Story on Display: White Clock
Jun. 13th, 2013 08:36 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
noizchildChapter Six: Sweets are So Good:
School was just weird for the rest of the day. Everyone kept talking about the invasion. The kids kept asking the teachers about what was going on. They didn’t seem to know how to answer their questions. It didn’t bother me at all. Kat taught us better. Lyle and I didn’t know the facts yet, so we had nothing to say. However, all of the questions had me curious. When school left out, I looked around for my brother. I found him waiting near the gate as usual. He looked up as I walked over to him.
“Hey, Scout!” Lyle greeted me. “How was your day?” I stood almost under him. I looked up at him.
“Who invaded us?” I asked. He only shook his head at me.
“We don’t know that for sure.”
“But everyone keeps talking about it. So, it must be true.”
“Remember what Kat told us.” I sighed out loud.
“Not to make judgments until we have all of the facts.”
“Exactly!” I looked up at Lyle as I winced a little bit.
“But is it true?” Lyle looked at me uneasily for a moment. I waited for his answer. My brother pressed his lips together tightly.
“You know what, let’s ask Kat at dinner time. Okay?” We didn’t speak for a moment. I cocked my head and gave him a little smile.
“Okay!” Lyle lightly patted her on the head.
“Good, let’s go.” We started our walk back to the tunnel bus stop. Usually, Lyle and I are talking like crazy on the walk to the bus. Today, I was silent. Lyle couldn’t provide the answer that I wanted. That was more of Kat’s area of knowledge. As we waited for the bus, I turned to my brother. He looked down at me.
“Yes, Claud?” I looked up at him smiling.
“Can we go and buy some gummibären[1] and marzipan[2] today?” Lyle sighed and rolled his eyes. I noticed his reaction.
“What?” Lyle only shook his head at my question.
“I just bought you some last week!”
“And?”
“Don’t tell me you ate the last batch that quickly?”
“They’re just that good! Can we get some, please?”
“No.”
“Please?”
“No! Kat will no enjoy you buying candy before dinner.”
“I’ll just hide it like I normally do. Please, I’ll try to save it better this time! Please, please, Pleaseeee!!!”
Lyle looked away from me with his eyes closed. I could see him trying to resist. I just have to keep looking sweet and cute. Maybe then, he’ll surrender and buy me more gummibären and marzipan. I stared down the boy with the money to make happy a little while longer. Come on, Lyle! You know you want to buy me more sweet stuff. If you don’t, I’ll keep harassing you until you do! My brother finally sighed in defeat and dropped his hands to his sides.
“Fine! I’ll get you the stupid treats!” he complained as the bus pulled up. I grinned at his answer. The bus had nice timing too.
“Great! I won’t forget!” I said. Then, I happily boarded our bus. Lyle mumbled something under his breath as he got on after me. I don’t care about what he said. I won! I kept reminding Lyle about our candy detour. I had a craving for my Gummibären and Marzipan that badly. I wasn’t about to let him “slip up” and forget. No sir! I think Lyle wanted to smack me so bad for still talking about my soon-to-be treats.
“Look! Shut up about it or we’re going straight home, you hear me?” he almost shouted at me. I sat back smiling.
“Yes Lyle,” I said nearly angelically. I didn’t care, I still won. Rot Fisch Süßigkeiten is every kid’s dream come true and every parent’s cruelest nightmare. Candy and baked goods ate up the walls. The building itself looked like it wasn’t taken out of an old storybook and neatly in the city. This place was where happy times for children came to life. Candy added to the old time feeling of the store. It’s Christmastime all over again! Look around the store as if I had just found the Holy Grail of sweets. Lyle just tapped his foot by the door impatiently.
“Come on, just get your candy so we can leave!” he said. “Kat’s waiting for us! She has dinner ready and waiting for us!”
“Yeah, yeah!” I brushed off. “I’m comin’! I’m comin’!” I heard Lyle groan discontentedly. I just ignored him. Sorry, big brother. This is my time now, deal with it. We looked up when we heard the wooden back door open wide. An old lady walked over to the counter. She looked like a snowman that managed to survive the summer by magic. She always wore traditional German clothes. Her glasses were the only thing that looked modern on her. I smiled when I saw her.
“Hi Ms. Binus!” I greeted her. Even Lyle gave her a little wave. A smile mapped out on that old lady’s face.
“Hello Claudia! Hello Lyle! Back again?” she said with her old-fashioned German accent. Out of all of the grown-ups in Berlin, I just loved hearing Ms. Binus. She had owned Rot Fisch Süßigkeiten for many years. Her husband used to own it, but he died two years ago. Now, Ms. Binus runs the candy store. I smiled at her, brightly.
“Hi!” I said. Ms. Binus looked over at Lyle then she looked over at me again.
“The usual?” she asked. I grinned at her, nodding.
“Yes ma’am!” I cheered. “Fill the bags up to rim, please!” Ms. Binus laughed at me.
“Yes, Claudia,” she said. “Coming right up.” As she filled up my goodie bags to the top with gummibären and marzipan, I turned to Lyle, grinning and winking. He just rolled his eyes while he kept forcing himself to smile.
“Do you want the cat, star fish, and teddy bear-shaped marzipan?” Ms. Binus asked.
“Yes, yes, please!” I cheered. The lady giggled again.
“Easy there, Claudia,” she said. I blushed a tad bit.
“I’m sorry…” I mumbled. Ms. Binus smiled as she finished up my bags.
“You are so cute, little Claudia,” she said. “Here you are.” The kind old lady gave me the bags.
“That will be eight Euros,” she said. I turned around to Lyle.
“You heard the woman!” I said. He groaned as he rolled his eyes. My brother reached into his pocket and pulled out the money. Lyle paid the eight Euros. Ms. Binus gave him the receipt. My brother folded it up and stuffed it in his pocket. The candy lady gave us a kind smile.
“Have a nice day,” she said.
“Bye!” I said as Lyle and I walked out the door. He turned to me once we got outside of the store.
“You happy now?” my brother asked. I looked at him, smiling.
“Yep!” I said. Lyle sighed out loud.
“Good, let’s go!” he said. “I’m hungry!” I laughed at him.
“Okay,” I said softly. I skipped off to home. Why do I do this? I just love to harass Lyle from time to time. It keeps the bond between healthy and moving along. And I want the candy too. Got to have my gummibären and marzipan! That’s right, I can’t live without them. They just rock my world!
[1] The Gummi Bear was invented in 1922 in the Kessenic area of Bonn, in the kitchen of confectioner Hans Riegel, owner of the company Haribo. The fruit-flavored gelatin dancing bear became more and more popular throughout the years and they are now exported all over the world, including the US, where they first made an appearance in 1982. Gumi bears are produced in 5 different colors which are white, green, yellow, orange and red and the corresponding flavors are pineapple, strawberry, lemon, orange and raspberry.
[2] Marzipan is a popular confectionery item in Germany that is made of ground almonds and sugar. It has a long history in Germany, dating back to the 16th century when it made its way from the Middle East, via Venice, to the tables of Germany’s nobility. Up until the 18th century, marzipan was used for medicinal purposes until becoming a delicacy for the rich in the early 19th century. It wasn’t until the 1950’s, however, that marzipan became a more every day confectionery item and now you will find marzipan being eaten both on special occasions such as Easter and Christmas, but also during the rest of the year. Marzipan comes in all shapes and sizes, both in plain, for use in cooking or in the form of animals such as the “Good Luck Pig” (Glücksschwein) and also covered in chocolate in the shape of loaves, balls and bars.
White Clock
Section for it
School was just weird for the rest of the day. Everyone kept talking about the invasion. The kids kept asking the teachers about what was going on. They didn’t seem to know how to answer their questions. It didn’t bother me at all. Kat taught us better. Lyle and I didn’t know the facts yet, so we had nothing to say. However, all of the questions had me curious. When school left out, I looked around for my brother. I found him waiting near the gate as usual. He looked up as I walked over to him.
“Hey, Scout!” Lyle greeted me. “How was your day?” I stood almost under him. I looked up at him.
“Who invaded us?” I asked. He only shook his head at me.
“We don’t know that for sure.”
“But everyone keeps talking about it. So, it must be true.”
“Remember what Kat told us.” I sighed out loud.
“Not to make judgments until we have all of the facts.”
“Exactly!” I looked up at Lyle as I winced a little bit.
“But is it true?” Lyle looked at me uneasily for a moment. I waited for his answer. My brother pressed his lips together tightly.
“You know what, let’s ask Kat at dinner time. Okay?” We didn’t speak for a moment. I cocked my head and gave him a little smile.
“Okay!” Lyle lightly patted her on the head.
“Good, let’s go.” We started our walk back to the tunnel bus stop. Usually, Lyle and I are talking like crazy on the walk to the bus. Today, I was silent. Lyle couldn’t provide the answer that I wanted. That was more of Kat’s area of knowledge. As we waited for the bus, I turned to my brother. He looked down at me.
“Yes, Claud?” I looked up at him smiling.
“Can we go and buy some gummibären[1] and marzipan[2] today?” Lyle sighed and rolled his eyes. I noticed his reaction.
“What?” Lyle only shook his head at my question.
“I just bought you some last week!”
“And?”
“Don’t tell me you ate the last batch that quickly?”
“They’re just that good! Can we get some, please?”
“No.”
“Please?”
“No! Kat will no enjoy you buying candy before dinner.”
“I’ll just hide it like I normally do. Please, I’ll try to save it better this time! Please, please, Pleaseeee!!!”
Lyle looked away from me with his eyes closed. I could see him trying to resist. I just have to keep looking sweet and cute. Maybe then, he’ll surrender and buy me more gummibären and marzipan. I stared down the boy with the money to make happy a little while longer. Come on, Lyle! You know you want to buy me more sweet stuff. If you don’t, I’ll keep harassing you until you do! My brother finally sighed in defeat and dropped his hands to his sides.
“Fine! I’ll get you the stupid treats!” he complained as the bus pulled up. I grinned at his answer. The bus had nice timing too.
“Great! I won’t forget!” I said. Then, I happily boarded our bus. Lyle mumbled something under his breath as he got on after me. I don’t care about what he said. I won! I kept reminding Lyle about our candy detour. I had a craving for my Gummibären and Marzipan that badly. I wasn’t about to let him “slip up” and forget. No sir! I think Lyle wanted to smack me so bad for still talking about my soon-to-be treats.
“Look! Shut up about it or we’re going straight home, you hear me?” he almost shouted at me. I sat back smiling.
“Yes Lyle,” I said nearly angelically. I didn’t care, I still won. Rot Fisch Süßigkeiten is every kid’s dream come true and every parent’s cruelest nightmare. Candy and baked goods ate up the walls. The building itself looked like it wasn’t taken out of an old storybook and neatly in the city. This place was where happy times for children came to life. Candy added to the old time feeling of the store. It’s Christmastime all over again! Look around the store as if I had just found the Holy Grail of sweets. Lyle just tapped his foot by the door impatiently.
“Come on, just get your candy so we can leave!” he said. “Kat’s waiting for us! She has dinner ready and waiting for us!”
“Yeah, yeah!” I brushed off. “I’m comin’! I’m comin’!” I heard Lyle groan discontentedly. I just ignored him. Sorry, big brother. This is my time now, deal with it. We looked up when we heard the wooden back door open wide. An old lady walked over to the counter. She looked like a snowman that managed to survive the summer by magic. She always wore traditional German clothes. Her glasses were the only thing that looked modern on her. I smiled when I saw her.
“Hi Ms. Binus!” I greeted her. Even Lyle gave her a little wave. A smile mapped out on that old lady’s face.
“Hello Claudia! Hello Lyle! Back again?” she said with her old-fashioned German accent. Out of all of the grown-ups in Berlin, I just loved hearing Ms. Binus. She had owned Rot Fisch Süßigkeiten for many years. Her husband used to own it, but he died two years ago. Now, Ms. Binus runs the candy store. I smiled at her, brightly.
“Hi!” I said. Ms. Binus looked over at Lyle then she looked over at me again.
“The usual?” she asked. I grinned at her, nodding.
“Yes ma’am!” I cheered. “Fill the bags up to rim, please!” Ms. Binus laughed at me.
“Yes, Claudia,” she said. “Coming right up.” As she filled up my goodie bags to the top with gummibären and marzipan, I turned to Lyle, grinning and winking. He just rolled his eyes while he kept forcing himself to smile.
“Do you want the cat, star fish, and teddy bear-shaped marzipan?” Ms. Binus asked.
“Yes, yes, please!” I cheered. The lady giggled again.
“Easy there, Claudia,” she said. I blushed a tad bit.
“I’m sorry…” I mumbled. Ms. Binus smiled as she finished up my bags.
“You are so cute, little Claudia,” she said. “Here you are.” The kind old lady gave me the bags.
“That will be eight Euros,” she said. I turned around to Lyle.
“You heard the woman!” I said. He groaned as he rolled his eyes. My brother reached into his pocket and pulled out the money. Lyle paid the eight Euros. Ms. Binus gave him the receipt. My brother folded it up and stuffed it in his pocket. The candy lady gave us a kind smile.
“Have a nice day,” she said.
“Bye!” I said as Lyle and I walked out the door. He turned to me once we got outside of the store.
“You happy now?” my brother asked. I looked at him, smiling.
“Yep!” I said. Lyle sighed out loud.
“Good, let’s go!” he said. “I’m hungry!” I laughed at him.
“Okay,” I said softly. I skipped off to home. Why do I do this? I just love to harass Lyle from time to time. It keeps the bond between healthy and moving along. And I want the candy too. Got to have my gummibären and marzipan! That’s right, I can’t live without them. They just rock my world!
[1] The Gummi Bear was invented in 1922 in the Kessenic area of Bonn, in the kitchen of confectioner Hans Riegel, owner of the company Haribo. The fruit-flavored gelatin dancing bear became more and more popular throughout the years and they are now exported all over the world, including the US, where they first made an appearance in 1982. Gumi bears are produced in 5 different colors which are white, green, yellow, orange and red and the corresponding flavors are pineapple, strawberry, lemon, orange and raspberry.
[2] Marzipan is a popular confectionery item in Germany that is made of ground almonds and sugar. It has a long history in Germany, dating back to the 16th century when it made its way from the Middle East, via Venice, to the tables of Germany’s nobility. Up until the 18th century, marzipan was used for medicinal purposes until becoming a delicacy for the rich in the early 19th century. It wasn’t until the 1950’s, however, that marzipan became a more every day confectionery item and now you will find marzipan being eaten both on special occasions such as Easter and Christmas, but also during the rest of the year. Marzipan comes in all shapes and sizes, both in plain, for use in cooking or in the form of animals such as the “Good Luck Pig” (Glücksschwein) and also covered in chocolate in the shape of loaves, balls and bars.
White Clock
Section for it
