I’ll admit as a kid at the time and as a guy, food was the best thing to win me over. Mrs. Joel apparently knew this, as everything was on the table that I could think of. It was ‘Around the World in 80 Days’—food style with everything ranging from burritos, then calzone, and then something wrapped in what looked like rice.
The table was long and wide and everything on it looked like it taken off the cover of a “Joy of Cooking” cookbook. How did she have time to make all of this?

A new person was standing next to the table when we walked in. I assumed it was Wendy’s father as he stood so close to Mrs. Joel.
“You must be Jeff,” he said as he stood up, walked over to me, and held out his right hand. “Happy to me you. I’m Damien Joel.
“Thanks,” I replied as I shook his hand. He had a firm grip, and he winked an eye at me.
“Are you staying with us for dinner?”
“Yes, he is papa,” Wendy stated as she pulled out a chair and invited me to sit down.
“Told you Wendy had a boyfriend,” Anna announced as she stepped into the dining room.
Wendy’s face turned beet red.
“Anna,” Mrs Joel said with a stare told Wendy’s older sister.

We all sat at the table and plates were passed back and forth in such a synchronized fashion that to this day I have no idea how I managed to lift, turn, and pass these irregular sized plates. I looked at the members of the family through the corners or my eyes. Mrs. Joel had a dark, olive like, skin and she took small portions from all of the dishes. Mr. Joel was a thin man with fire-red hair, a trimmed mustache and eyes that seemed to shine. Like Mrs. Joel, he only ate small amounts from each plate. Anna looked a little like Wendy, especially with the hair color. And like Wendy, appeared to have more food on her plate than mine, and I thought I had too much.
“Where are you from, Jeff?”
“The neighborhood across the creek.”
Mr. and Mrs. Joel and Anna stopped eating and looked at Wendy.
“You went through the woods?”
“For a few seconds. You told me to go out and meet people and I did. It was a good thing too as there were four girls who like to pick on kids.”
Mrs. Joel looked to Mr. Joel, and he nodded.
“Yeah, they kind of rule over the neighborhood, but Wendy helped me with them.”
“I didn’t start nothing, Papa. I gave them multiple warnings.”
“Some people just don’t know when to back down,” Mr. Joel commented.
“Yeah, and when I saw them pickin’ on Jeff, I thought, that ain’t right and well, I drew the line and they crossed it.”
“What do you intend to do if it happens again?” Mrs. Joel asked.
“I’ll do it again,” Wendy replied with a shrug.
“Of course you will, Mr. Joel replied.
My ears weren’t burning. I didn’t have a hang up thinking everyone at that table thought I was this poor little kid who was being picked on by a squad of girls because I was a poor little kid being picked on by s squad of girls. I wouldn’t mind if Anna was with the next day to put Shonda in her place.
“I hope everyone has room for dessert,” Mrs. Joel announced as she got up from the table. The amount of food still on the table rivaled three family Thanksgiving dinners and I was pretty sure I had eaten three times my body weight but, sure enough, I wanted desert.

After dinner, we went back to then and continued to play air hockey.
“Like I said, if those girls come up to us again tomorrow, I’m going to do the same thing as before.’
“What if they come at you all at once?”
“Never had that happen before, dunno,” Wendy replied as she rammed the puck past me, scoring yet again. “We’re gonna have to work a bit on your game.”
“Yeah, I replied as I fished the puck out of the bottom of the machine and placed it back onto the table.
Wendy turned her head to Anna who was reading while sitting on the couch, which now looked brown. Maybe the light was playing with my eyes.
“Do you have to be in here, Anna?” Wendy asked with an annoyed tone.
“I don’t want to be, but I was asked to.”
“Why?”
“That’s for Mama and Papa to tell you, not me,” Anna replied as she returned Tom reading her book. “You know, young love and all that.”
“Mama! Can you make her leave!”
“No,” Mrs. Joel’s voice calmly replied.
“One day, Anna,” Wendy sneered at her sister.
“Yeah, sure,” Anna said as she turned a page in her book.
I shot the puck, and we continued playing for what seemed like hours until Mr. Joel stepped into the den.

“How is everyone?”
“Good, Papa,” Wendy replied.
Anna gave a thumbs-up and continued reading.
“I think it’s time for Jeff to go home.”
Wendy looked to her father, allowing the puck to get past her. I was finally able to score a goal.
“I probably should go. I told my parents I’d be at the playground.”
Mr. Joel nodded.
“Let’s go Jeff.”
Wendy turned the air hockey game off, and we walked out of the den and back into the living room which appeared to have a red hue to the pottery and wall color. I looked to see if there was a window as the sunset may have caused that but there were no windows in the living room, at least not ones that could cast such a light on everything. We left the house and walked down the small hill. The sun was still out, hanging brightly in the sky.

“Let’s meet again at the playground,” Wendy said as we entered the woods.
“What time?”
“Let’s go for eight. They can’t all be ready to go and bully people at the same time so early in the morning, right?”
Yeah,” I nodded as Wendy grabbed onto the swing and swung across the creek instead of jumping as she had before. I followed her and soon we were at the entrance of the woods across the street from my house.
“You want to come in?” I asked.
“I need to head back. Mama has a few chores for me to do and I’ll need to do them before asking if I can go out tomorrow. I think she’ll let me, but I need to make sure.”
I nodded and walked backwards a few feet. “I’ll see you at eight.”
“I’ll be there before you know it,” Wendy replied as she walked back into the woods. The strange thing was that I could no longer see her after she had taken a few steps.

I walked across the street to my house and opened the front door.
“Sorry, I’m late!” I yelled as I slammed the door.
“Jeffrey Allen Robison!” Mom hissed as she stepped out from the kitchen. “You’re going to wake your brother.”
I looked at the clock over the mantle, it read three PM.