Comfort and crates

The buzzing of the alarm wakes you from a fitful sleep. Quickly turning it off, you wipe the sleep from your eyes and go to the bathroom. After a five minute shower to wake you up and clean you up from the night before, you call for Grace to wake up. By the time Grace crawls out of bed, you’re already dressed in a grey sports bra and tank tops, your favorite jeans with the holes in the knees, and your boots. Grace mumbles about getting a shower and coffee. You start a pot of coffee and call for a cab.

By the time the coffee is finished, Grace is dressed in jeans, sneakers, and her baggy school T-shirt that she wears when she cleans the apartment. You French braid your hair as Grace takes a sip of her coffee. “So what’s the plan?”

“Let’s see,” you consult your watch. “My cab should be here in a few minutes. I’m going to go pick up a small U-Haul.” You reach out and stroke Grace’s hand. “Since Katie’s your sister, you’ll need talk to the people at the high school office.” The worried, panicked look quickly returns to Grace’s face. You give her hand a quick, supportive squeeze. “Just tell them your sister is a senior and she’ll be moving here. If they ask why, just say there’s a problem at home and Katie will be staying with you for the rest of the year. That’ll be truth enough.” Grace nods once. “We’ll meet back here, then we’ll drive up to where your parents live. We should get there in time to meet Katie at the high school. If she wants to come with us, we take her home, pack up her stuff, and move her with us this weekend.” You pause, squeezing Grace’s hand again as you look into her eyes. “I want you to know this is Katie’s decision. We’ve done all we can do. But she may decide she doesn’t want to leave. You need to be ready for that possibility.”

Grace sighs. “Yeah, I know. I just hope we’re doing the right thing. For us and for Katie.”

“I know, pet. But it’s all we can do.”

By 8:00a, the U-Haul is loaded with an assortment of empty boxes. You grab some packing tape, a couple of Sharpies, and your pocket knife as Grace puts all the paperwork from the school into an empty folder. After a quick stop for gas and snacks, the two of you head for Marion.

The two of you play travel games to pass the time and keep your spirits up, stopping only for restroom breaks or to get another soda. Finally the two of you arrive at the Marion High School. You carefully urge the U-Haul into the student pickup lane alongside the minivans, SUVs, and compact cars of parents waiting to get their kids. Ignoring the frustration and heated comments as they have to pull around your truck, you climb out of the cab and stretch. At that moment Grace calls out to you. "There's Katie over there."