The Tapioca Portfolio

It was a summer day like any other: the air was humid; the temperature was off the charts and the dog… the dog was there again. It annoyed me, really, if you wanted to know the truth. It didn’t leave droppings in our backyard, though everyday he would just pass by our cabin and would never bother to say “hi.” Well, it wasn’t really possible considering he was a dog but I still found it rude, not to bark and all. Even just a single squeaky bark would be appreciated and he refuses to do it. Stubborn mutt! He was just like his owner, old man Jeffresen.

Helen passed me the ice-cold glass of water. “Oh, there’s Barfy again!” she exclaimed after seeing it.

I tittered and looked at her. “Barfy?” I said.

“Yup, I named him. So what?”

“It’s stupid. Barf-y? What’s up with that?”

She blushed, stomped her foot, and turned away. “Then I’ll just change it to ‘Dutchy’, the royal dog!” she said. My sister wasn’t really good at giving names. If you called her “Pukey” she would throw a party just because it ended with “-y.”

She turned to look at the dog again. “Where does he get all those bones he carries from Mr. Jeffresen’s house?” Helen said, looking at me as if she was expecting an answer. “From a meat shop?”

“No, from the graveyard.  It’s grandma’s bones,” I retorted. Helen was stupid, as usual.

“Re-really, Cleven? I-I don’t believe you,” she said, her voice quavering.

I leaned towards her and whispered, “It’s true. What do you think of your ‘Barfy’ now?”

Nothing. She said nothing and ran away. I guess Helen went away to tell on me. I didn’t care. She was stupid and she’d blabber about stupid things. That question still bothered me, though.  Old man Jeffresen could never have given him all those bones. Heck, he would never even go out of his house. I think if he wanted to buy milk, he would send his dog to do it.

When we first moved here six months ago, we were told about a man who was living near us. As always, my mom wanted to be neighborly and decided to give him an apple pie so she sent me to do the boring old task. I stood on his stoop for hours, knocking on the door but no one answered except for the stench that came from inside. Honestly, the odor was too much to bear. It was so strong that it affected even the sweet smell of the pie. And when I finally came back home, nobody wanted to touch it. I guess even the mice wanted to escape when I shoved the whole thing into their hole.

Mr. Jeffresen’s dog was a whole other story. He’s a little bit weirder than his master. I guess the name “Barfy” suits him well, living in an intoxicating house and all. The first time I saw him was last week. He appeared from nowhere, dragging a big bone with his mouth. He would be carrying one out of their house and into the woods. Then, he would disappear in the darkness and so would a bone. We never tried to approach him though. He was a dirty dog and had a fierce look in his black eyes.

“Cleven! Come here!” Mom called out.  I think she understood Helen’s stupid talk.

I sprinted to the door and went inside the kitchen. Helen was on top of a chair and Mom was trying to calm her down.  Mom looked undeniably worried. It was a good thing that she wasn’t angry but when she cringes, you know that something is really wrong.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Mr. Jeffresen’s dog went inside the house and trashed the living room, dear,” she said in her hoarse voice.

We stared at each other for a long time. Silence filled the room until Helen screamed, “He’s going to eat my bones next!” I almost laughed. We started talking again after that, thanks to Helen.

“What do you want me to do now?” I asked again. When I’m with Mom, I always start the conversation with a question. That’s because she would not call you or anything unless she wanted something.

“Please fetch your brother and tell Mr. Jeffresen about this,” she said.

“But he’s in the town, working.  How am I supposed to get there? It’s gonna take me ages…”

“You’re fifteen, dear. You can manage.”

“But…”

“Just ride your bike, dear.”

Yeah right. I wouldn’t go there even if you paid me a million bucks. I figured that if I told old man Jeffresen about this by myself, life would be a lot easier. All I had to endure was a stench that was out of this world.

I just nodded and went outside the house. I thought she was still looking at me so I rode my bike. It was a stupid thing to do, I admit, because I ran over some twigs and branches on my way to the stink house and it scratched my newly painted ride. Well, that’s the consequence of doing stupid things.

At last, I arrived. Barfy was not in sight which was, of course, a good thing. If you are going to tell on someone, you have to first make sure that he is not there. If he is, he’ll do everything just to destroy your plan.

I got off my bike and headed for the old rickety house. The smell still wasn’t pleasant but at least it wasn’t like before. Maybe the old man learned a new thing, namely spring-cleaning… well, sort of.

As I stood in front of his door, I knocked lightly. No one answered. I knocked again, this time harder. It’s irritating to be knocking again and again when you know someone doesn’t want to let you in. I decided to let myself in, just to get over with it.

“Hey old man, I’m coming in, okay?” I yelled. Of course, no one answered so I just picked the lock with my ATM card and barged in.

The place was dark because the windows were blocked. The walls were dusty when I examined them with my hands to look for the switch. There was no switch. To be honest, the house scared the life out of me but I had to speak with old man Jeffresen. I wanted to get rid of his stupid dog and he’s the only one who can do that.

I opened the wooden windows and crept upstairs. At each step on the termite-infested stairs, the planks of wood creaked and I felt like someone was watching me from behind; someone was following me. I didn’t look back, though. In the movies, when people look back or make sudden actions, something bad happens and I wasn’t prepared for that.

I slowly opened the door of the dark room. I could make out a figure lying on the bed, covered in sheets.

“Old man, we have to talk. It’s about your dog,” I said as I entered the room. I figured that he was mute or a snob or something because he didn’t answer. “Hey,” I called again.

As I approached him, my heart beat faster and faster. I gulped. “Hey,” I said again, now in my hoarse voice. Grabbing one corner of the blanket, I carefully pulled it away so that I could see his face. My heart skipped a beat when I saw that it wasn’t him– it was the dog, sleeping soundly.

I walked away backwards, trying to be as quiet as possible while waving my hands to see if anything was in the way.  Then, I suddenly tripped on something and it fell apart. The noise it produced was so familiar but I couldn’t figure out what it was so I slowly picked one of its parts up–it was a skull! It was old man Jeffresen’s skull!

I sprung up and headed for the door. Too late. The dog was already blocking my way. His sharp teeth stuck out of his mouth and he looked at me as if I was dessert. I knew he wanted to claw my guts away.

“Good boy,” I said. I never understood why people would say that in the movies. It’s not like a stupid animal could understand but I said it anyway, hoping that it would work. This one wasn’t stupid, though. He came closer so I crouched down, examining the floor for a bone.

“Fetch!” I shouted and threw it out the door towards the other room. I hoped it would give me enough time to escape.

Almost falling down the stairs, I ran towards the exit. I didn’t grab my bike or anything. I didn’t care about it now that the dog was after me. I ran and ran, past the woods and into our house.

“Close the doors, Helen!” I shouted.

“Wh-why?” she asked. It really pissed me off but I had something more important to do than just show it.

“Just close it!”

Fortunately, she obeyed. After all that action, I tried to catch my breath so I sat leaning against the wall. Then, I looked around the house.

“Where’s mom?” I asked.

“She’s outside, washing our clothes” Helen answered.

“What?!” I yelled and jerked up.

I ran to the backyard and saw mom doing the laundry. I felt relieved but it was not over. The backyard was an open space too.

“Mom! Come inside!” I called.

“Why, dear?” she asked. Darn it! Why do girls have to ask so many questions before they do what they’re told?

“Helen’s fainted! Come inside!” I shouted again.

She suddenly ran inside with all the soap and bubbles that was covering her hands. It was good that she was always worried about Helen. After that, I went inside as fast as I could and closed the backyard door.

“Are you okay, honey?” mom asked Helen as she hugged her tightly.

“Yes, I’m fine, mom.” Helen answered.

They looked so stupid but I was just glad they’re safe.  I told Mom and Helen about everything so we called the cops and the Animal Police. A week later, they told us that they already transferred the dog to the Animal Care Centre and that the investigation was over. Apparently, old man Jeffresen shot himself months ago. They said that’s how he died but they didn’t know what really happened next.

“His body decomposed, kid,” the flabby old cop told me.

“No. The dog—” I was rudely interrupted.

“No, kid. Stop what you’re saying or you’ll look as bad as those hillbillies who say weird things. ‘Hillbilly kid’ is what they’ll call you.”

The cop was too stupid to consider other possibilities. No one really believed me after that except Helen and Mom. No one wanted to know the truth. I guess I should just leave things the way they were–unjustified.

———————————————————————

OUTLINE:

Scene 1:
- Cleven will see the dog carrying a bone
- Cleven will scare Helen away
- Give back story

Scene 2:
- Mom will call Cleven
- Mom will ask Cleven to do something because the dog trashed one of the rooms in the house

Scene 3:
- Cleven will go to Mr. Jeffresen’s house.
- He will unlock the door
- He will enter and go up stairs
- He will see the skull of Mr. Jeffresen
- He will run away but the dog will stop him

Scene 4:
- Cleven will run back home
- He will tell Helen and his mom to go inside the house

Scene 5:
- They will call the police.
- (lol) No one will believe his story except Helen.

Beginning: Cleven and Helen will have a conversation about the dog.
Rising action: Mom will tell Cleven that the dog went inside the house. Now she wants him to go to dog’s owner’s house.
Climax: Cleven will realize that the dog ate Mr. Jeffresen/ A confrontation with the dog.
Falling action: Cleven will run back home and call for help.
End: The dog will be sent away.

—————————————————————————

lol. This is supposed to be my assignment for pantsing but I accidentally made an outline of it in my head. I wrote it above.

Hope you enjoyed! (Yes, the ending’s a bit… unsatisfying and the character is awfully irritating. I’m working on that, don’t worry.)

-Steph-

© Copyright 2008 Steffany Cale (UN: tepishane_13 at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
Steffany Cale has granted Writing.Com, its affiliates and syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work

To: Zyron, Fr: Steph (Sorry, couldn’t help but post this! Haha!)

————————

Zyron motioned to the door and, upon hearing a familiar voice, excitedly opened it. She threw herself into the his loving arms, almost tripping that it seemed she didn’t have time to think once she saw his face. Looking down, he gave her a sweet gaze. They stayed frozen for mere seconds but it almost seemed like an eternity to the girl who proved that fate was treating her like a daughter. She felt his warmth surround her. “He is truly a gift from heaven, my first love,” she thought.

“Let’s get inside,” the man said, “It’s getting cold out here.” He took of his jacket, put it on her shoulders and, taking her hand, led the way to the kitchen.

She felt comfortable holding his jacket– like a part of him was enveloping her still. Her eyes were concentrated on his face and the way he opened the kitchen’s swivel doors, walked inside and let her sit down on one of the chairs, just as he has done several times. But this one different, special.

“Cocoa or tea?” he asked, putting the kettle on top of the flames.

“Cocoa,  the way I like it.”

As they waited for the water to boil, he sat on a chair beside Zyro and faced her. She let his gaze melt all her problems away, leaving only warmth on a cold December night. He leaned closer and touched her face for yet another time.

Giggles were heard from the other room, which interrupted the two in their silence.

She closed her eyes and smiled a bit. “Mon,” she sighed, “I think you should tell the children to sleep now.”

(Unedited)

DANDELIONS ONLY

Jeremy held the dandelions as far as he could from his face. “I shouldn’t be doing this, he mumbled. “I’ll get sick, for heaven’s sake!” He bent down again and picked another flower crossly, disregarding the ‘do not pick the flowers’ sign placed everywhere.

An orange ball suddenly bounced over the small white fence and hit the dandelion patches. Their seeds flew in the air causing Jeremy to sneeze several times.

“Hey, mister!” children called out, “could you throw the ball back to us?” The voices seemed to echo in the air; sometimes low, sometimes high-toned. Jeremy did not know whether he was hallucinating or his eyes were just watery that he could not see well. Whatever the reason was, he threw the ball back, missing the target by one meter.

It was when he had wrinkled his nose, had rubbed his eyes and had clear his throat that he was able to move and think right again. And after thinking for a while, a smile formed on his face. Jeremy then took off his brown leather jacket and laid it over the dandelions, using it to gather them. With a count of one, two and three, he pulled the flowers out of the ground and wrapped it in the jacket.

“Did you get the dandy-lines? Huh, Dad?” 5-year-old Dave asked Jeremy when he went back in the car.

Jeremy grinned, ruffled his son’s hair and replied, “Yes, I managed to get them. Well… almost. I though of giving up for a while,”

“Can I feel them? Can I feel the flowers? Please….”

“Uh, no. You might get sick too. When we arrive home, I’ll place them in quarantine right away.”

“Kua-lan-tine?”

“No, quaran—never mind,”

There was a short pause but the conversation resumed immediately after Dave asked, “No more shouting from Mom when we give the flowers?”

Jeremy smiled again and said, “No more shouting from either of us, promise.”

A SIREN’S WEAKNESS

I slid to the back of Ogre’s Café, hoping he would neither see nor hear me. It was pitch black so I waved my hands to see if anything was in the way; I felt my fingers brushing into something. Chills ran down my spine.

“Koosh…” I heard it say, “kooroosh” I let go of my breath—it was only a tiny fluffy Koosh.

Gathering all that’s left of my courage, I started to travel the dark place again. Unfortunately, it was not long before I knocked down the garbage cans and I tumbled; my tail never forgot to remind me that it was there. I stood up and noticed a huge shadow slowly making its way to the corner—my corner.

With the same intentions, I carefully stuck half of my head out, just too see if it was really him.

“Oh, beautiful siren!” he exclaimed. It was over; the chase-and-hide game was over. The pesky giant already found me. I shouldn’t have exposed myself, stupid me! “Come, let’s play,” he invited again.

“Go away! I don’t want to be crushed by you! I’m not ready to go to Siren Heaven yet! Go away!” I shouted, now trying to hide behind the garbage cans.

BEING CONSPICOUS (scene)

My dog Rowly kept on walking beside me, nose and tail both in the air. We had walked for more than an hour now, just going in circles and making it out as if we were just exercising like any normal person would do in any normal park.

After the last round, I finally decided to accept the white bench’s invitation and sat on it. Rowly sat on the ground beside me too, still stiff like before.

“One, two, one, that’s it!” The male belly dance instructor said. “Come on, shake your hips more, boys!”

The whole scene was too much to bear. I didn’t know whether to puke or just arrest them for the theoretical crime they were planning. They should’ve tried to do something more

inconspicuous like martial arts or something. Pathetic.

After having enough, I tried to decode every movement their enormous stomachs made. It wasn’t easy; they were using a new method. Even so, you could tell that they were all planning to sabotage the State of the Nation Address on Monday.

(Unedited.)