Cracked (Grocery Run)

excerpt from novel
by Amy Platon


Yes, money was getting tight, but Jill had a family to provide for.

“Come on boys, we’re going to the grocery store!”

“Yes! I want to pick the cereal this time!”

They raced to the car and jumped into their seats.

Jill didn’t put on any makeup, just some deodorant and lip balm. Her hair was back from cleaning. She threw her Coach bag under her arm and they were off.

She tilted her rear view mirror as she talked to her sons.

“Boys, listen. You can have one item of your choice today. But that’s it. I will decide on the rest of the groceries. Don’t argue with me. Got it?"

They were too busy fighting over what DVD should go in the player, for the fifteen-minute ride, to have heard her.

“Boys!”

Her patience was frayed to pieces. She felt pinned down by everyone else. She returned the rearview mirror to position and turned up the music. It helped. The kids grabbed their headphones and everyone began feeling a little better.

The begging began instantly even before Jill and her boys entered the grocery store. “Mom, we want the racing car buggy. Please!”

Jill especially hated the racing car grocery cart. It drove like a bobsled and it didn’t have enough room for large items. She felt the same way pushing it as she felt when her own mother bought a station wagon as the family car. All her dignity lost, as she pulled the seatbelt across her lap as her mom picked her up from school. Her friends chanting, “Jill’s got a grocery-getter, Jill’s got a grocery-getter.”

She gave in however, “Fine. Just get in.” After that, she felt a lot of no’s coming on.

At first they didn’t notice that she passed right by the Gatorade. She picked up the store brand apple juice instead. Then she headed to the pasta isle and stocked up store-brand style on that too. She loaded on the extra large bag of white rice. And then moved quickly on to the cereal section of the store.

“Boys look. You each can pick your own cereal but it has to be on sale. Got it?"

Their eyes lit up at all the colors. Rainbow-this and fruity-that, she felt them slipping away.

“Ok, listen I’ll give you the choices and you pick from there. OK?”

They were already gone into a what’s-the-prize trance. She appeared before them with two choices of sale cereal. Almost in slow motion, they began reaching out toward the shelves, simultaneously saying, “I waaannnttt thaaaatt onnne!”

She pushed their arms up with her elbows and darted to keep eye contact with them. She pleaded, “Pick one of these!”

But she knew in their head she was a silent picture, a puppet holding up not cereal boxes, but pom-poms cheering them on, go, boys go! What ever you want!

“Stop!” She shouted, bringing them to consciousness. “Stop! You get one of these!”

She was waiving two, not so colorful boxes in their faces. Her eyes piercing theirs, “One. Of. These!”

They looked at her in total defeat, “Whatta-you-mean?”

Her oldest boy crinkled his brow as if she was the enemy. And she was, at that very moment, according to him.

Her youngest was on the brink of tears.

Jill pressed her eyelids together at the thought of transforming into her mother.
She shook her head and rephrased her words in a way that felt more like her self.

“These are on sale. Those…” pointing to the wall of cereal bliss, “are too expensive.”

A voice popped into her head, “Hey, Jill.”

Jill spun around, “Tessa! Hi.”

“Doing some shopping with the boys?”

“Yup.” Jill positioned her bangs.

“Where’s Ben?” Jill asked, not because she cared but merely to change the subject.

“Oh he’s at my mother-in-law’s house until he leaves for camp. She wanted to spend some time with him.”

“Wow, it would be great to have one of my parent’s close by. You’re so lucky.”

“Don’t believe the hype. I’d rather pay a sitter any day of the week. They are just a little too close for comfort. You know?”

Jill envied how nonchalant her neighbor selected what she wanted from the shelves. In mid conversation even.

“No holidays or birthdays alone, just us. You know? It can be a burden, really.”

Jill daydreamed over her friend's perfectly sculpted hair, her impeccably placed jewelry, and her crisp ironed clothes. She realized that Tessa was not having any problems at all. Before, there was plenty about her friend that she wouldn’t trade, including having to sleep with her less-than-stunning husband, but now she just seemed to have it all.

For the first time Jill started to hate her. She heard the cattiness in her voice, and the bitterness about her life. Jill had to wonder, what she was actually complaining about. Tessa had it her way. She had it easy.

Jill’s mind drifted in and out of conversation with Tessa. The voice in her head pointing things out. Look at her cart, all name brand cereals, meat, and two gallons of milk. She thought. Each neatly positioned in her standard shopping cart; that looked almost like an accessory on her. Her manicured nails and long fingers wrapped the cart handle as it hoisted her three-carat engagement ring.

No, there was nothing that Tessa could say that could make Jill sympathize with her. She didn’t even have to go grocery shopping with children….

“Well, I’ll let you get back to shopping.” Tessa smiled. And almost as if she had some sort of conciliation prize to offer Jill, she joked, “See you ‘round the hood.”

What the hell? The hood? This woman is oblivious. Jackass. She flew around. Her voice held her children responsible for her mood, “Boys, pick one!”

They grabbed a box each and threw it into the cart basket.

After the cereal incident, the boys treated their mom like the traitor she was. Everything they saw they begged to have, from the PEZ dispensers to soda, to tooth paste and tooth brushes. They even begged for chew toys for the dog.

Jill stayed strong and stuck to her list, mostly.

By the time they checked out, her cart was full. She figured there was enough food for the week. She finally felt like she had accomplished something. She felt for a moment like she out smarted whatever got her into this hole.

“Boys get the groceries on the belt please.” It was a job they never seemed to mind doing. She could tell it made them feel like grown-ups.

As they piled everything on, in no particular order, Jill remembered that she left her reusable grocery bags in the car.

The cashier recited, “Paper or plastic, ma’am?”

“Neither.” Jill said as she fumbled through her purse looking for her keys. She looked up as her fingers located what felt like her keys, “I left my bags in the car, so I’ll be right back.”

The boys unloaded the cart and the cashier continued ringing it all in. The groceries piled up in the boarding area just pass the scanner. And the bagger was left with nothing to do until Jill got back with the bags. The boys took that opportunity to add some candy from the rack.

Jill hurried. And when she got back, she gave the bagger her bags, and he got started. She considered apologizing for the wait but chose not to, when she witnessed the put-out look on his face.

“$120.42 Ma’am.”

“What? That can’t be right.”

The cashier sighed and pushed the printer tape out so Jill could review the receipt. Everything looked right, until Jill got to the candy bar part which sent her rummaging through her pile of groceries. Jill glared at the cashier, “Did the boys put extra stuff on the belt?”

The cashier lifted her shoulders.

Jill sifted through the food; “Take this off, this off, this off…a DVD?”

“Maybe you shouldn’t have left them here while you went to your car.”

Jill held up the Spider Man DVD for the cashier to remove, “What did you say?”

The cashier just looked at her, and continued to delete the items.

“$96.53.”

Jill handed over her check card.

By now the boys were jumping around and playing pirates behind the bagger. Jill didn’t care what these people thought of her at this point. She just let her boys poke that bagger in the butt with their finger sword fighting.

“Here’s your receipt.” She squinted and pushed her lips up at Jill.

Jill shook her head. She could have marched right over to the manager’s desk, but she didn’t have it in her. She couldn’t fight any more battles.

Jill loaded all the groceries into the back of her car. Of course the bagger didn’t offer to walk out with her. But once she and the boys were all in, she started the car to get the air going. They all jumped at the loud music that blared from the stereo before Jill turned it down.

As she started to pull out of her parking space, she saw Tessa leaving the store. Jill couldn’t help but notice that her cart was full of plastic bags.

Jill waived. She had to. Recycler or not, Tessa was on the HOA board after all. Jill thought, you don’t want her kind on your bad side. Jill pulled her car out of the parking lot thinking there was something not quite right with the half hearted smile she got in return.


Other Excerpts:
Perfect Circle (Bingo Night)
Perfect Circle (Ultimate Void)

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The Perfect Circle (Ultimate Void)

Excerpt from novel
by Amy Platon

At seven o’clock, Clair got a knock at the door. She looked out her window and was surprised to see that it was Edie, peering over her shoulder. Clair grabbed her purse and headed for the door.

“You’re early.”

“Oh good, you’re ready. Come on, I got us a ride.” Edie motioned for Clair to follow her. “Out front!” she said in a half-whisper.

Clair turned out her hall light and the two rushed toward the steps. Clair barely had time to lock the door behind her.

She turned to Edie, who was waiting for her. Once Clair caught up, the two headed for the parking lot. Clair followed closely, while Edie, holding a set of keys, led them toward the end parking spaces.

Clair stopped. “Which one?” She demanded.

“This one.”

Edie stopped at a parked golf cart, and got in. Clair noticed that the golf cart was the Holiday Park security cart…Bill’s security cart. Clair peeked under the canopy at Edie, who had already started it.

“Edie? Where did you get this? It’s Bill’s cart!”

“He spends the night with Carol every time he works the second shift, he’ll never miss it.” She said as she adjusted the rearview mirror.

“You stole it?!”

“The keys were in the ignition, and we’re are only borrowing it. Now get in before someone sees us.”

Clair rolled her eyes, and took the passenger seat. “Oh, great!”

She sat with her knees together, hugging her new purse in her lap. She was like a nervous child clinging to her bedtime blanket.

Edie put the cart in reverse and let off the break. The women were thrust backward. Edie then overcorrected by pressing hard on the break. Clair’s body did its best to keep up with the frantic motion of the cart.

Edie, overrun by determination, put the cart in forward drive then took off toward the back of the parking lot. Clair bounced backward a bit. Her arms flew up and out in different directions as she scrambled for a handle to hold on to.

Her purse fell to the floorboard between her feet. Her right hand was clung to the edge of the canopy. Her left was grasping a vinyl handgrip that was sewn into the seat between her and Edie.

It was clear that Edie had little experience driving golf carts, but at this point Clair was just praying that the two wouldn’t have an accident or roll over. Her next concern was where Edie was taking them.

“Edie, there’s no exit this way!”

“We’re going the back way.”

Neither of them had a clue as to what this night had in store. They just drove on, hair parted by the wind that whipped over the short windshield. Clair had to blink hard behind her plastic saucer glasses to keep her eyes moist. Eyes that were fixed forward trying to make out the tree stumps in the dark woods ahead of them.

Then she did it. Edie jumped the curb. Clair could feel the wheels spin freely as the cart jumped from the pavement. When they landed it caught traction unexpectedly. They kicked up some grass and it sent the cart into some side-to-side motion that jiggled Clair’s body and nearly knocked her glasses off. They were caught somehow by the tip of her nose. Edie drove on aiming for the narrow sporadic walking path ahead of them.

"Edie we'll never fit!" Clair let out in an I-want-out scream.

Before she knew it, they were deep in the woods with low lit front beams barely lighting their way. The exposed roots and uneven land made the ride like being in some made for TV weight loss contraption. Clair could hear the contents of her purse rattling on the floor board but she couldn't risk letting go of her strap to get it.

Somehow the two made it out the other side of the pine needle track. It spit them out at the back of the strip mall that housed their destination, Dumpling Night at "The Arcade.”

The glare of the parking lot lights reflected off of Clair’s glasses as she looked in Edie’s direction in shock over what she had just put her through.

Edie eased up behind the building and parked the golf cart.

Clair emerged to solid ground. Then she leaned in again to collect her belongings from the floor of the cart and placed them back in her purse, which she would be sure to zipper before the ride back home.

Edie fixed her hair in the long rearview mirror then walked around the cart to Clair’s side. She waited as Clair composed herself. Edie walked toward the building… as calm as if all of that chaos was in the plan. Clair's body was numb from all the vibration. She did her best to straighten her hair as she followed Edie to the front of the building.

The storefront of The Arcade was tinted black. Neon signs read “The Arcade” and “Game House.” This perfectly legal concept had a grungy black market feel. Clair thought they needed a special knock and handshake to get in. But Edie just pulled on the metal ribbed door handle. The door cracked as she stretched it open for Clair. Once inside, Clair saw that the Arcade was laid out like a casino. Slots lined the walls and other electronic games were grouped randomly in the center of the floor. It was low lit and the sounds of winning slots filled the cool damp air. The sweet salty aroma of chicken and dumplings also competed for Clair’s attention.

Clair followed Edie to the counter where a fat old woman sat like a club bouncer. Her cigarette ashed as she spoke, "Need a card?"

The woman was perched behind what looked like a jewelry case with a register on top. Edie explained that Clair could trade her winnings or points for gift cards or trade them in for items in the case. It was a Chuck-E-Cheese for seniors. Instead of stickers, toys, and candy, it was a sea of dollar store quality items and things like plates, silverware, perfume, ceramic dolls, glassware, and simple jewelry. Clair was more interested in the gift cards than the case prizes.

The woman at the counter charged up their cards and the two were off to play like they were in Vegas.

Clair pasted on a smile, “Where’s the restroom?” She pointed her cigarette toward the back of the game room as the flesh under her arm swung, almost waiving goodbye.

Clair turned to Edie, “I have to pee and you’re coming with me.”

“I have to go too.”

The two ladies Pac-Manned their way through the maze of machines to the back hallway that was labeled Restroom. Raw tube lights in the ceiling made Clair's eyes squint. They entered the women’s room and each took one of the two stalls. Clair hung her purse on the door. “Are you sure Bill’s not going to miss his cart?” She said as she positioned a disposable cover over the toilet seat.

“He doesn’t come out until morning when he stays with her.” Edie reassured her.

As they began to relieve their bladders, Clair asked, “Do you think $60 a good amount for the card?”

“I put $100 but $60 should be fine, if you start winning.”

Clair laughed, “Edie, pass me some toilet paper, would you, this one’s out.”

Edie reached into the bottom of her toilet paper cover-contraption and only felt a cardboard role. “Shit, this one’s out too!”

Clair inhaled, “UH, wha-do we do?” as her voice echoed in her stall. “What do you have in your new purse?”

Clair shuffled through it, “Nothing, just my wallet, checkbook, and keys.”

“Pass me a check Clair.”

“Oh my God, Edie, I’m not giving you a check. We’re just gonna have to drip-dry.”

“I don’t have that option Clair, I need something, and that’s all we’ve got.”

Clair put her head back. She looked up at the ceiling, hoping for a better idea. “You NEED something?”

“Well, with all the bouncing around we were doing, I guess…. Please Clair?”

“Oh, alright.” Clair folded a check at the perforation, tore it neatly, and handed it to Edie under the stall.

“Thanks!”

“Fine. What’s the check number? 306?”

“You’re putting it in your ledger?”

Edie looked down at the check, “And you voided it Clair?”

“Hey, you never know these days Edie, people can steal your identity with the information on a check.”

“I don’t think you need to worry about this one Clair, it’s the ultimate void!”


Other Excerpts:
Perfect Circle (Bingo Night)
Cracked (Grocery Run)