Chapter Three - Homesick

Kat jolted awake. Her bed was stained with sweat. Her t-shirt clung to her like she had been to a water park.

The door to her bedroom opened slowly. Kat caught a quick glimpse of a gray puff skitter into the room.

“Time to get up sleepy head,” Uncle Chad said. “Your dad’s almost out the door.”

Kat looked at the clock.

7:45. School started in fifteen minutes.

Stupid nightmare, Kat thought.

Kat quickly threw her blanket off and flew to the bathroom. After brushing her teeth, Kat caught the reflection of something white in the mirror. It was here. She looked terrible.

“I hate spiders,” she whispered to herself.

Kat finished quickly, throwing her hair into a ponytail and jumping into her favorite blue jeans. She grabbed a pop-tart, unsure if she could eat anything after the nacho story. She said a quick goodbye to her uncle, who like he promised, was bench pressing the couch. In no time flat, she was out the door.

The November air hit her as she raced from the apartment to her dad’s car. The Virginia air smelled so much like her Kentucky home that it was the memory, not the cold that brought tears to her eyes.

Kat’s dad, Daniel Westwood sat smiling in the driver’s seat of his beat up station wagon. Kat jumped into the car, her skin was still white as a sheet.

“Morning pipsqueak,” Daniel Westwood said as he tugged on Kat’s ponytail. “You always look just like your mom when you wear a ponytail. Ready for school?”

“Do I have to go?” Kat pleaded as her father moved the car from park to drive.

“You’re already in the car and we have this discussion every morning Kathryn,” Kat’s father said. He hit his left blinker and turned down Ellicott Drive.

“I know,” Kat said tugging at her ponytail. ‘But you don’t have to deal with Ms. Academic Awards every day.”

Kat sounded sick as she said the words academic awards.

“You used to love school,” her dad said. “What happened?”

“Lily Ho is what happened,” Kat said. “Moving happened. The end of the world is what happened.”

Her father pulled up slowly to a red light and sighed. He turned and tried to smile at Kat.

“I know it’s not easy being in a new state or living with your crazy uncle who has more muscle than brain. Fourth grade can be hard when you’re new.

“I remember when I changed schools in sixth grade. There was this boy named Tommy Watkins who had the loudest whistle in the class. Everyone was trying to copy him. Including me. I knew if I could whistle like him, everyone would think I was cool too.

“Well I practiced for weeks until one day in gym class, I curled up my tongue and blew. It was loud that I stopped three games of basketball. Everyone thought it was Tommy, so I kept my mouth shut. He had to run two miles for goofing off.”

Kat’s father laughed hard. It was the kind of mischievous laugh that someone has when they remember a good prank or getting an older sibling in trouble. Kat sighed.

Dad always does this, she thought. Try to a happy spin on things. Life with Lily Ho is anything but happy.

The light turned green and Kat’s father moved through the intersection. He had completely forgotten about his daughter.

“She hates me,” Kat said trying to pull her father back into reality. “She’s hated me since the second week of school when I got the highest grade on Ms. Catarinas’ math test. She wants to get the academic award for fourth grade so bad that she hates me. I don’t even care about that stupid award.”

“Hmm,” her father said as he sped through a yellow light. “So you might win an award this year? That would have made your mother proud.”

“Dad,” Kat complained. “That’s not the point! Can’t I just stay home with Uncle Chad?”
Kat’s father laughed out loud. “And get stuck up another tree? My brother doesn’t realize how strong he is sometimes.”

It was true. Uncle Chad had been training for the World's Strongest Man competition for nearly seven years. At Christmas, he would roll up Kat’s mother’s frying pan just to make Kat giggle.

“Just yesterday,” Kat’s father continued, “he asked to borrow my car for squat lifts. I don’t need my daughter turning into a frying pan burrito.”

Kat smiled for the first time since she had woken up. School and spiders couldn’t compare with Uncle Chad.

Kat’s father slowed down as he pulled into the Kiss and Ride loop at Edgeview Elementary. Ten cars still had to unload in front of them. He turned to his daughter and smiled.

“I promise things will get better soon. I’ve been working hard spraying bugs and protecting houses. After Christmas, I should have enough money for a down payment on a townhouse. Just you and me.”

“Townhouse?” Kat asked. Her jaw hung open at the news of change.
Her father smiled.

“You look like a whale shark over there,” he laughed. “Yes, townhouse. Just you, me, and no Princess Puffball.”

Kat giggled. Last week, little Miss Pufferella had decided that her father’s goatee was a great target. A two inch gash cut into Daniel Westwood’s cheek.

“No one likes that kitten,” Kat joked.

“Just your crazy uncle,” her father said.

The door to the car was opened by a teacher at the school.

“Good morning,” she beamed into the car.

Kat scooped up her backpack and hugged her father quickly. So many new things had changed since her mother passed away and he had to switch job locations. He was working longer hours lately for the extermination company. He and Uncle Chad were all the she had left now. Before she left, he whispered in her ear.

“If this Lily is as mean as Princess Puffball, just pull her tail. She’ll hide under her desk for the rest of the day.”

Kat smiled.

Forget Lily. Soon she’d be home.