Melody witnessed her second volleyball season come to an end as a player from Edwardsburg High School blocked an attempted kill, causing the volleyball to land on the Dowagiac side for game point. The Edwardsburg Eddies, along with the visiting crowd, cheered in jubilation upon defeating the defending district champions. As the opposing teams met under the net to shake hands, Coach Heucke walked across the court to congratulate the winning coach. After the brief display of polite sportsmanship, Coach Heucke returned to her own side. Though she remained professional and emotionless, Melody could see the bitter disappointment in her coach’s eyes. Losing the district championship to her archrival in front of a home crowd was not what Coach Heucke deserved. Melody promised herself she would never allow Coach Heucke to go through such humiliation again. Next season, Melody would finally get her chance to play and she intended to go above and beyond for her.
***
Keeping her promise from last year, Melody attended all of Becky’s home lacrosse games but worried for her after seeing what a physical and chaotic sport it was. Although Becky was not an exceptionally gifted athlete, she was no worse than anyone else on the team. Lacrosse provided Becky with a way to fit in and have fun, which was all she cared about. During the games, Melody sat in the bleachers with a mixed crowd of parents, fellow athletes, and curious students. She sat with her volleyball teammates, while girls from the basketball and softball teams also attended to show their support. It disgusted Melody that Becky’s mother and stepfather never came to a game, but it only made Melody cheer that much harder. Though the team had only one victory at home, they finished their inaugural season with a respectable 5-5 record. Immediately after their last game, Melody met Becky at the bike rack.
“Thanks for being here for me, Melody. It meant so much to me,” Becky said.
“I wouldn’t have missed it! I had fun watching you.”
“Thanks. We’re all a bunch of rejects ya know? Every girl on the lacrosse team bombed trying out for something else. Volleyball, softball, basketball, track, you name it,” Becky admitted.
“It doesn’t matter how the team came together, Becky,” Melody said. “Look at everything you accomplished as Union High’s very first girls’ lacrosse team. I’m so proud of you!”
“Thanks, Honey,” Becky said. “Just wait ‘til next season when we make the playoffs.”
After dropping her skateboard and placing her foot on it, Melody said, “C’mon, follow me to the ice cream shack. My treat.”
***
Melody’s sophomore year ended with even more success than her freshman year. She had been a standout at volleyball practice and made a name for herself as she continued to impress Coach Heucke. She completed her Spanish II and Intermediate Auto Mechanics courses with both confidence and high marks. Algebra II was the one course Melody struggled through, but with help from her father and extra hours of study, she managed a B average. In addition to her success in the classroom and on the volleyball court, Melody proved to be a good driver. Under the supervision of her father, she had driven the Aspen with her learner’s permit, and felt she was ready to get her license.
It was during the first week of summer vacation that Barbara drove her daughter to the DMV. After passing her written exam, there was a long wait for a road test. Melody sat patiently with nervous excitement, waiting for B-34 to be called. When it was finally her turn, she led the examiner out to the Aspen. He was a funny little man with a large, egg-shaped head and black glasses. He was far from the intimidating, six-foot burly man she had envisioned. As Melody fastened her seatbelt and started the engine, the examiner placed the test on his clipboard and got his pencil ready. Melody drove to the rear of the building and parallel parked between two orange traffic cones as instructed. When she successfully executed the maneuver on the first attempt, Melody knew the worst was over. She relaxed a little as she headed out to the street to drive the DMV’s predetermined course.
After she completed the road test and returned to the parking lot, the examiner congratulated her as he exited the vehicle. Melody excitedly greeted her mother who was still waiting in the same spot. After getting her picture taken and reaffirming all her information was correct, Melody received her driver’s license. She even liked the photo. Melody drove her mother to the market and the drugstore before returning home.
***
“Becky! I just got my license!” Melody said excitedly over the phone.
“Alright! Congratulations! We can be in Florida by tomorrow night!” Becky joked.
“Are you getting yours too?” Melody asked.
“Not anytime soon,” Becky answered glumly. “They both claim they are too busy to take me out, and Walt bitches about the cost of his insurance going up if he adds me.”
“I’m so sorry, Becky,” Melody sympathized.
“Don’t sweat it. This will not alter the main plan. Getting jobs is the priority right now. As long as I can find a place close enough for walking or the bicycle, I’ll be OK. Worst case scenario, I help you drive to Florida with my learner’s permit, and I’ll get my license down there.”
“Oh my God, a Florida license, what a day that will be,” Melody sighed.
“You’ll have one too after that Michigan one expires,” Becky reminded her.
“You want to start filling out job applications today?” Melody asked.
“Sure, why not?”
“I’m on my way, just let me grab my binder.”
***
Ten minutes later, Becky was waiting in her driveway when Melody pulled up in the Aspen. As usual, Melody noticed the parted curtains in the downstairs window that someone was obviously peering through. Becky opened the car door and slid onto the passenger seat. After buckling her seatbelt, she placed her binder in her lap. As Melody pulled away from the curb, Becky said, “He is such a creep.”
“Walt?”
“Yes.”
“He was watching through the window again.”
“Yeah, I know,” Becky said. “He’s walking around the house with an old T-shirt, boxer shorts, and black socks. He started drinking early too. God, I can’t wait to get out of here.”
“Becky, how bad is it? Really?” Melody asked with concern in her voice. During the years she had known Becky, she had never met Walt nor been inside her house. Melody always worried about Becky whenever she was reminded of her friend’s home life.
“I can handle it,” Becky said without emotion. “As long as I keep to myself and keep my mouth shut, I’m OK. I just got two more years to get through and I’m gone!”
“We’re gone!” Melody said, correcting her.
“Well of course, my love.”
“What do you have in mind for a job?” Melody asked as she stopped at a red light. Giddy with happiness, Melody relished the moment. There she was, driving a car with only Becky riding along, looking for a job. She felt like an adult and the feeling of independence was exhilarating.
“Melody,” Becky answered. “We are two sixteen-year-old, high school girls looking for our first shitty job. Anywhere we go, we’ll be dealing with rude customers and fat managers with Napoleon Syndrome. Face it, wherever we work, it’s gonna suck. Let’s just find a place not too far from my house that has plenty of boys to ask us out.”
The girls did not job hunt for long. They both agreed to stop in the nearby McDonald’s first. Melody parked the car in the rear parking lot and grabbed her binder from the backseat.
“Nervous?” Becky asked.
“Yes.” Melody answered.
“Don’t be,” Becky stated as she opened the passenger door. “A million teenagers have worked in this dump, now it’s our turn. This is just a steppingstone to better days.”
Together, they walked through the parking lot and entered the restaurant through the side entrance. As Melody and Becky stood in front of the counter, they watched the McDonald’s employees scuttling about. Girls were filling bags for the drive-through orders, while boys were working the grill area. Melody’s first impulse was to turn around and walk out. She did not really want to work at McDonald’s, but considering Becky’s situation, she supposed she could put up with it. “Besides,” she thought to herself. “Minimum wage is minimum wage.”
“Welcome to McDonald’s, may I help you?” a young woman asked as she approached her register. She had large brown doe eyes and straight brown hair done in a pageboy style. Her uniform consisted of a black cap with the golden arches logo embroidered in the center, a red polo style shirt, and black trousers. The name tag pinned above her left breast identified her as Wendy.
“Two applications, please,” Melody asked as professionally as she could.
Wendy bent down and looked under the counter. Finding none, she stated, “I’ll be right back,” and walked away. Within moments, she reappeared from around the corner with a sheet of paper in each hand. She then handed them to both Melody and Becky simultaneously.
“Are they hiring?” Becky asked.
“Let me put it this way,” Wendy said. “We had a guy come through the drive-through an hour ago. He asked for an application at the first window, turned it in at the second window, and was hired before he got his food. He starts this afternoon. You guys need pens?”
“We’re good,” Melody smiled as she followed Becky to a booth.
“This is gonna be a piece of cake,” Becky said, taking a pen out of her binder. “Sounds like a monkey could get a job here. Easy money.”
Melody opened her own binder and pulled out one of her three pens. She read the application carefully before filling it out. After writing her name, address, and telephone number, she referred to her binder for her social security number. Melody then marked one of three boxes with an X, indicating she was seeking full time employment. Continuing on, she marked that she was available to work all shifts of every day except for Sunday. Her mother would never allow her to work during church hours, and she still wanted time with her father. After filling out emergency contact data, Melody referred to her binder again for her three references. She listed her two favorite teachers, Mr. Shaddock and Mrs. Gonzales, and her coach, Ingrid Heucke. She then wrote their phone numbers next to their names. The last question asked how she heard about the job. Melody simply wrote ‘Walk in.’ After she finished, Melody looked up at Becky who had been waiting for her. “Well, here goes.”
The girls walked back to the counter and stood behind a man as he gave his order to Wendy. After taking care of the customer, Wendy walked to the end of the counter while telling the girls to follow her. Both Melody and Becky walked alongside her on the opposite side of the counter and stopped in the spot where Wendy had pointed to.
“Just wait there a minute,” Wendy said as she disappeared with their applications.
After a few minutes, a man appeared from around the counter wearing a different uniform. His shirt was white with blue pinstripes, and his trousers were blue. He also wore a blue necktie. He had a bushy blond mustache and curly blond hair resembling a clown’s wig. He introduced himself by his first name only, Henry. The girls introduced themselves and shook his hand.
“This time of year has a high turnover rate. I hope you two aren’t wasting my time,” he stated. “High school kids want jobs as soon as the summer starts. They get hired, last a week, and don’t come back.”
Both girls nodded silently.
“When would you like to start?” he asked.
“Tomorrow,” Melody answered.
“Now,” said Becky.
Henry smiled. “OK, tell you what, both of you be here tomorrow morning at nine. That’s about when the breakfast rush dies down and we’ll get you started on orientation.”
“Do we need to bring anything?” Melody asked.
“Just be prepared to fill out the W-4 tax withholding sheet,” he answered. “And wear comfortable shoes with nonskid soles.”
“Yes sir,” Melody nodded.
“After tomorrow, I’ll put you girls on the standard, twenty-hour schedule,” he said. “You won’t always work the same hours, nor will you always work together, so you’ll have to be flexible. Once I see that you are reliable, I’ll give you more hours.”
Before Henry waved them goodbye and headed to the grill area, the girls thanked him. After dropping Becky off at her house, Melody drove straight home to tell her mother the good news.
“Mama, I got a job!” Melody hollered as she burst through the front door into the kitchen.
“Goodness sakes child! You ‘bout scared me half out of my skin,” Barbara said with her hand over her chest. “Where are you working?”
“McDonald’s! Becky and I start tomorrow at nine.”
“Honestly. Honey, can’t you do anything without that girl by your side?” Barbara asked.
Melody ran to hug her mother and kissed her on the cheek. “I got my license and a job all in one day!” she beamed. “I’m really going places!”
Barbara watched her daughter leave the kitchen with a handful of cookies and run up the stairs to her bedroom. “Yes, you are going places,” Barbara sighed. “But why do you have to grow up so fast?”
As Barbara wiped down the kitchen counters, she tried to envision both her daughter and Becky flipping hamburgers. She hoped McDonald’s would give them both a chance to meet other kids. Barbara still believed they spent too much time together but continued to keep her peace. Perhaps this summer the friendship would finally run its course and the two girls would drift apart as they pursued different interests.
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