It still gets me where I wanna go - Situation
Title - It still gets me where I wanna go, part four. (Situation)
Author - isabelquinn
Word count - 536
Rating - PG
Summary - Planning for the worst. Just in case...
Link to table - link
Author's note - Part four! Two to go ;) Set around chapter 16 of the original book, and a couple of dialogue lines come from the source material. Thanks to ozqueen for her mad beta skillz.
Other parts in the series:
[ Tradition | Adult | Leisure | Situation | Hurricane | Morning ]
Natalie stares at the ceiling, finding patterns in the peeling flakes of paint. It's almost similar to cloud-gazing. Except it's the middle of the night. And the ceiling doesn't drift and change. And cloud-gazing usually makes her drowsy.
She's never been more wide awake in her life.
(That's probably not true. But sleepless nights make everything feel more dramatic.)
Franklin and his kids came up for the weekend, and it made all the difference.
Yes, having John and Dee next door is fantastic. Yes, Stacey has been unbelievably helpful. But those things don't compare to having another adult in the house. Someone to share the burden of responsibility, someone to give a crap if she's utterly exhausted, someone to laugh at her M*A*S*H references.
The place was an absolute madhouse. Seven kids, plus Dawn and Stacey.
But it was a manageable madhouse.
They left at lunchtime.
Within a few hours, things began to unravel. Buddy fought with Nicky Pike, ending up with sand in his eyes. Marnie took a spectacular tumble on the porch. Dinner got burnt beyond recognition.
And she just. Can't. Get. To. Sleep.
---
"We need to come up with a plan. Just in case."
She bites back a sigh. He's right. She knows he's right. But the possibility of being hit by a hurricane? It's the last thing she feels like talking about.
"The situation is far from dire, John," says Dee. "Not yet. The whole thing is still so up in the air."
"Well, hurricanes are known for being in the air. It's their M.O."
Dee rolls her eyes. "I mean it could so easily go either way. It could hit us here, but it's just as likely that it'll blow out to sea."
Half the kids are at the movies, and the other half are on the beach. It's as quiet and peaceful as it'll ever be, so this is the only chance to have this discussion.
"They're stocking up on food in town," adds Natalie. "And some of the stores are collecting wood to board up the windows. It's not unheard of for a hurricane to hit Sea City."
"And it's better to be safe than sorry," agrees John. "But we're not in the same position. We don't live here, we have the option of heading home."
Dee raises her eyebrows. "Are you suggesting we leave?"
"I'd rather not, especially when there's only a fifty-fifty chance it'll come anywhere near us. But we need to be aware of our options. Things could change any second."
Dee looks thoughtful.
"What's our worst-case scenario?"
"Hard to say. The last hurricane washed out the causeway."
"They say the road was fortified a few years ago," protests Natalie.
"They said the Titanic was unsinkable."
"Is the Titanic going through the marsh?" quips a voice from the doorway. Claudia. Everyone laughs, and the conversation changes its tone. The strategy meeting doesn't end, and it doesn't lose its gravity, but it's lighter. It includes reassurances and explanations, and ends with excited ten-year-olds begging to help John shop for supplies.
Hurricane or no hurricane, it looks like they're sticking it out.
---
That night, she stares at the ceiling for hours.
(Who's she kidding? It's nothing like cloud-gazing.)
Author - isabelquinn
Word count - 536
Rating - PG
Summary - Planning for the worst. Just in case...
Link to table - link
Author's note - Part four! Two to go ;) Set around chapter 16 of the original book, and a couple of dialogue lines come from the source material. Thanks to ozqueen for her mad beta skillz.
Other parts in the series:
[ Tradition | Adult | Leisure | Situation | Hurricane | Morning ]
Natalie stares at the ceiling, finding patterns in the peeling flakes of paint. It's almost similar to cloud-gazing. Except it's the middle of the night. And the ceiling doesn't drift and change. And cloud-gazing usually makes her drowsy.
She's never been more wide awake in her life.
(That's probably not true. But sleepless nights make everything feel more dramatic.)
Franklin and his kids came up for the weekend, and it made all the difference.
Yes, having John and Dee next door is fantastic. Yes, Stacey has been unbelievably helpful. But those things don't compare to having another adult in the house. Someone to share the burden of responsibility, someone to give a crap if she's utterly exhausted, someone to laugh at her M*A*S*H references.
The place was an absolute madhouse. Seven kids, plus Dawn and Stacey.
But it was a manageable madhouse.
They left at lunchtime.
Within a few hours, things began to unravel. Buddy fought with Nicky Pike, ending up with sand in his eyes. Marnie took a spectacular tumble on the porch. Dinner got burnt beyond recognition.
And she just. Can't. Get. To. Sleep.
---
"We need to come up with a plan. Just in case."
She bites back a sigh. He's right. She knows he's right. But the possibility of being hit by a hurricane? It's the last thing she feels like talking about.
"The situation is far from dire, John," says Dee. "Not yet. The whole thing is still so up in the air."
"Well, hurricanes are known for being in the air. It's their M.O."
Dee rolls her eyes. "I mean it could so easily go either way. It could hit us here, but it's just as likely that it'll blow out to sea."
Half the kids are at the movies, and the other half are on the beach. It's as quiet and peaceful as it'll ever be, so this is the only chance to have this discussion.
"They're stocking up on food in town," adds Natalie. "And some of the stores are collecting wood to board up the windows. It's not unheard of for a hurricane to hit Sea City."
"And it's better to be safe than sorry," agrees John. "But we're not in the same position. We don't live here, we have the option of heading home."
Dee raises her eyebrows. "Are you suggesting we leave?"
"I'd rather not, especially when there's only a fifty-fifty chance it'll come anywhere near us. But we need to be aware of our options. Things could change any second."
Dee looks thoughtful.
"What's our worst-case scenario?"
"Hard to say. The last hurricane washed out the causeway."
"They say the road was fortified a few years ago," protests Natalie.
"They said the Titanic was unsinkable."
"Is the Titanic going through the marsh?" quips a voice from the doorway. Claudia. Everyone laughs, and the conversation changes its tone. The strategy meeting doesn't end, and it doesn't lose its gravity, but it's lighter. It includes reassurances and explanations, and ends with excited ten-year-olds begging to help John shop for supplies.
Hurricane or no hurricane, it looks like they're sticking it out.
---
That night, she stares at the ceiling for hours.
(Who's she kidding? It's nothing like cloud-gazing.)