Status: New story, different from anything I've read
World Traveler
First week (age 7)
That Sunday, Sammy, Marcus and Liam all piled into the family car; Susan wanted to stay home to nap and do some cleaning around the house. Marcus drove their white sedan to Mr. Gifford’s house, as listed on his hiring ad.
They arrived in no time flat and found Mr. Gifford seated on him porch, a pipe in his mouth. Marcus, after helping his kids out of the back, lead the way up the steps and shook Mr. Gifford’s hand. “Nice to meet you, my name’s Leroy Gifford.” His hands, though wrinkled, grasped Marcus’s firmly.
“Marcus Payne. This is my daughter, Samantha, most people call her Sammy, and my son Liam. I understand you hired my little girl to deliver the newspaper,” Marcus was an intimidating man. He should be, given his job. He didn’t tell his kids, in detail, what he did. He was a detective, but even Mr. Leroy Gifford flew under his radar.
“That’s right, I need someone’s help now that my son and grandson moved out. Marshall, my grandson, was delivering the papers, but Ron, my boy, decided it was time he lived on his own.” If Marcus had been watching him, he would have seen Leroy’s eyes twitch or heard his breath catch on his lie. However, Marcus was watching his kids run around the lawn, bored with adult conversation. Marcus wanted nothing more than to have fun with his kids. “If you follow me inside, you can grab Sammy’s first week’s worth of papers. Its a lot, 450 papers to be exact. The route itself isn’t long. It should take an hour, an hour and a half at most. She has to start at 5am, the latest, if she wants to deliver them all on time. Got that?” Marcus nodded. He wasn’t paying attention, but he was absorbing everything being told to him. His heart was longing to be with his kids at the moment.
Mr. Gifford thrust a large bundle of papers at Marcus. Upon observation, each day was carefully counted and separated by string. “I print these papers myself, but they are exactly what you’d get in town. Remember, Sammy has to start before 5 in the morning.” Marcus nodded and hustled out of the house, eager to dump the papers and bring his kids somewhere fun.
They arrived in no time flat and found Mr. Gifford seated on him porch, a pipe in his mouth. Marcus, after helping his kids out of the back, lead the way up the steps and shook Mr. Gifford’s hand. “Nice to meet you, my name’s Leroy Gifford.” His hands, though wrinkled, grasped Marcus’s firmly.
“Marcus Payne. This is my daughter, Samantha, most people call her Sammy, and my son Liam. I understand you hired my little girl to deliver the newspaper,” Marcus was an intimidating man. He should be, given his job. He didn’t tell his kids, in detail, what he did. He was a detective, but even Mr. Leroy Gifford flew under his radar.
“That’s right, I need someone’s help now that my son and grandson moved out. Marshall, my grandson, was delivering the papers, but Ron, my boy, decided it was time he lived on his own.” If Marcus had been watching him, he would have seen Leroy’s eyes twitch or heard his breath catch on his lie. However, Marcus was watching his kids run around the lawn, bored with adult conversation. Marcus wanted nothing more than to have fun with his kids. “If you follow me inside, you can grab Sammy’s first week’s worth of papers. Its a lot, 450 papers to be exact. The route itself isn’t long. It should take an hour, an hour and a half at most. She has to start at 5am, the latest, if she wants to deliver them all on time. Got that?” Marcus nodded. He wasn’t paying attention, but he was absorbing everything being told to him. His heart was longing to be with his kids at the moment.
Mr. Gifford thrust a large bundle of papers at Marcus. Upon observation, each day was carefully counted and separated by string. “I print these papers myself, but they are exactly what you’d get in town. Remember, Sammy has to start before 5 in the morning.” Marcus nodded and hustled out of the house, eager to dump the papers and bring his kids somewhere fun.
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Short filler. Working on the next chapter. It'll be longer, I promise.