Englisch on Purpose (Prequel to Amish by Accident) Page 5

  “Didn’t Daddy tell you to stay inside?” It was Ellie. Again.

  “I have to use the bathroom. Go to sleep and quit being so nosy.”

  She left the tent and headed behind it when she saw the twins’ forms. “What are we doing?” she whispered.

  The moonlight shone off her cousins’ eager expressions as they held out three rolls of toilet paper. “TP all the parents’ tents?”

  She grabbed a roll with an impish grin. “You bet.”

  The three silently sneaked toward Jonathan and Susie’s tent, keeping an eye out for anyone else. They reached the small dwelling and began unrolling their toilet paper over it. Mattie struggled to contain any giggles that might escape and ruin their plan. With their first mission accomplished, they stealthily headed back to her parents’ dwelling. Mattie relished the thought of her father’s bewildered expression tomorrow morning when he discovered what they’d done.

  “Mattie?”

  At her father’s voice, Mattie whirled around and quickly hid the toilet paper roll behind her back.

  “Dad? Oh, uh, what are you doing out here?” Surely her fake smile gave her away.

  “I should ask you the same thing, young lady.” Why were her father’s hands conspicuously behind his back?

  “I was just, uh, you know, out.”

  “No, I don’t know. I’m quite certain I told you to stay in your tent. And what are you hiding behind your back?”

  She frowned, reluctantly showing him her roll of toilet paper. “I, you know, had to use the outhouse.”

  “Outhouse?”

  “Uh, restroom.”

  “They already have toilet paper in there.”

  “I know. But it doesn’t hurt to be prepared, does it? You know, just in case they’re out.”

  Her father looked past her to JJ. “Boys, what are you doing out?”

  “Oh, uh, hello, Uncle Matthew,” Johnny started. “Jah, we had to use the outhouse too.” He held out his TP and his twin did the same.

  “We figured we would, um, escort Mattie there because of what happened, you know, with that Derrick guy,” Judah attempted to recover. “A good idea, ain’t so?”

  Her father shook his head. “You three hurry up and do your business and then head back to your tents, you hear?” He met his Mattie’s gaze. “I’ll be watching for you.”

  “Okay, Dad.” Mattie and JJ hurried toward the direction of the bathrooms.

  Johnny glanced at Mattie. “You don’t think he believed us, do you?”

  “No.” Mattie shook her head. “He suspects something’s up. And he’ll probably come looking for me if I’m not back in a few minutes.” She sighed. “Well, it looks like you guys will have to finish the job without me.”

  “That’s all right, Mattie. You can see it in the morning, jah?” Judah smiled.

  Mattie grinned. “I sure will. Good night.”

  “Night,” the twins echoed.

  <><><>

  Matthew waited until Mattie was back in her tent before heading to Joshua’s camp. He knew his friend would likely be asleep by now, or perhaps snuggling with his wife. In both cases, he wasn’t likely to hear his mission of mischief. It had been too long since he’d been able to pull any pranks on his friends. He quietly unraveled the toilet paper and slowly walked around his friend’s tent.

  He had planned on including Jonathan in this undertaking, but when he’d gone to his tent, the short interchange he’d overheard between Jonathan and Susie told Matthew enough to know that his friend would be distracted for quite a while. So he was doing it alone.

  Matthew grinned. Joshua would most likely assume Jonathan was to blame. He loved his relationship with his friends. You never knew what to expect.

  <><><>

  Jonathan broke away from Susie for a moment. “Schatzi.”

  “Yes, lieb?” Susie met his gaze in the dim moonlight, and Jonathan tried not to dwell on how much he enjoyed the love in her voice and how her eyes strayed back to his lips.

  “I’ve been wondering about Matthew.”

  She shifted and her gaze cleared some. “Mm…hmm?”

  He also enjoyed the disappointment in her tone.

  “He’s been too serious lately about Mattie and all. I was thinkin’ that we should cheer him up some.”

  “Wasn’t that one of the main reasons we came on this trip?”

  “Jah. But I wanna do something better.”

  Susie studied his face for a moment then grinned. “What prank do you have cooked up now, liebchen?”

  He smiled back at her. She knew him so well. “I want to TP his tent.”

  She gasped. “Jonathan! Do you know how? Have you ever done it before?”

  “No, but I saw someone on an Englischer’s TV once. It didn’t look none too hard.”

  Susie turned to lie on her back and was quiet for a moment. “Are you gonna take the toilet paper from the public bathrooms?”

  “Jah, I was plannin’ on it.”

  Susie turned on her side and reached for him. “Jonathan?”

  “Yes, Schatzi?”

  “May I join you?”

  Jonathan grinned and met her mouth with his. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

  <><><>

  Joshua smiled at his ingenious plan. It was simple: sneak to Jonathan’s tent, TP it, and then get away as stealthily as possible. It would be just like old times, when they were all boys and wreaked havoc on all of Paradise. Their pranks had reduced to a minimum since they had all married, and even more as they all had children of their own. But this would be a great reminder of the good ol’ days for all of them.

  He also planned to TP Matthew’s tent, just as soon as he was finished with Jonathan’s. And his friends would likely suspect each other too. Joshua had always been the least troublemaking of the bunch, but he had a few surprises up his sleeve.

  He continued to Jonathan’s camp, approaching from the back side. His jaw dropped as he spotted his friend’s tent. It was already covered top-to-bottom with toilet paper. Apparently, he hadn’t been the only one with that idea. Matthew was up to his old antics as well. Joshua grinned and started for Matt’s camp instead.

  He groaned aloud when he reached Matthew’s tent. It, too, was blanketed white. He had thought he’d be the only one, recreating memories and giving them all a good laugh. Apparently, he’d been a step behind.

  Joshua stilled at a thought. What if...? Oh no. He started back for his camp at a fast walk. He paused at the sight of his tent and sighed in relief. It was untouched. Yes! No yards of trash to clean up in the morning.

  He glanced down at his worthless roll of toilet paper. Well, that hadn’t worked out so well. He quietly opened his tent and crawled in, then settled down beside Annie.

  “Josh?” she murmured sleepily, pulling him closer to her and leaning her head on his shoulder.

  “Mm…hmm?”

  “I’m so lucky I have you.”

  He smiled and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “And I’m lucky to have you, sweet Annie.”

  “Good night, lieb.”

  “Guten nacht.”

  How could he care about a failed prank when he had a wife like Annie? Joshua snuggled in with the love of his life and closed his eyes in contentment.

  <><><>

  “Matthew Riehl?”

  Matt turned at the sound of the deep male voice. “Yes, that’s me.” He eyed the park ranger, hoping he wouldn’t bring up the disordered state of their campsite.

  “Are you responsible for these three campsites?” The ranger showed him a map, where three boxes were circled, indicating the spaces that his family, Jonathan’s family, and Joshua’s family occupied.

  Matthew cringed. “That’s correct.”

  “There seemed to be a disturbance last night. I’m sure you probably noticed.” The ranger rubbed his chin. “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about it, would you?”

  “Yes, sir. My friends and I were pulling friendly pranks on each other. We�
�ll be sure to clean it up.”

  “That’s all good and well, sir, but are you aware that vandalizing someone else’s property, even if it is with toilet paper, is a misdemeanor? And are you also aware that taking toilet paper from a public bathroom is theft?”

  Matthew swallowed. “No, I didn’t realize that.”

  “I won’t prosecute you – this time. However, let this be a warning to you for future activities.”

  “I appreciate that, sir. Thanks for letting me know.” Matthew nodded.

  “By the way, whoever did this did an excellent job. I’ve never seen a better job of TPing.”

  Matthew smiled in satisfaction as the officer walked away.

  Chapter 7

  Mattie glanced down at the current receipt, thankful that she’d already gone through half of the stack. She checked the amount on the receipt to make certain it corresponded with the statement in front of her.

  “I’ve got some files that need to be returned as soon as you’ve finished with that,” her supervisor informed her.

  “Thank you, Cathy. I should be done with this in just a little bit.”

  “No hurry, but I would like you to get to those today.”

  “That shouldn’t be a problem.” Mattie smiled.

  She enjoyed this office job, but just wished it paid more than minimum wage. When she asked for more hours, her employer did his best to find some for her. However, when her father called in and told her boss that she wouldn’t be coming in, that pretty much forfeited her chances of getting any extra work in the future. Needless to say, her employer was not happy to have to find someone to fill in for her.

  At this rate, it would take her forever to get enough money saved up to go to New York. Wait a minute! Maybe I can borrow some from JJ. She recalled them saying something about having money saved up for a rainy day. She didn’t like to borrow money from other people, but paying it back shouldn’t be a problem once she landed a good-paying job in New York.

  That’s what she would do, she decided. Although she was grounded and not allowed to go anywhere but to work and back, she’d make a quick stop by the Fisher residence to speak briefly with her twin cousins. If anyone could understand her plight, Johnny and Judah surely would.

  <><><>

  “Mattie! What do you think you’re doing, dressed like that?”

  Mattie glanced down at her jeans and sweater, and then stood up straight. This was the moment she’d been dreading – and looking forward to – all day. She took a deep breath and spoke before she lost her nerve.

  “I’m leaving, Dad.”

  “You’re what?”

  “I’m moving out. I’m going to New York.”

  “No, you’re not.”

  “I’m eighteen now, Dad. You can’t keep me here. I’m an adult.”

  “I forbid you to go. You’re not mature enough to make adult decisions.”

  Mattie shrugged. “Sorry you feel that way. I’m going to do this whether you approve or not. It’s my life, and I have a right to live it any way I want to.” She couldn’t believe she was actually speaking these words to her father.

  “What’s going on?”

  Mattie hadn’t even seen her mother walk in the room.

  “Our daughter says she’s going to New York,” her father said.

  “Mattie, no!”

  “Sorry, Mom, but I have to go. I can’t live here anymore.”

  Tears welled in her mother’s eyes and it took all of her resolve not to cry too.

  “If you’re going to leave against our wishes, that’s on your conscience. But don’t expect to come back and be part of this family unless you’ve changed your rebellious attitude and swallowed your worldly pride.”

  She knew her father meant every word. “Don’t worry, Dad. I don’t plan on coming back.”

  Her mother gasped. “Please don’t leave, Mattie!”

  “Maryanna, let her go. This is what she wants.” She heard the resignation in her father’s voice. “We can’t stop her.”

  “Bye, Mom. I love you.” She leaned over and briefly embraced her mother, and then abruptly stepped out the door. The moment she did, her tears fell freely.

  <><><>

  Mattie smiled and turned a complete circle. “Well, what do you think?”

  “Ach, Mattie! You cut your hair. And your clothes – oh, my goodness! You look so…so different…so Englisch.”

  “Do you like it?”

  “I don’t know, but I’m sure some Englisch man will.”

  “I think I’ll take that as a compliment.” She grinned.

  “So, you’re really leaving.”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Did you tell your folks?”

  Mattie frowned and nodded.

  “What did they say?”

  “My dad forbid me to go.”

  “Oh, boy. What did you say to him?”

  “I just told him that it was my life and this is what I want to do.”

  “And he let you go?”

  “Well, I’m eighteen. He couldn’t exactly keep me there.”

  Her friend’s eyes widened.

  Mattie chuckled. “Don’t worry. It’ll be okay.” She wasn’t sure whether the statement was meant for Elisabeth or herself.

  “Are you scared?”

  “A little. But I think my excitement overshadows my fears.”

  “Don’t forget about me.”

  “Are you kidding? You’ll probably be receiving a letter from me every day.” She laughed.

  “Nee, you’ll be too busy exploring the city.”

  “I don’t know about that. It’s going to be pretty expensive to live there. I doubt I’ll have extra spending money – at least not until I get a decent-paying job, which I hope will be soon.”

  “I can’t believe you’re actually going. I don’t know what I’ll do here without you.” Tears sprang to Elisabeth’s eyes.

  “Oh, no. Don’t make me cry. It’ll ruin my makeup.” She hugged her friend. “I’m sure you’ll be fine. You have Luke Beiler, after all.”

  Elisabeth sighed.

  “What was that for?”

  “Luke. I don’t know…I just…I guess I’m confused.”

  “You’ve been courting for a year now.”

  “I know. I think he wants to get serious about our relationship.”

  “But you’re only seventeen.”

  “I know. Honestly, I don’t think I know what I want yet.”

  “So, if he asks, tell him that.”

  Elisabeth frowned. “Maybe I should break up with him.”

  “Why?”

  “Well, I think maybe we’re getting too close. Moving too fast…uh, you know.”

  Mattie’s eyes widened. “Lis! You and Luke haven’t –”

  “Nee! I mean, we’ve kissed a lot and stuff, but…I don’t know. I think maybe he wants to.”

  “Don’t you dare!”

  “I’m not going to. That’s why I’m thinking of breaking up with him.”

  “If he expects you to do something you shouldn’t, you should break it off.”

  “I don’t know if that’s what he wants or not. He keeps talking about building a house and all that…” She shook her head. “He wants more, but I don’t think I can give him the commitment he’s looking for.”

  “Don’t settle for something you don’t want. You’ll live to regret it.”

  “I know.”

  “Hey, I’ll send you my new phone number when I get settled in New York. Call me anytime you need to, okay?”

  Elisabeth nodded.

  “Well, I better go before I hit rush-hour traffic.”

  “Leave a message at the phone shanty as soon as you arrive.”

  “As soon as I can.” A tear formed in her eye. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.” She pulled her best friend close and hugged her fiercely.

  “Bye, Mattie.”

  “Goodbye, Lis. Hope to see you soon.”

  Mattie couldn’t help the flo
w of tears as she drove out of the Schrocks’ long lane. With each turn of the tires, her best friend faded from view.

  Doubts assaulted Mattie and she began to second-guess herself. Could she do this on her own? She didn’t know. Whether she could or not, there was no turning back now. Maybe someday she’d return, but she didn’t expect that to happen for a long, long time. Paradise, Pennsylvania would now be a part of her history.

  She took a cleansing breath and gathered her emotions. This was what she’d been waiting for her entire life! Why was she fearful? Her longtime dream was finally being fulfilled. She could do this. With a burst of excitement, Mattie rolled down her window and shouted, “Goodbye, Pennsylvania. Hello, New York!”

  Chapter 8

  “Where’s Matilda? Why didn’t she come along?”

  Matthew’s blank stare should have communicated the bewilderment he was feeling at his father’s direct question. Surely his father had already heard the news. His throat turned dry as he anticipated his father’s response. “Mattie’s…she’s gone.”

  “Gone?” Sabastian Riehl frowned.

  Maryanna quickly filled in, “Mattie left to go live in New York.”

  Matthew grasped his wife’s hand a little tighter, thankful for his helpmeet’s presence. She knew relations with his father had always been strained, and she often provided an immeasurable source of comfort. He mentally braced himself for his father’s reaction.

  “I see.” His father nodded. “When will Rebekah be leaving too?”

  “Rebekah?” Matthew frowned.

  “This is the example you have set for your children, Matthew. One of unfaithfulness.”

  Matthew’s jaw dropped. “Unfaithfulness? I…I don’t understand.”

  “Just as you have not stayed in the place that God set you, your children will not stay. One step in the direction of the world leads to another. Then another. You have begun a cycle that cannot be stopped. I tried to warn you before you–” His eyes went to Maryanna, and Matthew understood exactly what his father was saying. He’d always blamed Matthew’s marriage to Maryanna for all the problems that had surfaced over the years.