Like the Waves That Crash

It was around ten past four when Eleanor arrived home from school, involuntarily choosing to walk instead of taking the bus. Her encounter with Alex had caused her to miss it and she arrived home twenty minute later than usual. She didn’t care really, the walk home was somewhat relaxing and the sun shone brightly for once.

Two cars sat on the drive. Both the silver Golf and the black Mercedes were sleeping in front the house, and Eleanor instantly knew that something was not right. Her father was a traveling sales man, he hardly ever was home.

“Where have you been?” Eleanor’s mother demanded as soon as Eleanor stepped onto the drive.

Eleanor looked up, not noticing her mother sat on the balcony.

“I missed the bus,” Eleanor explained, “It was an accident.”

Her mother huffed but left it at that. “Your dad’s home, he got you a present from wherever the hell he was.”

Eleanor nodded slowly and headed indoors, leaving her mother to fume outside. Yet again her father had forgotten to tell his family where he was heading. After seventeen years of marriage you’d expect him to learn, but he never did.

Dumping her satchel at the bottom of the staircase, Eleanor headed towards the living room where the sound of the television could be heard blaring out. He only turned it up that loud when he had had an argument. Obviously there had been another fall out between her parents.

“Hi, dad.” Eleanor said, sitting down on the sofa next to her father. He looked rough. Unshaven with his top buttons undone and his tie slightly unfastened and hanging loosely. His eyes were bloodshot, but Eleanor couldn’t tell if it was from the drink in his hand and the bottles on the floor or from a late night plane and long hours of driving.

Mr. Spektor smiled at his daughter and began rummaging in his pocket. From it he pulled a small box, tightly wrapped in a orange ribbon. “Thanks, dad.” Eleanor grinned at he handed it to her.

Mr. Spektor laughed, “You haven’t even opened it yet!”

Tugging on the ribbon it gave way to reveal a small green box with the name ‘Harrods’ scrawled across it in golden letters. Eleanor’s grin grew; she knew where he’d been to from that word alone.

“You went to London!” She gasped her attention focused on that now not on the box in her hands.

“Yeah,” Her father smiled, “Managed to seal a great deal as well there. Saved the company.”

Eleanor always tried to learn all that she could, she could recite the periodic table along with the atomic numbers and masses and even knew the boiling and melting points of all the elements on it, but when it came to her father and his work that was the only subject where she wouldn’t get an A+.

“Are you ever going to tell me what you do for a living?” Eleanor inquired, desperate for
some sort of answer.

Mr. Spektor smiled; his daughters’ inquisitive nature was what made Eleanor so easy to get along with. When she meets new people she generally wanted to learn about them and listen to what they had to say. “I will if you promise to join me when you leave High School.”

“That’s a no then since I don’t need university grades to do it.” Eleanor replied quickly with a small giggle at her father’s another failed attempt at persuading her to follow in his career path.

“Well, you do but I know you’re smart enough already.” He shot back which made Eleanor grin. “Now open your present!”

Eleanor fixed her attention back on the green box desperate to shake it like a young child does at birthdays and Christmas but knowing that something in a box as small as this would probably break if she did. Lifting the lid the smile on Eleanor’s face grew as she carefully pulled out the gift within. The thin gold chain glittered and Eleanor suppressed a gasp as she examined the necklace. There are a lot of things that separate Eleanor from girls for example she doesn’t like makeup and doesn’t get that weird maternal feeling females tend to get whenever they see babies but when it comes to jewelery Eleanor falls head over heels along with every other woman on the planet.

“Dad, it is so beautiful!”

He smiled and reached over, taking the gold necklace in his hands. It was a very delicate necklace, with a thin golden chain which from it dangled a small golden apple. Raising his eyebrows to Eleanor as if to say ‘watch this’ he gently opened the apple.

“A locket!” Eleanor loved the way some things as small as necklaces could hold so many secrets. One photo placed within could say so much about you.

“On one side yes, but look.” He handed the locket back to Eleanor. Holding the necklace in one hand, she pushed her glasses up with the other and stared inside the golden apple. On one side it was simply a normal locket but on the other side a small serpent was curved in a w shape.

“It’s by called the ‘Original Sin Apple’.” Mr. Spektor explained. “By some designer called Alex Monroe. Never heard of him before but apparently Sienna Miller is a fan of his jewelery. I know you’re not huge on spending masses amounts of money on such shallow things, but I know you’ll make an exception for this.”

The spell the necklace had seemed to have woven on Eleanor dropped as she looked suspiciously up at her dad. “How much did you pay?”

“Nothing that I can’t afford.” He answered evenly, used to Eleanor’s money questions.

“How much?” She pressed on.

“Two hundred and twenty-five pounds.” Mr.Spektor answered smugly. Quickly, Eleanor made the calculations in her head.

“Dad, that’s four hundred dollars! I’d tell you to take it back but it’s a bit difficult since we live in America and Harrods is in England.” Eleanor complained despite knowing there was no need to fight. She’d have to keep the necklace despite it costing way too much.

“And guess what, Ellie. You are worth every last cent of it.” He leaned over and ruffled his daughter’s hair fondly before taking the necklace from her and fastening it round her neck. “Now go revise for a test which probably won’t arise for another month but you want to
prepare now.”

Eleanor’s grin returned to her face. She thanked her father, kissed him on the cheek then rushed to the staircase where she picked up her broken satchel and headed to her bedroom. She didn’t have any exams for ages yet but she was going to revise anyway. Her father knew her so well despite barely seeing her.

***

“Name all of the diatomic atoms.”

Despite it being dinner, Eleanor had convinced her parents to quiz her using the flash cards she had just printed off the Internet. She hadn’t told her parents that she didn’t need to know these things yet but she wanted to anyway, chemistry was one of her first loves.

“Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen, Fluorine, Chlorine, Bromine and Iodine.” Eleanor answered as she flicked a pea around her plate with her fork.

From across the table Eleanor’s sister, Cecilia, laughed. “Why are diatoms the hip-hop stars of the periodic table?”

Cecilia barely gave time for them to even process what she had just said before she jumped in with the answer. “They only come in Tupacs!”

Eleanor saw the flash of light reflect of the sparkly top Cici was wearing.

“I’d be impressed if you hadn’t just Googled what a diatom is.” Eleanor said smugly and watched as Cici’s face fell slightly. “I can see your phone screen reflecting off your top.”

“Darn it.” Cecilia groaned, placing her phone on the table. “I’m only eleven, I don’t know these things. You make me feel so stupid sometimes, Ellie.”

Leaning across the table Eleanor pinched her little sister’s cheek affectionately. “You’re five years younger than me, if you know what a diatom is now you’ll be a super genius at my age.”

Cici smiled and swattered Eleanor’s hand away. “Caltech here I come!”

“Before you go to Caltech, would you consider working with me?” Mr. Spektor chipped in, yet again attempting to seize any opportunity he could to get his daughters involved in his company.

“No, dad. I’m going to be the next Einstein.” Cecilia said matter-of-factly as she ate the last of her dinner. “And by the way, Ellie. I was totally Googling who designed your necklace not what a diatom was.” Cici passed over her phone with an open page of Eleanor’s necklace.

“Genius point for Cici? I think so.” Cici said smugly with a playful smirk plastered on her face.