. He laughed, sneezed, and then laughed some more.
I smiled to myself and continued to eat.
When Kit came back, she looked a lot more calm but still frustrated. She sat down in her chair and put her head in her hands. She sighed, picked at her food, and then pushed her plate away. She looked over at me.
"Words," she spoke loud enough so that her sister could hear over the running water at the sink, "would you mind helping me clean up the dishes so we can let Legs and Rope go play?"
That was code for "We need to talk about what we're going to do about . . ."
"Yeah. Sure," I said.
Mair walked into the kitchen wearing a brown suit that looked so stiff it was a miracle he could walk in it. "I'm going to church now."
The Marionette groaned. "We've got to talk about this whole church thing. We are not going to keep going every single week."
Mair ignored him. "Any of you guys want to come with me?
"Don't do it, Words!" The Marionette said. "There aren't even any hot broads! Just a herd of old buffalos in even older dresses."
Mair sighed. "You guys want to come? I think you'd like it."
"Not today, Mair." Kit said with a thin smile. She got up from the table and carried her plate over to the sink. "We'll see you later, though."
"Words? You and Boy want to come?"
I shook my head. "No. Thanks."
He looked disappointed. "Okay. Well, see you later." He waved goodbye with his free hand and left the kitchen.
"Look. We can go once a month. I won't even complain about it. I'll even sing along with you brainwashed—uh—brothers and sisters in Christ. But just not every week. Please!" The Marionette's pleading was cut off when the front door shut.
Kit hugged her sister. "Thanks for the help, Legs. Words and I will finish up. Go play!"
"Hooray!" Legs said. She picked up Rope and rocked him back and forth. "Wanna go play, Rope?"
He laughed. "What are we going to play?"
Legs smiled. "Let's play cowboy!" She set him back down on her seat. "Giddy-up, cowboy!" And with that, she was off, galloping the best she could and making a racket that sounded nothing like horse hooves.
Kit turned to me. She looked tired, sad. But then that was gone and she was back to her old self, smiling and filled with energy. "How was your family dinner last night?"
"It was fine." The memory stung, but it felt good to know we wouldn't be going back.
"Did D-rip apologize?"
She rolled her eyes. "I hate that nickname. D-rip? Is he serious?"
He was serious, but it wasn't the sort of question you actually answer.
"Yeah, he did apologize. But you know him. Didn't seem very sincere."
We both cleared the table and wiped down the stove and counters. Then we went to the sink and started in on the dishes.
"I'll wash, you rinse. We can both dry and put away. Sound good?"
"Sure." My heart started beating faster. Here it was. The moment I took initiative and talked to her about something. I wondered what she'd think, if she'd expect more from me. "I was thinking about that noise. You know. From the basement yesterday?"
She looked at me, and she must have been surprised, but she played it cool. "Oh?"
I nodded and kept rinsing the suds off the dishes underneath the running water.
"Push your sleeves up, Words," she said. "They're getting wet."
I hadn't pushed up the sleeves of my hoodie, and she was right, they were getting wet. But I didn't want her to see the words, especially not the left forearm. I froze.
"Don't worry. I'm not much of a reader." She sounded pleased with her joke.
I was pleased with her joke.
I rolled up my sleeves to the middle of my forearms. That's fine, I told myself. Not too much showing.
"So, what about that noise?" She asked.
I kept my eyes on what I was doing, anything to not look at her. "I was kind of freaked out at first, but I don't think we need to be. I'm pretty sure it was just the heater coming on. It's getting cold outside. It makes sense."
Her hands paused for a couple seconds. Then they continued. "Maybe," she said. "That would make sense."
There was a scrape of metal and creaking from behind us. That noise could only be one thing. The basement door was opening.
My mind filled with a million terrible possibilities. Could I have been wrong about the noise? Maybe it wasn't the heater. Maybe it was some kind of creature, and it was coming upstairs to attack us.
No, I told myself. Don't freak out. It's Face or Tang. It's Face or Tang.
I squeezed my eyes shut and listened, refusing to turn around, terrified to.
"Porcelain!" Kit cried out.
I felt a rush of relief. I shut off the water and turned to see The Porcelain Girl shut the basement door behind her.
The Porcelain Girl was tiny, even for a six-year-old. She was short, thin, pale—dainty, which was fitting for her new name. She chose a chipped tea cup as her Token, and after the Transformation her skin had turned almost-shiny. She moved a little stiffly but was able to move almost as good as before. The bad part was that if she hit something the wrong way, she would literally crack and pieces would come off.
The more time she spent in the basement, the worse she looked. She had long, red hair, but it was tangled. Her clothing and skin were smeared with dirt. The grime made her look homeless. Her tiny size made her look starving. The blankness in her eyes made her look numb to everything around her.
"We're hungry," she said. "Can we have some food?"