Jude

When Jude got home that afternoon, Spider was zonked on the couch. Thumb in his mouth, other hand clutching the T. rex he’d stolen from Gladys’s house. Jude could hear Mom in her room, talking on the phone. He was trying to find something to eat when she came into the kitchen. He got ready for her to grill him on the first day of school.

Instead she opened the refrigerator, took out a carton of eggs.

“You’re not going to believe this. Miss Edith at Good Sam? My doily diva? I’ve been calling to check up on her.” Mom started cracking eggs into a bowl. “She says things have gone so downhill there, her nephew’s moving her out to live with him. She has this big-shot nephew who owns his own contracting business over in Middleton.” She whisked the eggs with milk. “I actually met him a few times.”

Jude watched her melt butter in a frying pan, pour in the eggs. This was already the most she’d said to him since she got fired. Not to mention, she’d cooked exactly nothing. He had zero idea why she was talking about some rich contractor two towns over, but guess who wasn’t about to interrupt her?

“So it turns out she’s been telling him how unfair they treated me. I guess he got sick of listening to her because...” She slid the eggs onto a plate and set it on the table along with two forks. “He just called. He says he has a sudden opening in his office and am I interested.”

“What? Really?”

“You’re catching flies, mister.” She got the ketchup, pulled out a chair. “Sit down. Nothing’s worse than cold eggs.”

“That’s amazing, Mom.” He fell into the chair. “That’s like...like the payoff for how hard you worked at Good Sam. How good you were to the residents.”

“Don’t get too excited.” She poked at her scar. “It’s an office job. I don’t know much about jobs where you get to sit down.”

“But you’re smart. You learn fast.”

“I must’ve said something right because he wants me to come in Friday to talk.” She squirted ketchup. They both loved ketchup. Suddenly her eyes bugged. “I’ll have to ask Jewel to watch Spy! I didn’t even want her to know about this. If I don’t get the job, she’ll love feeling sorry for me. Nothing makes her happier.”

“Mom, Auntie Jewel cares about you and you know it.”

“Listen to you!”

Spider wandered in, rubbing his eyes. Mom fed him a bite, then all of a sudden remembered. She jabbed her fork in Jude’s direction.

“How was your first day? Say excellent, mister, or you are in big trouble!”