School of Two Thousand Smiles–Chapter Six

ELLA

I must admit, I was glad to see Danny leaving school just ahead of me. 

"Hey, Danny, how'd your meeting go with Sam?"

He turned around, saw me,  and his warm smile, made me want to run to him, but I just hurried a little, but I was happy to see his smile and hear his warm greeting:

"Hey, hi, Ella, and I'm surprised you're still here, too. What have you been doing?"

"Practicing with our little fifth-grade group, the 'Honeyspooners.' I hope you can join us on Thursday after classes like today. We usually practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I heard you tell Sam you play guitar, nd, oh, only play chords." I wanted to cheer him up, so I added, "Guess what, I only play chords, too.

"I don't have a guitar here in California." He sounded like he wanted to tell me more about being in California but he only added, "I left mine back in good old Mississippi. I had to travel light when I left there."

"Are you the only one in your family who came to California?" I didn't want to sound nosy—just curious and friendly—so I was glad Danny answered easily:

"Uh, I guess you could say that. I came with a tiny part of my family—just me, myself, and I." He chuckled and tried to act nonchalant about it. Before I could respond, he asked, "And what kind of name is 'Honeyspooners'?"

"Very funny—me, myself, and I—I haven't heard that in forever. I take it you don't like our band's name. I just heard someone say that a couple who has just gotten married and is going on a trip—just the two of them—is called a honeymoon, and they're honeymooners. So, I came up with our group's name—Honeyspooners—because we spoon out delicious music, so there."

I tried to look down my nose at him, but I just started giggling.

"Everybody else liked my idea, and y'all can call it 'Honeyspooners' if you want." He was nice enough to laugh.

"So, come on over Thursday, and I'll introduce you to the group—Evie, Chris, and Joe are there. Tell Sam about needing a guitar—I bet he'll find one for you, at least a loaner if not a gift. Now tell me, why did you come to California alone? Were you a pain-in-the-butt back there, and they sent you to relatives here to get rid of you?"

"Ha, I wish it were that simple. Someday soon, I'll tell you the real story. Right now, I'm living with a really nice family in Lakewood Hills. They have two little girls, almost the same age as my sisters, and they love trying to talk like me. They're hilarious—'Hey, y'all, how y'all doin' today? Y'all sure do talk funny down here in California. Y'all know that?"

I laughed so hard I nearly wet my pants—but didn't, thank God. "And where in Lakewood Hills? That's where I live too. What's the address?"

He told me, and I said, "That's only a couple of blocks from us. We live on Tupelo—2523. I'm sure our family will welcome you, and my siblings will love making fun of your accent."