Chapter 1 The Trip
“Ron! Ronald!
Wake up, Ronald! It’s time to leave!”
“I’m sleeping, and I’ll be down in a little.”
“No! Get up NOW ya dweeb! Mom says it’s time to go, or we’ll be off schedule!”
Sherry slams the door with a shwack! Ronald looks around his room; everything he sees he knows he’ll miss: his record player, his magazines under his bed, even his poster of his sweet 1953 Ferrari 250 Europa. Why they were leaving on this stupid Europe trip, he didn’t know. Ron was content with staying in beautiful Dunedin, Florida, a home where Ron would never want to leave. Dunedin had everything for him: it had a good group of friends that are there for him even through his roughest patches, and that’s all he needed.
They were there for him when he got turned down by Maxine when prom was around the corner; they were there for him when he found out his parents were in their mid-life crisis mode; they were even there for him when Principal McGibbon caught him spray-painting “Pig King” on that crappy leather seat he likes to refer to as his throne. Ron’s heard his famous reference over and over again, and he wasn’t finished hearing it.
“You won’t fool me with your silly words, Mr. Lampson!
Leave me and pig farm out of your graffiti ideas.” However much McGibbon thought he was in power at Dunedin High, he was wrong. McGibbon didn’t even own a falcon like Ron did! And it’s a known fact that falcons are cooler than pigs. Ron would know. His pigs weren’t the mascot of the school. Freddie was! None of his pigs didn’t even share the mascot’s name like Freddie did. Dudley, Pooders, and Nancy were possibly some adorable pigs that McGibbon brought to school from time to time, but Freddie came— no candle could be put anywhere close to this flame! Freddie is Ronald’s heart and soul. But, sadly enough, it just so happened that
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Freddie wasn’t allowed in Europe. Even though Freddie IS fam’! Jackson, Ron’s home dawg, promised him that Freddie will stay safe and secure with him, and Ron hopes he’s right. Why does he hope so? Well, Freddie’s a free soul and if Jack keeps him cooped up in his cage for too long, Freddie will surely find a way to break out! Freddie’s not like other birds. He’s got a heart and a soul that no other flap of a bird could compete with. Freddie flies like the wind is one with him and Freddie can capture prey like it ain’t nothin’.
Without Freddie, Ron feels like he can’t go on with life. Without that bird, Ron wouldn’t have made an 82 on the chemistry exam, or he wouldn’t have gotten Carla’s digits. Now you might ask how Freddie helped him get an 82 on his chemistry exam or helped with digit scoring; well, to start off with the first one, the night before the exam Freddie went flying, but he never came back. Ron got his whole family to help search for him which turned into the whole neighborhood searching, which became the whole city of Dunedin looking for the mascot of Dunedin High. Freddie wasn’t found until four in the morning in a state that left Ronald petrified. Freddie was lying on the ground near an old willow tree on the outskirts of town. He was in a sight for sore eyes that left Ron frozen in horror.
Freddie had seemed to have been in a fight with a cottonmouth the whole time, and by the war-scene displayed, Freddie won. The sight of the dead snake was gruesome, but Freddie, on the other hand, was a scary sight to behold as well. Freddie had bite marks from the neck down and everyone could see the poor thing shaking as Ron tried to clean the dirt from his wounds. No one could comprehend that Freddie was still alive. But he was. And Ron knew deep in his heart that he would be alright. But he was still, however, scared for the little guy. The town’s vet brought Freddie home with her, and Freddie went into a week-long coma. The town was in prayer-mode, and Mrs. Simons even pushed the exam to the next week as she said, Ronald’s poor Freddie. Freddie finally came out of it that Saturday and the whole town had a huge celebration to Freddie waking up. It was a spectacular weekend, and everyone named it Freddie’s Resurrection. Every year, Freddie now gets a weekend to himself and he begins it by flying around the neighborhood while the huge neighborhood block party occurs.
Ronald can’t take how much he’s going to miss Freddie while they are gone away on this trip. His parents keep saying:
“Two weeks isn’t THAT long without Freddie!”
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“But Mom, Freddie’s a free soul! He’ll love Europe!” Ron replies.
“Freddie’s not going with us; shut up about this Ron!” Dad would always say back.
Ronald can just picture how glorious it would be to see Freddie flying around the Eiffel Tower or how spectacular of a sight to behold to see Freddie perched atop Big Ben.
“If Freddie can’t go then I won’t go,” is always Ron’s response, but they never listen.
Ron finally gets out of bed and starts stretching. “So long ya party room!”
Downstairs Mom has lain out on the table scrambled eggs with ketchup squirted perfectly on top of them along with his favorite bacon: turkey bacon with brown sugar fried perfectly on top. An orange tops off the meal in the symbolism of how their time will be ending soon of our life here in Florida. Sherry’s already scarfed down her remnants of the last bits of her meal and starts tossing her orange around in her hands.
“I’m saving my orange for the car-ride; you should do the same, Ronald!”
“You can have my orange, Sheryl.” “Don’t be calling me Sheryl, Ronald!” “Well don’t be calling me Ronald, Sheryl!”
“Ron… why do you have to be such a sour puss about this
good ol’ family adventure?!”
“GOOD OL’ FAMILY ADVENTURE? Ron says loudly with his touch of sarcasm; “Good ol’ family adventure?” Ron whispers this time; “This is NOT a good ol’ family adventure! How can this be us?”
“Just because that bird isn’t with us doesn’t mean you still can’t have a fun time! Lighten up, bro! This is gonna be SO much fun!”
“Your sister’s right, honey. We have so much planned in these two weeks that they will just fly by, and you’re going to wish it didn’t go by so fast!”
“Listen to your mother, Ron! This is exciting times for us!” “But Dad! Freddie can still go with us! Freddie would be a
great companion on our trip across Europe! Can’t you just see him
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flying gloriously around the Eiffel Tower or the spectacular view of him sitting atop Big Ben?”
Whenever this part of the conversation hits the roof, Ronald’s parents end it by giving him the silent treatment. Instead of more arguing, this was what he was met with once again. Ron can’t take it. Everything in the world couldn’t matter to him besides this one thought going through his head; this one and only thought: getting Freddie to go on this trip. Ron doesn’t want to give up on this one wish of his, but he’s starting to realize now that the seconds are nearing, it won’t happen. As he realizes this hopefulness of his is slowly dying, Freddie lands on the window sill which is centered in the center of the back wall of the kitchen. How glorious he lands on that perch! The sun shines on this falcon like it has been sent from the heavens to make Ronald’s day. Freddie motions at Ron like he wants some Ron-lovin’. How Freddie has no idea. He just has a look back on his face like it’s just about to be another day in the life of Freddie the Falcon. But it’s not. Freddie has no idea that Ron will be leaving him, and Freddie will have to deal with Jackson Brywart for the next two weeks. If Ron had to trust anyone it would be his main man Jack, though! Jack has watched Freddie before, but it was only for three days when the family went to see Grandpops and Granny MJ in South Carolina. Two weeks is about four times longer which means a million times more stressful. To think if Freddie came upon another coincidence with another snake, and it didn’t turn out so pretty, Ron wouldn’t be able to live with himself! Ron looks at his meal that he has barely touched and decides, “Can I actually get Freddie into Europe?” He thinks of a plan but realizes it’s too risky. Or is it? But, more importantly, would it work? Ron looks over at Freddie with somber eyes.
“I guess you’ll never meet your real parents then Freddie.” “Shut up Ronald, Freddie’s real parents aren’t in Europe!”
Ron’s dad then gives him a pissed-off expression that Ron even tried to say such an outrageous statement.
“Freddie is an orphan and was shipped over here from Europe so it must be true!”
Freddie starts flapping his wings in excitement on hearing Ron talking directly to him.
“Freddie, don’t you want to meet your parents?” Ron says nodding his head at Freddie.
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Simultaneously as Ron’s shaking his head, Freddie starts shaking his head too.
“See! He can’t wait to see his parents!” Ron’s parents roll their eyes and look at each other shaking their heads.
“No Ron!”
“Just no.” Ron looks down at his eggs which are the only food left of his last cuisine in good ol’ Florida, the sunshine state. He doesn’t listen to his sister about saving the orange, and he can tell she is pissed about it by the way she is looking at his leftover peel.
“Everyone ready to go? Everything packed?”
Ron and Sherry look at each other and then look back up at their dad as if it was a rhetorical question.
“Finish those eggs, Ron!” Ron scarfs them down while, half-way through, realizing they need more salt so he sprinkles a tiny bit on his remnants.
“Into the cage Freddie!” Sherry says this expecting Freddie to listen to her, but Freddie doesn’t move an inch upon this statement.
“He never listens to me!” Sherry whines.
“Of course he’s not going to listen to you Sherry. Ron!” Dad shouts! “Get that bird into the cage so we can drop it off at Jack’s. Ron whistles at Freddie and points at the cage. Freddie has a look of disgust at the sight of the cage but flies down from the window sill and walks into it anyways.
Ron whispers,
“Thank you Freddie” and picks up the cage along with his hefty blue suitcase with its green stripes.
“Everyone ready? To the car!” Dad shouts this triumphantly and starts marching into the living room and out the front door with a bag in each hand. Mom follows him, shaking her head because of Dad’s marching as if she is a clone of him. As all of this is happening, Ronald looks around the kitchen one last time before his sidekick who has his back no matter what; the only living life in the world who matters to him; and the bird who will forever have his back no matter what, will soon depart ways with him! Freddie is the light of an existence Ron calls his so-called life, and he can’t believe this separation of his other half is about to occur. Ronald looks down at Freddie, and Freddie looks back up at Ron.
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“Time to go, buddy.”
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