Violetta Craft's Arc

Chapter 6 of 65

The call came Saturday morning while Violetta was still in her pajamas. Lymber held the phone against her shoulder and waved Paul over from the coffee pot. Jordie's mother was on the line. Violetta caught the words rental and four bedrooms and near both of us. She sat down at the counter with her hand on her belly and waited. When Lymber hung up, she looked at Paul, then at Violetta. "They found a house," she said. "They want to split the rent with us. For you and Jordie." Violetta walked over that afternoon with Jordie. The house sat on a short block between their two families, close enough that Violetta could see the roof of her parents' place from the front step. It was small and modern, with tall windows and a sharp peaked roof. A little balcony hung over the front door. Jordie's mother was already there with the key. She let them in and stepped back to let Violetta go first. Inside, the light was better than Violetta expected. The kitchen was narrow but clean. Upstairs there were four bedrooms, one small enough to be a nursery, one big enough for a sewing table. Violetta stood in the middle of the empty second room and turned in a slow circle. She could see where the dress form would go. She could see the window she would sit under to hand-stitch a hem. Jordie watched her from the doorway and did not say anything. They walked back to the kitchen. Both mothers were there now, and Paul, and Jordie's father. The paperwork was on the counter. Lymber had already written a check for the first month. Jordie's father slid his own check across the tile. "Half and half," he said. "Until the baby comes. Then we talk again." Violetta looked at Jordie. Jordie looked at her. He picked up the pen and signed the tenant line. Violetta signed under him. Outside, Jordie's mother pressed a leash into Violetta's hand. A small tan puppy sat on the walkway, chewing the end of the lead. "He's from my sister's litter," she said. "Practice. For both of you. Feed him, walk him, clean up after him. If you can keep him alive, you can keep a baby alive." Jordie laughed once, short. Violetta bent down. The puppy climbed into her lap and licked her wrist. That night Violetta sat on the floor of the empty sewing room with the puppy asleep against her leg. She was seventeen weeks now. The showcase win was already old news in her head. The next competition was in the spring, and the dress for it did not exist yet. She measured the wall with her hands and counted outlets. Jordie came up the stairs with two folding chairs. He set one down beside her and sat in the other. "We live here now," he said. "Starting Monday." Violetta nodded. She pulled a notebook from her bag and started to sketch.