1962 ── lily evans

ONE

ONE

"THE PATH we have chosen for the present is full of hazards, as all paths are - but it is the one most consistent with our character and courage as a nation and our commitments around the world. The co-." The radio was turned off abruptly as Lennon's mother glided through the kitchen, a mixing bowl tucked tightly beneath her arm. 

"You ought to stop listening to that Kennedy rubbish! All this politics isn't good for you, Len!" She scolded, as per usual, and Lily sat up in her seat beside the brunette, sighing.

"You're just the same as my mother, Mrs L."

"You're right, Lils. We'll have to find yet another place to listen to it, hm?" Lennon groaned, standing and scraping her chair back across the tile floor. "I'm going out, mum."

Her mother rolled her eyes, her back to the two teenage girls, but said not a word more about their enthusiasm in world affairs. She could never quite understand it - as a teenager herself, she'd been far more invested in housewifery and more traditional ideas, as was to be expected of a young lady. It seemed, however, that Lennon and Lily had not obtained that same desire. 

"Have you checked on your sister lately? Is she doing her homework?" Her mother said, turning on her heel, tired eyes gazing down at her mischevious daughter.

"Yes," Lennon sighed, obviously exasperated by her mother's constant questioning. "She's upstairs, I checked on her fifteen minutes ago, mind?"

"Sorry, yes, of course. Go ahead," she replied warily, a tone she often used when Lennon was around these days. "Back by dinner?"

"We'll see!" Lennon called as she walked out of the door, Lily close on her tail. She knew she stressed out her mother often, but she'd decided long ago that was inevitable if she were to ever make something of her life. 

Lily and Lennon strode briskly down the road together as they watched the sun disappear behind the horizon. The brilliant shades of dusky orange were partly blocked from their view by several tall buildings that towered above them, almost intimidating with their size had the girls not been used to city life. 

They stopped abruptly in unison outside of an old, rundown café. Vibrant pink paint slathered the walls, chipping with its old age. In fact, the entire place was tacky and exhausted, as if the building itself had faced many years of hardships. Regardless, the two teenagers wasted no time in pushing open the front door, the familiar sound of the crackling radio hitting them as soon as they entered. It was playing some sort of smooth jazz, although its tune was distorted considering the radio was warped with stage.  

"Hi, girls," the man behind the counter  yelled over to them as they made straight for the radio atop of the counter. Lennon did not ask before changing the channel, but the owner did not seem to mind - rather, he seemed to appreciate any signs of company at all. He was rubbing grease from his fingertips with a rag that was, too, smothered in grime, but neither of the girls seemed to notice.

"Alright, Horace? How's business?" Lily asked politely, Lennon too engrossed in the crepitating machine to pay attention to the decrepit man.

"As usual," he began, turning his back to them as he started up a fresh pot of strong coffee to share with the girls. "Shit. Need to get this place done up before anyone will want to come in, y'know?"

Lennon chewed at her lip as she listened to the monotonous voice on the radio - boring as it was, nothing could put her off of the topic she felt so sincerely about. The whistling of the boiling kettle infuriated her, and she leaned forward atop of her precarious stool to hear the news better, her ear practically pressed against the metal speaker. Perhaps she had been to enthusiastic - the next thing she knew, the stool had tipped on its legs, and with a squawk of displeasure, Lennon fell face first against the dusty tile flooring. 

"Fuck," she groaned, all the air having been knocked from her lungs from the sudden harsh fall. She heaved herself up from the ground, dusting off the palms of her hands against her linen trousers. 

"Len! Len, get up! Did you hear that?" Lily tapped Lennon with her foot vigorously from above as she spoke. Lennon protested at the attack, beginning to feel like her friend was taking some sort of psychotic joy in it. 

"Alright, alright, I'm getting up!" She held her hands out to push away the ginger's lethal foot, glad to rid herself of the violence. "What did it say?"

"Seriously? It said there's been campaigns all around the city - rally meetings, y'know? They listed a whole bunch, and there's one close to us, even!" Lily exclaimed, practically gasping with excitement. 

At that moment, with both girls reeling with elation, Horace trundled back over to the counter with three cups impressively clutched in one hand, each mug looped over different finger. In the other hand, a rusted kettle that was emitting so much steam it was a wonder he could see where he was going. Each mug contained a small mountain of coffee granules, and the girls hoped Horace wouldn't spill them everywhere like the last time they'd visited, where he had tripped, dropped and smashed the mugs.

"We've got to go find it!" Lennon shrieked, snatching the cup of the boiling bitter liquid and chugging down it down so quickly it scalded her throat and tongue. Despite the burn, she couldn't bring herself to care - her mind was racing with possibilities, a sudden chance to get involved in rallies and marches and God knows what else. 

Lily laughed as she observed her best friend suffer through the piping hot beverage, her face screwing up as she gulped it down her throat. 

"Mind if I pass?" Lily asked, smiling apologetically at Horace. "I don't think my pain tolerance is quite as good as Len's."

Horace chuckled, shaking his head as he retrieved the unused mug from the red-head that sat before him. He added a little splash of milk, watching it disappear into the murky liquid before taking a passive sip. 

"You kids go have fun. Don't get in too much trouble, eh?" He teased, as Lennon dragged Lily from her seat, bounding towards the door with enthusiasm to spare.

"Thanks for the radio and the coffee! See you later!" Lennon yelled as she pushed the door open, leaving behind her fingerprints pressed onto the glass. The bell above the door rang out overhead, and the two girls ran out onto the street, stumbling over the cracks in the pavement. 

As they hurried along the street, Lennon wondered if this would be the opportunity they'd waited for. For once, they wouldn't just be two teenage girls. For once, they would have the chance to make a difference, and that was all that mattered.