The afternoon went by pretty smoothly. Penelope wasn't on closing shift that day, so she went home earlier than the night before. It hadn't been too busy, but she was still exhausted.
After completing her chores for the evening, she retired to her room. The family was downstairs watching a movie that had just been released. Penelope had really wanted to see it, but she was told by Mary "Go find something to do!" when she attempted to sit down and join the family.
Pulling out her sketchpad, Penelope began to draw on a random page. She had remembered every feature of Derek's face. How could she forget, when the man was so handsome? She couldn't believe that she had gotten his attention. Although in her mind, she was unable to return that attention, she imagined Derek whisking her away from this wretched household. They would be married and would live in a mansion far away. They would have a family together and Penelope would never have to see Mary or her stupid sons again.
They would get out and they would dance. Penelope had taken lessons when she was a little girl- before her parents divorced- and had been the top of her class. Every now and again, when the family was gone, she turned on music in the living room and pretended she was dancing with someone. In this sketch, she was dancing with Derek.
She was wearing a long, flowy gown that twirled with her body to the music. Her hair was long and pretty, fashioned into a gorgeous updo with flowers, braids and curls. She was wearing the best makeup to hide her invisible scars. Although Mary never left a mark, Penelope felt as if handprints existed on both of her cheeks. She always felt the pain of being slapped around by Mary.
She started humming as she imagined a great band of musicians playing classical music in a ballroom. She and Derek were floating around the dance floor. She was perfectly in sync with his lead as he smiled upon her. Everybody was watching in awe. At the end of the dance, he leaned down, closed his green eyes and kissed her- sweetly but passionately. His lips made her body melt and she wanted more. But he didn't want to be indecent in front of the crowd, which was reverently clapping at the couple's performance.
"I love you." he whispered to her.
Before she could say anything back, she heard a piercing screech. "PENELOPE! GET YOUR BUTT DOWN HERE, NOW!"
Well, there went that fantasy...
Penelope headed downstairs to see what warranted this particular shout out. "Come here!" Mary gestured with a bowl of popcorn in her hand. She led her into the downstairs bathroom, which had a fresh pile of dirty clothes on the floor.
"What is this doing on my bathroom floor? I thought you were supposed to clean the bathrooms today!" Mary yelled.
"I did clean the bathrooms Ma'am. Thats the outfit Scott was wearing before I got home." Penelope tried to point out.
Smack
"Don't smart mouth me young lady. Clean it up!" Mary shouted even louder. As she did, she shook her hands at Penelope, causing popcorn to fall all over the floor. Mary stormed out of the bathroom and said loudly as she entered the living room. "Rewind it. Penelope made me miss the best part!"
"I hate you." Penelope said under her breath as she picked up the popcorn and put it in the trashcan. Then, she emptied it and took the clothes to the wash room.
As she ventured back towards the stairs Mary snapped. "You're not done yet. You're going to redo that whole bathroom! Lord knows what else you missed!"
"But I cleaned everything this morning." She pleaded. "Dad, Scott left his outfit from this afternoon on the floor." She complained, pleading for her father to step in and help her.
"Oh, no, don't you involve your father with your lies! You get back into that bathroom and clean... it.. . NOW!"
Penelope gave her father a pleading look. Sometimes, he would help. But not tonight. Mary cut her eyes at him and he melted like a popsicle on a hot sunny day. "Do as she says, Penelope."
Penelope went into the bathroom and recleaned the whole thing. Stupid Witch. It was like Mary had no soul. There was a special place in the underworld for her. Penelope just knew it.
She could imagine Mary being tied to a firey stake. Forced to clean bathroom after bathroom. It was so hot that everything she touched turned to ash. And she would have to scrub it all up until the floors were spotless. All wood, charred all the way through. There really was no way to clean it and as Mary scrubbed the embers and ash away, the Devil would laugh at her.
A short time later, Penelope was finished and headed back upstairs. She heard Mary squeal "Well it's about time you finished!" Penelope froze on the stairs, but Mary said nothing else and she continued up them.
She picked up her sketchbook and continued her drawing. Her and Derek were safe inside of that ballroom. And on the outside, they were surrounded by Fire. The many angry faces of Mary were burning inside of it. She and Derek danced on, giving no notice to the scene outside.
Quietly, she started to make up a song as she sketched. "Someday, I will find someone who loves me and cares about me. Somebody who will listen and wipe all my tears. He will comfort me, hug me support me. He will wipe away all of my fears." She stopped and thought about how much she hated her life in this house. Her fantasies and tiny hobbies were all that kept her going, along with her thoughts of someday leaving.
In a couple of months, she would be eighteen. Maybe instead of waiting until graduation, she could just leave when she got her first adult paycheck. Get an apartment and start her life on her own. She didn't know where she would live, or how she would pay for everything she needed with just one paycheck, but she would do it! She could finish her Senior year in high school and then high tail it out of there. Thoughts of how she could make it on a low budget filled her head.
She would find a $200 basement apartment to live in. It would already be furnished. A bed in the middle of the floor. A TV on the wall. A small kitchenette she could use to heat a microwave meal in. It would be more than she had now and was doable for sure! She could invite Derek over and they could kiss, cuddle and tell stories to each other as a movie played in the background. Of course, she imagined them doing other things, but Penelope was a classy girl. She wanted to save herself for marriage. Still, though, one could imagine what it was like to be young and in love.
She sighed. Of course, this was just a fantasy. There were no apartments that were so cheap in that town. Still, though, make believing was fun and kept her mind occupied. She outlined her sketch in pen, getting it ready to be colored. The flames outside the ballroom danced as she whipped her pen around them. "All witches burn at the stake." She whispered in a sinister voice with a Brittish accent. Someday, the one living in the house would, too.
Penelope felt her eyes getting heavy. Tired, she closed her sketchbook and sat it down. She put on her pajamas and turned out the lights. Then, she pulled her sketchbook to her chest. "Goodnight, Derek Filmore." she thought to herself. "These fantasies will be good while they last." She fell asleep, dreaming of meeting him again, even though she knew that she could never in a million years get to know him.