Standing before her, with arms folded and a wry smile on his face, was a teenage boy, not much older than herself. Instantly she felt her skin bristle and she scrambled to her feet.
"What are you staring at?" she demanded, planting her feet firmly apart, gearing herself up for a fight.
"What do you care," came the retort, "Porcupine."
Sammi felt the blood rush to her face as she felt her temper boiling.
"Don't call me that!" she hissed, pulling her face into a very unflattering pucker.
"I'll call you what I want, it's MY territory here, PORCUPINE!!!"
Instantly, Sammi lunged forward, her fists flying, but TJ was too quick and feinted to the right, as a perfectly formed fist whistled through the air close to his ear.
"Whoa! Steady on there Porcupine, you nearly got me!"
His mocking laughter didn't help Sammi's mood any as she lashed out again. This time he was ready for her and grabbed for her thin waist.
But she was too quick and held him in a headlock.He was amazed at her strength as he struggled with her. By now it had began to rain, hard, and the water trickled down the nape of his neck as they both wrestled.
Snarling and spitting, she was no worse than a wildcat. All her pent-up fury had amassed together in this one singular moment, and she simply let fly....
-------------------------------------------
Ewan skidded to a halt, when he realised he'd gone too far and Sammi was nowhere in sight. Huge tears started rolling down his face and he pooched out his bottom lip.
It was then that a kindly female voice startled him, making him jump.
"Hey there, you look lost."
His head whipped around and his blurry vision fixed on a tall, dark haired woman leaning against a trailer door. Wiping his eyes, he sniffed loudly and nodded.
A tousled haired little boy, Ewan supposed was the same age as himself, peered around from behind her legs, he was carrying a plate with what looked like homemade berry pie.
The smell made Ewan's mouth water and his stomach growl. Oh how he wished he could have some fruit pie. It smelled so delicious.
"Would you like some?" the kind lady offered, "there's plenty here, Ma's just made a big batch of it."
"Who are you talking to Sue?" a gravelly, yet not unkind voice drifted out from within the trailer.
"Oh, a young gentleman," came the reply, followed by a warm smile.
"It had better not be that young 'un that our Timmy hangs around with. Tell him to buzz off!!"
Susan chuckled, wiping her hands on a cloth.
"No, this one's younger....." she said, tipping Ewan a wink, ..... and he's got red hair."
"OOOhhhh, hang on there, I'll be right out. Never had a red haired young man around here before. This I gotta see."
There was a lot of commotion as pots and pans were reorganised, before a tall, thin, grey haired woman peered out of the door.
"Oh my." gasped the old woman, "isn't he a cutie?"
Ewan could feel himself blushing and dropped his gaze shyly, trailing his sneaker in the dirt before him.
"And what's your name young man?"
"Ewan, ma'am."
Ewan, barely whispered his own name as he stood there in complete awe of this family. They were nothing the way he'd imagined trailer folks, with dirty clothing, beer bellies, smelling filthy and swearing a lot. In fact, to Ewan, at that precise moment, they were royalty.
"Ohh, handsome name for a handsome man."
Ewan's blush deepened as he wished the ground to swallow him. He'd never had so many compliments in his young life, and didn't know how to take them.
"Seth!" barked the old woman, making Ewan nearly jump out of his skin, "get your fingers out of my pies! They're supposed to be for the county fair tomorrow."
"Sorry Nan," Seth replied, licking his jam covered fingers, "but I's still hungry."
"There's some pie already cut on the table, go get yourself some."
She turned to Ewan, grinning.
"Oh, and get some for our young guest too."
Ewan's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He was getting some pie!!!! And he didn't even have to ask!!!!
Susan pulled out a chair and Ewan sat down gingerly, unable to believe that he was made welcome by these kind strangers. Swinging his legs, he waited in anticipation, with fork in hand as Seth trotted out of the trailer, balancing two plates at once.
The smell of cherries was unmistakeable but Ewan delicately dug in his fork and savoured the flavour. He was brought up with table manners after all.
The sugary sweetness melted over his tongue and caressed his throat as he swallowed the first bite. Every now and then, he'd look up and see everyone else seated at the table, or standing around, eating the same pie. It felt so homely and welcoming.
But he soon forgot those table manners as hunger swept over him and he gobbled up every last morsel, careful not to get anything all over his face and clothes.
"Was that good?" Susan asked as she cleared the plates.
Ewan nodded happily, his eyes wide with wonder at this happy little family unit. He wondered if his family would ever be like that. For now, all they seemed to do was to move around, and his sister and mother would argue all the time.
"We have some jelly," Susan offered, watching Ewan staring intently at the jiggling concoction sitting on the table.
Ewan's eyes were like saucers. Never had he seen so much food in his life.
"Hey," said Seth, leaping down from his chair, "wanna go play tag or something?"
Ewan nodded, eager that he'd made a new friend, and slid off his chair.
He'd just started to play tag when suddenly he skidded to a grinding halt, a queasy feeling churned in the pit of his stomach.
The smile slid from his face though, as he went a funny shade of green and promptly vomited up that delicious pie. His poor shrunken stomach wasn't used to rich food or large portions.
Instantly, he started to cry, realising that his top was ruined and he'd embarrassed himself once again, in front of strangers.
"Hey," crooned the old woman, dabbing the excess vomit from his shirt, "it's okay."
Ewan shook his head miserably. After all that hospitality they'd given him, and he'd ruined it by being sick.
But attention was soon diverted when Susan yelled out loudly.
"Timothy!! What the hell happened to you?"
"Nothing Ma," came the grouchy, grumbled reply, as a tall teenager came into view.
From Ewan's point of view, he looked a lot worse off than himself. His tee shirt was caked in mud and he was sporting a black eye and deep scratches.
"Who did you get into a fight with this time Timothy?"
"Nobody Ma, and don't call me Timothy, it's TJ ok?"
His good eye scanned Ewan critically.
"Who's the stray?"
"Timothy, that's not a nice thing to say to our guests. This is Ewan, Ewan this is my oldest son Timothy."
"TJ." he corrected hastily, flinching as his mother reached forward to touch his cheek.
"Whoever it was," she said gravely, "they messed you up pretty badly."
TJ grimaced.
Luckily for him, there were no other witnesses there to see him getting his butt kicked by a girl.
"Come here and give your Ma a big hug why don'tcha?"
"Aww Ma," TJ protested, casting a nervous glance towards a very observant Ewan.
"I'll let you have extra portions of Nan's cherry pie," she winked.
With that, TJ folded himself gingerly into his mother's arms, that feeling of warmth emanating from her.
"Thanks Ma," he said, trying his hardest to smile, "your the best."
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