dorcas meaney is NOT a dorkus malorkus! (malorkus) wrote in mnhttnprjct, @ 2010-06-26 22:45:00 |
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Entry tags: | !narrative, dorcas meaney |
NARRATIVE.
WHO: Dorcas and Bethesda Meaney, featuring mentions of the rest of the Meaney clan.
WHAT: Dorcas's mom forgot about her graduation and asks her about it.
WHERE: The Meaney family's apartment.
WHEN: Late Saturday evening.
STATUS: Complete.
RATING: G.
It was very late when Dorcas Meaney finally made it home from work. She had been scheduled for the closing shift at the tiny cafe that served the populace of New York City with artificially-flavored drinks that they called "coffee" and what had been fresh muffins when they arrived that morning. She was going to work tomorrow, too, and she would need some sleep before her next shift. She hoped to God that her siblings weren't watching some lame reality TV show that would keep her up until only God knows when. The stink of cigarettes bombarded her as the door opened and Dorcas stepped across the threshold. She shut the door again, locked it and drew the trio of deadbolts that safeguarded the family's dinky apartment before she kicked off her shoes and left them scattered by the door. Dorcas was dead on her feet after so many hours at her thankless job, yes, but the piteous gurgling of her stomach refused to let her go straight to bed. Dorcas passed through the living room and into the cramped kitchen, ignoring her little sister's malicious greeting of "Hey, Dork." Her mother, Bethesda, sat at the family's table with the monthly bills splayed before her and a cigarette in one hand. No matter how many times Dorcas informed her of the statistics of lung cancer from smoking, it never deterred Beth who would merely shrug her shoulders and say, "We all die from something, sweetheart." Such a retort was never comforting and Dorcas, too tired to say anything, directed herself to the refrigerator. With a large family such as the Meaneys, it was not unusual that there were absolutely no leftovers from dinner — assuming, of course, that someone had bothered to make dinner at all — but Dorcas checked the fridge just to be sure. She noted with exhaustion-induced apathy that there was nothing to be made within a few minutes and eaten. She would settle for something simple; a bowl of microwaveable mac-n-cheese would surely suffice. She was in the process of stuffing her bowl of uncooked noodles and water into the microwave when her mother looked up and, noticing her daughter for the first time, started. "Hey! When did you get home? How was work?" "Just now. It was fine," was the short response. Dorcas was simply too exhausted to provide a much lengthier response. Her mother continued on the conversation (and at this point it is obvious that it was from her mother that Dorcas inherited her insufferable chattiness) and only paused when she happened to glance at the calendar and frowned. "Hey, honey?" "Yeah?" "When is your graduation?" Here, Dorcas shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. She had told her mother many times that her graduation was on Thursday and yet, when the day came, the only people who had made it to her graduation were her cousin and her older sister, Eden. In a particularly sick twist, it was Dorcas who felt guilty about it. She felt bad that her mother had forgotten about her graduation because a small part of her hadn't wanted her mother to be there. It was hardly that Dorcas was embarrassed by her mother (there was absolutely no reason to be embarrassed by a woman who worked herself to the bone so that her family could stay together in one place) but Dorcas felt that making her mother take off of work to see her walk across a stage and receive a piece of paper was something of a slap in the face for a woman who had barely finished one semester of college. As a result, she hadn't made as much of a big deal out of it as she would normally have done had her mother forgotten her birthday or something similar. It was undeniably messed up for Dorcas to think that way about her education, but her brother's snide and jealous remarks hardly helped the matter. Regardless of the lack of support from her siblings, Dorcas still wanted to do something good with her life. She wanted to be a doctor. It paid well and she felt that the best way she could help her family (especially her poor, overworked mother) would be financially. She couldn't do that unless she had a job that paid well. Not just a job, but a career. On the other hand, Dorcas felt guilty for lying to her mother. So it was with a quiet voice as she answered: "It was on Thursday." A stricken look passed across Beth Meaney's face, which quickly faded into guilt and sympathy and a hint of pity. "Oh honey— I— I'm sorry. With work and I just— I forgot!" Dorcas shoved her shaking hands into the shallow pockets of her jeans. "I know, mom. It's okay." And with that, she turned her back on her mother and waited for the microwave to turn off. There was nothing but silence between them as Beth Meaney watched her daughter for any indication that it was anything other than okay and Dorcas Meaney steadfastly avoided her mother's uncharacteristically watchful gaze and fixed her stare instead on the microwave that currently heated up her food. The microwave suddenly beeped to signal that it had finished its trusty job and Dorcas snatched open the door to retrieve her bowl. Quickly she dumped in the packet of powdered cheese — what a culinary delight! — and stirred it in with a plastic spoon that had been reused at least a dozen times by each and every person who lived in the horrible little apartment. Armed with what qualifies as 'dinner' in the Meaney household, Dorcas made a beeline for the door. "G'night!" she said hurriedly over her shoulder as she rushed out of the kitchenette, through the cramped living room where all four of her siblings watched the Late Night Show on the family's only television set, and into the bedroom she begrudgingly shared with her two younger sisters. Half an hour had passed by the time Dorcas had changed out of her work clothes, washed her face and brushed her teeth, and checked her email. Tired and feeling achy all over, Dorcas collapsed into the futon sofa that she called her bed, and not even ten minutes later, she was asleep. |