Bitter (Homework)

I stood in my room, the lingering scent of dinner still present.  It was the smell of cheese, layered with a fine breast of chicken and so called chicken ‘flavored’ rice.  I could only hope it would be gone by my return.  Dear sister and I were charged with an order to play musical cars in front of the house.  Moving Mom’s car from the garage to the empty, snow filled space beside it.

I snatched my coat off the ground, my favorite one.  Big sleeves that didn’t scrunch at the end, I felt like I should have a weapon hidden in them, there was space for practically anything.  The gold accents were the single thing I was not fond of, a taste for silver was more my taste.  I slip on my pants and shoes and meet my sister at the front door, avoiding the bitter cold for as long as I could.  She walks up the stairs, ready to rearrange our drive way.

She stopped and leapt back downstairs, forgetting her keys.  I venture out into the dark, bitter night.  I take the first step out, the second coming up short.  I plant my foot on a patch of ice unseen in the dark and skip going down the steps of our porch in natural fashion.  My back and feet land first on ice and concrete, pain trembling throughout my body.  I curse and grunt as I attempt to get back up, my fingers fail to find a surface to hold, slipping on what might as well have been wet glass.

Sister steps out and I halt her advance, giving warning to the danger of the path.  She asks me of my condition, I curse again and continue towards our mission.  She opened the garage and I grab a snow shovel, I need to clear a path for the fence to go.  Sister starts the cars and sets them on the road.  I finish relocating the snow.  I take a deep breath and look skyward, the haze and fog that came with winter made the sky harder to see, like looking through foggy glass.

I take position in the first car, sliding across the cold seat, yelping when my coat fails to take the brunt of the chill and it runs its icy fingers across my back.  The car starts and I carefully eye my sister gestures to guide me into the narrow space.  A little to the right, a little more.  Woah! Too much, wait never mind that’s good.  Her words muffled by glass.

I open the door and shuffle out, she asks me if her assistance is still needed.  Considering the most difficult part is over I figure she can go back into the warmth of the house.  I take the mission solo and finish setting the cars up in proper order.  I tread carefully across the porch steps and return to my room.  The scent of dinner long gone.