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It's been awhile since I posted an excerpt. So...
***
It was the moment every parent dreads. Grabbing the pants he’d set out to wear the next morning, Sam yanked them on and ran after her. In a panic, Lily flung the front door open. “Todd!” she said on a relieved sigh. Beside the boy stood a stern-faced policeman.
Stepping forward, Sam addressed the lawman, breathless from the combined effects of overeager foreplay and a middle-of-the-night sprint. “Officer, is everything all right? What happened?”
“Now, don’t get excited, Mr. Manning. It seems the boy here got himself in a little accident tonight. But he’s all right and so is the girl. I think he might’ve totaled his car though.”
Sam rubbed his face. “How bad?”
“I cited him for careless driving. It should’ve been reckless driving, but I gave him a break. I have kids too.”
“Thank you, officer. Where is the car now?”
“We had it towed away. Here.” The man handed over a business card. “You can pick it up tomorrow.”
Sam closed the door. In the foyer, hanging his head, Todd mumbled something inaudible.
“If you have something to say, speak up,” Sam said in an unsympathetic voice.
“Sorry,” the boy said, face still aimed at the floor.
“Todd,” Lily said, strangely calm. “Are you all right?”
Her voice reminded Sam of the stillness that settles over town just before a storm blows through.
The boy continued studying his feet. “Yeah.”
“And your date?”
“She’s okay too.”
“Good,” she said, her voice suddenly steely. “Now go to your room!”
Fighting tears, Todd shuffled off to his room. Alone in the foyer, Lily turned to Sam, her blistering look silently reproaching him as well. Then she marched into their bedroom and slammed the door.
***
Thanks for reading.
Joyce
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