Juggle
an excerpt

Chapter 2

‘Mom!’ cried the voice of a young boy.

‘What is it, William?’ replied a woman’s voice from another room.

‘Are you gonna play Super Mario Brothers with me? You said you would.’

Shauna was in the bathroom, urgently applying her makeup. If ever there was a world devoted to women, it was this bathroom. Pink walls and the smell of aromatherapy candles, lotions, and perfumes filled the room. An assortment of brushes, oils, makeup, nail polish, and other grooming products and contraptions cluttered every corner. The trashcan overflowed with used tissues, cotton balls, and boxes of hair dyes and skin cleansers. Shampoos, conditioners, and various soaps lined the bathtub, as well as an abundance of delicates hanging from the shower curtain rod. The only thing missing was a sign on the door, which could have read ‘Men, stay out!!’

Shauna’s 10-year-old son was in his bedroom across the hall, playing on his Nintendo, which seemed to be on its last stretch of life. It was your run-of-the-mill kid’s bedroom, or as his mom called it, ‘The War Zone’. The bed was unmade, with a SpongeBob SquarePants Comforter flung over side. The pillows and sheets were of the same décor, and also tossed about the bed. Torn posters of everything from puppies to spaceships to teen idols were tacked up on the wall in a chaotic manner, resembling the masterpieces of the great Picasso. There was a fragrance of corn chips, cookies and fruit juice in the air. Clothes, Hot Wheels cars, Tonka trucks, and an assortment of other goodies were strewn about the floor. Through the eyes of a young boy, everything was in its place.

‘I can’t right now. I’m in a hurry.’

‘But, you promised.’, William begged.

‘The babysitter will be here any minute. I’m sure she’ll play with you.’

‘Hmph!’

William went back to his game. As Shauna added some finishing touches, the phone rang.

‘Will you get that, William?’

‘Oh Mom!’

‘NOW!!

‘The ringing stopped, and so did Shauna, temporarily. She listened intently to see if the phone had been answered. From the kitchen, she heard a one-sided conversation.

‘Hello?’
Silence…
‘Hi, Grandma.’
Silence…
‘Good.’
Silence…
‘Good.’
Silence…
‘Good.’
Silence…
‘Ok, just a minute.’

‘Mom! Grandma’s on the phone!’ William yelled from across the apartment.

‘Tell her I’ll call her later!’

A couple minutes quietly passed, and William presented himself at the bathroom door. He had jelly on his shirt and peanut butter on his cheeks. A fudgesicle was dripping all over his hand, unnoticed. He stood there, observing his mom performing her Saturday night ritual. His big, brown eyes and inquisitive stance resembled a loyal dog waiting for his master to toss some table scraps, during a meal. Shauna was humming a song unfamiliar to William, but had the same soothing effect that grandma had when cuddling with him. He couldn’t help but smile.

‘You look pretty, Mom!’

‘And you are a mess! Go clean up before the babysitter sees you and calls Children Services on me’, replied Shauna, sarcastically.

‘Is that the people who try to take me away from you?’

‘Nobody is going to take you away from me. Now, go clean up!’

William’s smile quickly turned to a frown as he stormed off, pouting and wiping his drenched hand on his jeans. Hearing the doorbell, Shauna quickly sprayed some perfume, grabbed her purse, and headed for the front room. Opening the front door revealed a short, pudgy, teenage girl with short, curly, brown hair. One arm held a collection of schoolbooks, while the other held bags of games and snacks. Her attire revealed yesteryear’s fashions, while her welcome smile revealed braces and a smirk.

‘Thanks for coming on short notice, Brandi.’ Shauna invited her in.

‘My pleasure, Ms. Cambell.’

As Brandi set her things on the couch, William ran out and plunged himself into her side with a big hug.

‘You wanna play Mario Brothers with me?’

‘You betcha. Get it started and I’ll be in there in a minute.’

As William lunged back towards his room, Shauna grabbed his arm and pulled him in for her own hug and a kiss. He gave a ‘yucky face’ and wiped his mouth. Then pulled away and and went straight for his room again.

‘Love you! Be good!’

‘Love you too, mom!’ he yelled from his room.

Shauna turned to Brandi. ‘Bedtime is 11 and there’s food in the fridge. Help yourself.’

‘No problem, Ms Cambell.’

With a wave, Shauna left and headed to her car. It was already 7:30, but the sun was still shining from beyond the hills. This time of day, the glare from the sun was more dangerous than a drunk driver. So, Shauna pulled her sunglasses out and got in her dirty, red Honda. She would have preferred a larger car, but that was all her mom could afford. Her mom tried her best to pick up the slack that Williams dad’s absence left. Shauna did ok while holding down a job at Walmart and milking the welfare office for all the food stamps, medical benefits, and cash supplements she could get. But, once she decided to try to go to college, she had to cut back on her hours at work, while paying for books that financial aid didn’t pay for. She would have had more time for work if she weren’t so determined to invest a many of her days to all night partying. She was thankful, however, that the numerous men in her life paid for the drinks and the drugs. She even had a much older man pay for her cell phone service.

Shauna wasn’t always so shrewd with her ‘financing’ options. It started when she was in 7th grade, and her body started developing much faster than most of the other girls in school. Hatred and bitterness from the other girls also developed quickly. She figured they were just jealous of her maturity, and the fact that the boys paid much more attention to her than them. She learned quickly how much she could attain with her well-endowed chest and seductive clothes. This only increased in high school, as the male hormones also increased. The gifts and pledges of love stopped temporarily during her pregnancy in sophomore year. After Shauna and her mom decided against abortion, the father wanted nothing to do with her and her baby. After William was born, she tried to continue with high school, but had to drop out in her junior year to get a job and take care of her baby. During the next 9 years, she found that men were willing to pay for the things she and William needed, while trying to win her heart, or at least her body. Only after the drug use had begun to show signs on her face, did she notice a decrease in the control over men. That’s when she realized she might need to find a career after all. Nowadays, she struggled in her quest to balance work, school, motherhood, and partying. The partying seemed to outweigh everything else, as would be evident tonight.
By the time Shauna made her way though LA traffic, the sun was gone, only to be replaced by the glamorous neon lights of Hollywood Blvd. Headlights filled the strip, unable to penetrate the windshields of oncoming traffic. On the rear of each car were license plates from numerous states, as tourists filed in to enjoy the notorious nightlife of this city of entertainment. Along the sidewalks roamed people from all walks of life, from the rich and elegant to the poor and ragged. The aroma of foods from around the world, coming from the different ethnic restaurants, mixed with the stench of exhaust to create an unpleasant atmosphere. Shauna knew the smell all too well, and decided to keep her window up. Even then, she could hear the sounds of car horns, sub-woofers, sirens, and the occasional homeless man yelling at the sky. She turned onto Sunset Blvd and found her destination. It was an artsy dance club called ‘The Echo Room’, which featured different Djs every night of the week. She pulled up to the valet parking attendant, grabbed her ticket, handed the driver a wink instead of a tip, and strutted into the club. The only reason she didn’t have to wait in line with the dozens of other patrons lined up against the wall, was because she frequented the club, as well as the Doorman’s bedroom. Her evening of drinking and dancing had just begun.