Author Information
Mercy Lane
The children walked side by side down Mercy Lane.
Autumn winked red and orange amid the green canopy of
trees that shaded the sidewalk. The sun filtered
through the canopy and danced, Mosaic light, on the
children's faces.
The girl wore a gray pullover dress, gray blouse, and
sturdy, black Mary Jane's. Her mousy, brown hair was
tied back in a tight ponytail and round spectacles
rested on the tip of her nose. A red back pack swung
carelessly from her shoulder in startling contrast to
her drab dress. A blush of red, the color of the
backpack, kissed her lips and feathered her otherwise
pale face.
The boy was altogether different from the girl. He,
too, was dressed in a dreary School uniform. However,
everything about him exuded color and light. His hair
gleamed blue black in the the spots where sunlight
touched it and was all over cowlicks and fly-aways.
His skin, a deep brown shone gold in those same
sun-spots. His eyes were wide, a violet stained glass
that seemed to have light behind them.
He, too, carried a red bag, but held its straps tight
in his fist, swinging his arm in time to his
footsteps. This pendulum gave cause to a blurred, red
arc, so fast were his footfalls.
The arc was stopped suddenly in a dull thud. The
children's walk stopped so quickly, the girl had to
straighten her glasses and grasp her satchel strap to
her chest to prevent it falling.
The boy looked down, expecting a wayward stump, fallen
branch, or maybe even a large stone had interrupted
his walk. He saw, instead, a small gray squirrel lying
in fetal position on a crack in the sidewalk.
The girl immediately knelt to the creature and reached
to touch it.
"It's so small. See? It wears gray, like us." she
said, holding the still body to the boy's face. At
noting his outstretched hands, she dropped the
squirrel into them then continued her walk without
another word.
The boy stood still. Bad enough to have killed a
squirrel. He'd never killed anything in his life!
Well, perhaps a spider or two, but nothing like this!
It was too bad the girl had mentioned its wearing
gray. The similarity made the squirrel seem a
companion of sorts.
The squirrel felt warm and soft in his palm. He felt a
shiver in the squirrel's body and hoped it was coming
to. Then he realized that it was his own hands that
trembled.
A million new feeling washed over the boy. He'd never
before experienced guilt. Being of a naturally good
nature, he'd had no need of it. Until now.
The weight of the guilt made his clothes feel large
and heave. His eyes and throat ached. His stomacher
was a cement ball beneath his chest. Tears threatened
to spill down his cheeks at any moment.
It was then that the squirrel woke. He moved slowly at
first, but upon getting a good look at his captor,
jumped to the walk and fled to a nearby tree trunk. He
turned to bark at the boy. He seemed to say, "Leave me
be. I'm very busy!"
With one last yip, he bounded, small toenails sinking
into the bark and flesh of the tree until he was out
of sight in the the foliage.
The boy stood, silent. There was a time, perhaps only
a few moments ago, when such an event would have
resulted in a torrent of giggles. He couldn't laugh,
though. He was too relieved.
Beneath that relief were the remnants of his new garb.
The boy was aware of the change as he walked toward
the school. He didn't recognize it, but he knew it
would do him more harm than good.
He entered the schoolyard amid several shouts of
greeting. He didn't answer back, but continued to
walk. He found a tree on the opposite end of the
school grounds to sit beneath.
He sat on his backpack, leaned against the tree trunk,
and closed his eyes.
"Why do we ever have to grow up?" he thought.
