Crushed by Melanie Conklin

Author:Melanie Conklin [CONKLIN, MELANIE]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2024-07-16T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 18

FEELINGS ARE GRATE

It’s Saturday morning, and I’m downstairs helping rearrange the bookstore. Dad and Gram finally agreed on a floor plan, and the store is closed for the weekend so we can move everything before the fire inspection. Inside, the shelves are empty, and it looks like we’ve been robbed. But the books are stacked in columns against the walls so we can shift the bookcases around. Dad had all the part-time staff come in to help, which costs a lot, so he’s even more stressed than usual, and Gram’s crabbier than ever.

“Why aren’t you dressed yet?” Gram asks.

“I am dressed.” I’m wearing my plaid pajama pants and woolly slippers. When I woke up, I remembered what happened with Eve all over again and couldn’t stand the idea of changing into real clothes. I’m down here trying to distract myself so I can stop thinking about it.

“Moving furniture is hard work. You should have jeans and sneakers on.”

“She’s fine,” Dad says. “The staff and I will move the bookcases. Sophie’s in charge of making sure we’re aligned with the floor plan she helped us create.”

Gram purses her lips. “Let’s get this over with.”

First, we move the bookcases out of the way to make space, which exposes all kinds of ick on the old wood floors that Mom and Thalia immediately tackle. Mom was on call yesterday and last night, but for once she wasn’t gone all night. Thalia runs along the dirty spots, spraying them, while Mom follows behind with the mop. The sharp smell of lemon cleaner overtakes the bookstore’s normal cozy book smell, which comes from the vanilla-like chemical in paper when it breaks down over time. We get the first three bookcases into place, and it looks even better than it did on the floor plan. Gram’s pacing, though, her cheeks flushed.

“It’s going to be okay,” Dad says, putting an arm around her.

For a brief moment, Gram leans into him. Her eyes are shiny with tears. “It’s a lot to take in at once.”

“I know, Mom.” Dad presses a kiss to Gram’s cheek.

She actually smiles. Then she pushes him away and says, “Sophie, can you go make up a new box? We need to pack up these sale signs.”

I fold a box into a cube, but the packing tape’s missing. I find it with Thalia, who is pointing the tape dispenser at the stacks of books and making pew-pew noises.

“Can I have the tape?”

Thalia points the tape dispenser at me and shoots. Her lips are pink with lip gloss.

“Thalia.”

She frowns and hands it over.

I slap two long strips onto the box and hand the dispenser back.

“I’m tired of cleaning,” she says. I’m tired, too. I’m tired of the bookstore. I’m tired of fighting with Eve. I’m tired of being such a mess.

“Hey.” I tap her on the nose. “Want to help me collect the sale signs?”

Her eyes light up. “Really?”

“Yeah, you can keep count for me, so I don’t miss any.”

She beams like I’ve invited her to attend the Oscars and follows me over to the jumbled pile of signs.

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