FLASH
Olivia stared down at the image of her home with a critical eye. She’d gone out into the yard to take a picture of their house for the Christmas card, and it had to be just right before she sent it out to all of her friends. True, there were several months before December, but she had to take advantage of the lighting while she had it. Her husband teased her about her perfectionist streak, but Olivia loved to have everything just perfect.
The Latina woman sighed happily as she walked into the house, feeling the cool blast of the air conditioning wash over her as she closed the door behind her. August in their town was always hot and incredibly humid in their city, and she was happy to be getting inside and out of the heat. Setting the camera down on the banister, she heard the sounds of the TV coming the living room,.Olivia frowned. “Elena? Have you finished your homework yet?” She asked.
Sitting on the couch, her thirteen year old daughter rolled her eyes. “Of course, Mom! I-“ she abruptly stopped talking, noticing the glare in Olivia’s eyes. Sass and back talk was not allowed in her household, thank you very much. “Yes, I finished it.” Elena continued in a much more quiet, polite tone. “May I see it?”
Elena handed over her math homework and Olivia began carefully scanning it over. “Mom, I’m thirteen! I’m practically grown up now.” Elena complained. “You don’t have to check to see if I did my homework.”
Olivia raised her eyebrows at her daughter. “Oh really? So you didn’t blow off your homework multiple times last month? Mr. Ramirez had to give me a call. Do you know how embarrassing that was?” She asked. Sheepishly, Elena stared at the floor. “Now, is your sister home? I wanted to talk to her before she starts her shift.”
Upstairs, Olivia’s eldest daughter Rosa hurriedly grabbed her top and orange short shorts, tossing her work uniform into her backpack as she got ready. The new boss was a bit of a control freak; he didn’t like the girls getting changed until they were already at work. Rosa thought that was a total waste of time, but she wasn’t going to rock the boat and annoy him.
Checking her text messages, Rosa saw her boyfriend Paul had sent her a message asking if she needed anything. She texted him back, asking if he could drop her off at the Hooters she worked at. Waitressing wasn’t the most entertaining job in the world, but it helped pay the bills. Besides, Rosa wasn’t afraid to admit she enjoyed the attention she got from the male patrons. Sure, she had a boyfriend and all, but there was nothing wrong with a little flirting, right?
Brushing her long, jet black hair out of her face Rosa grabbed her backpack and rushed downstairs. She froze, though, when she saw the camera sitting on the banister. There it was! That totally weird camera she and her sister had found up in the attic. It was like, magic or something— Elena had taken a picture of the neighbor’s dog and turned it into a cat. They’d hidden it back in the attic where they found it—why was it out now?
Next….