Cursed Pool

Chapter 12. The Hot Tea Is Spilled

The next morning, Scott was demanding and going crazy. "Can I run to Walmart with your wallet?" He asked me at 6:00 AM that day. I was still half asleep. I rolled over in my bed to see Scott's silhouette standing in the dark doorway and the lit up halls.  "No." I snapped. "Apparently Olivia thinks she so good because she knows how to make Brownies all of a sudden. Apparently she's a better cook when Jenifer and I aren't there to correct her." Scott mumbled enviously. I put my glasses on my face. I sit up and tell Scott "Y'know Olivia, she is an A+ student. A loud and arrogant one too, and a bit on the selfish side." "I don't care!" Raged Scott. "Well you will because it was your choice to stay here for the summer and Olivia's going nowhere." I soothed. Scott crossed his arms. "If Olivia's staying, I'm leaving." He says through gritted teeth. "Then where are you gonna go?" I ask. Scott looked deep in thought. "I just want to buy fresh brownies from Walmart so I can say I cooked them." Scott sighed. "That's....unexceptional." I told him. "What?" Was his response.

When the other kids came I was worried about Scott who was in the guest room playing uno by himself. "Mrs Conalie." Came Olivia's voice while I was knitting on the rocking chair. "What?" I said boardly. "The uno cards aren't where I put them yesterday on the shelf by the window." Olivia said nervously.  Then I think about Scott. "Oh yeah, Scott's upstairs today playing by himself." I replied to her. "How does he manage-"
"He's avoiding you. You know that right?"
"Me?"
"All because of Brownies."
I tell Olivia this and she looks very hurt by it.
  I had to force Scott to come down for lunch. I made the kids grilled cheese. The Espcu kids all took some brownies after the sandwiches.  "Can I take the grilled cheese upstairs?" Scott said miserably as I went knitting on the rocking chair again. I look into his eyes. "No! Never! I can't afford a new bed if you get crumbs on it!" I bellowed. (I was in a grumpy mood)
"But you can wash the bedsheet right?" Scott asked. "You would have to." I backfired. 
  I hated to see the kids eat so quietly. They are usually so unlike this. (Except Jenifer is always quiet) Phillip was in his own world, Christopher kept going to take more brownies.  He ate about five already.  Jenifer looked like she was thinking. She didn't speak to Olivia at all for four hours.  Scott ate slowly. "Scott. Come sit with me." I said to him.  Scott and his grilled cheese followed me to the living room where I sat on the rocking chair and he just slouched on the couch. "You can slouch all you want, but you need to listen." I inform wisely.  "I'm listening." He said softly. "For the love of God stop avoiding Olivia." I say with a shiver. "But what if I want to av-"
"Olivia's got ego issues, and y'know what Scott, I think you do to." I inform. Scott looks at me comfused.
So I tell him in my soothingly wise voice "I'm glad I stopped you from running away to Walmart and getting lost with my wallet in your hands. If you were to lie and say you cooked Brownies when you really just bought them, people would think highly of you. Too highly of you. Then when there's a big problem and a whole bunch of people are Trapped in a tiny room and they're all starving, they will rely on you to cook them Brownies."  Scott looked terrified and shivered. "No! I don't want that to happen!" He cried. "See." I say.  "But who knows about Olivia anyway. Apparently she's good at cooking, but she could've just bought them." Scott suggested. Olivia Walked in and stood stiff with her feet on the carpet. Her eyes were narrowing at Scott. "YOU ARE JUST JEALOUS BECAUSE I'M BETTER THAN YOU!" She shouted. Maybe she's right. Scott took a deep breath. "I do not believe you!" He backfired. Olivia burst into tears and dissapeared into the kitchen. I watched her leave. "That poor girl." I whispered underneath my breath. "Olivia isn't poor, she's super rich. I hate her." Scott hissed before going back upstairs. 

It's obvious that Scott doesn't believe that Olivia cooked the Brownies.  I didn't know who to believe.

Nobody besides Scott played uno that day.
  Scott stayed upstairs. Olivia was reading books to herself in the other guest room.
  "Why don't you find something to do?" I said to Phillip as he sat on the arm of the chair watching me knit.  "I would like to go back to the movies, but there's no point is there? Scott is in a horrible mood today, and O." He spoke to me without eye contact because he was watching me knit. "How do you do that?" He asked in awe. "Knitting?"
"Yes."
"It's simple Phillip. I can show you how it's done." Phillip got interested.
  It takes me back to when Perri was that age.  She was six sitting on the arm of the couch and realized how she is interested in knitting. "Oh Perri your a little too young." I used to say. Then Perri would say "I don't care. Teach me anyway." After I tought it to her, the child turned into a fashion designer just like me. 
  Phillip is six and a very determined six year old, but he's born in a family of quilters. People that don't necessarily do fashion. 
  I taught him the very same way I taught it to Perri. It only took ten minutes and Phillip began knitting up his sock which had a hole in it.