Ellis's mother sat in the corner of the living room in the worn blue reclining chair where she liked to knit, a fat orange tabby cat curled up in a ball on her lap. She was watching one of the daytime soap operas that captivated her imagination when she wasn't at work. Over the drone of the television, Ellis could hear the repetitive clicking noise of her knitting needles as she made yet another pair of brightly colored winter mittens. Ellis didn't want to hurt her feelings, so he always pretended to wear the mittens to school, removing them as soon as he was out of sight of the front window that looked out on their drab front yard.
Ellis's father sat quietly on the couch, his greying head bent and heavy brow furrowed as he contemplated his computer screen. He was probably playing fantasy football again, a habit that Ellis's mom wanted him to quit. Ellis entered the living room and plopped down on the couch next to his dad, letting his long, lean legs splay out in front of him. He played absentmindedly with the silver watch on his wrist, a treasured family heirloom given to him by his parents for his sixteenth birthday. Ellis's dad reached an arm over and affectionately ruffled his son's sandy brown hair.
"What's the plan for today, squirt?" Ellis's dad always called him squirt, had called him that since he was small, even though these days it made Ellis squirm with a feeling of humiliation he couldn't quite articulate.
"I don't know yet," replied Ellis, rolling his bright green eyes. "Probably just hanging out with Jake and David. Playing Fallout or something." A piercing shriek sounded from the kitchen as the water in the teakettle boiled.
"Make sure you get your math done," said Ellis's mom, sighing heavily and placing a pudgy hand on her lower back as she hoisted herself out of the recliner and padded to the kitchen. "We won't be home to check in on you until late."
Ellis nodded absentmindedly, his mind occupied by the woman on the TV screen. Her bosom heaved dramatically as she sobbed about her lover's betrayal, her breasts almost spilling out of the neckline of her low-cut velvet gown.
"Oh no, did I miss Sophia's suicide?" Ellis's mother bustled back in, a steaming mug of tea in her hand. The hem of her blue nurse's scrubs rustled. A waft of peppermint-scented air drifted out of her cup and past Ellis's nose. Ellis inhaled deeply. His mother sighed with relief as the woman on the screen sank to the ground, still sobbing. "Never mind, it's not for another twenty minutes. She certainly does drag these things out, doesn't she?"
Ellis tore his eyes away from the TV screen. "Wait, Mom, what did you say?"
"About Sophia?" Ellis's mother blinked, pleased. "I said she always takes a very long time to get to the death scenes. She has seven of them in this season alone, and I think--"
"No, sorry," Ellis interrupted her, "I meant before that. What did you say about going out?"
"Your mother and I are going to the Spellmans' for dinner tonight," said Ellis's father, finally looking up from the spreadsheet he'd been busily typing numbers into. "It's Sarah's forty-ninth birthday."
"Fifty-ninth, dear," corrected Ellis's mom, settling into the recliner again.
Shit. Shit. Ellis had forgotten all about the dinner tonight. And that meant they were probably taking the Ford. Fuck.
"You're not taking the car, are you?" asked Ellis innocently, trying to keep any note of urgency out of his voice.
"Well, of course, squirt," said Ellis's dad, sounding slightly puzzled. "You didn't think we were going to walk, did you?"
Ellis tried desperately to think of a good, sane, adult reason that his parents would walk. Or take the bus. "I just thought maybe," he hedged, "if you're going to drink, maybe I could drive you and then--"
"Your father never drinks at parties, sweetie," said Ellis's mom. "We're just going to head over at dinnertime, make the rounds, sing Happy Birthday, and then we'll be home by nine or so at the latest."
Crap. Shit fuck fucking shit. This was bad. Ellis tried to conceal his agitation from his parents, still obliviously watching the soap. He vaulted off the couch and disappeared down the narrow hallway to his room, which was dark and smelled faintly musty. Flicking on the light, he stumbled over to his narrow twin bed and sat down on the worn navy blue bedspread. He buried his head in his hands with a deep groan. He had counted on using the car tonight to pick up Hazel. If his parents had it, not only would he have to convince her to brave the Ohio winter on bike or by foot, but he would have nowhere to take her except home--home, where his parents had enacted a strict no-girls-in-the-bedroom policy and would be breathing down his neck once they got home from the Spellmans' party. Goddammit. Ellis took several deep breaths, trying to clear his head. When he looked up from staring at his denim-clad knees, his mom was standing in the doorway, her face folded into lines of wrinkled concern.
"What's the matter, honey?" she asked. She crossed the room and sat down next to him on the bed, the rickety frame letting out a small noise of protest at the added weight. Ellis sighed and leaned his head against his mother's shoulder, feeling the warmth of her large, solid body next to his gangly frame. Her left hand rubbed soothing circles against his back.
"I was just really hoping you would let me have the car tonight," Ellis confessed, trying to think of a reasonable lie. "I wanted to....um, drive to the rec center with Jack to play basketball," he fibbed, hoping his mother wouldn't remember that the rec center was only a block away or that he hadn't talked to Jack since middle school.
His mother's hand ceased its revolutions, then began again in the opposite direction.
"Well, why didn't you just say so, honey?"
Ellis looked up, a surge of hope leaping wildly in his chest. "You mean I can take the car?"
"I don't see why not," said his mother. "Your father doesn't really like driving anyway, and I wouldn't mind having a few glasses of wine. We'll just take a taxi."
