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When Lacey wants an apple her mother makes her bake a whole pie first. From scratch. The water in the flour, the kneading, the rolling of the dough, the pressing in the pyrex dish, the peeling of the apples, the sprinkled cinnamon. Then the top crust. The top crust breaks Lacey every time. She can’t get that top crust right. She gets holes and tries patching. Little dough squares that look like knee patches. Her mom starts yelling that the pie is a failure. Lacey covered in flour. She cries out and drops to the floor. Every time she drops to the floor and wails there. Just once I’d like her to stand up and wail. But, no. So the pie gets thrown away. Her mother cackles like the old witch that she is. And Lacey goes to bed without her apple. It’s time to run away, I told her the other day. Lacey looked suspicious of me. Well how many pies this week? I asked her. She shrugged; and continues to act like I am the enemy. |
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Pie by Susan Tepper
Filed under Susan Tepper
52|250 A Year of Flash 
Wonderful!
“Just once I’d like her to stand up and wail.” — What a line!
Michelle, thanks so much glad you liked that line in particular!
Yes, “Just once I’d like her to stand up and wail.” I clapped my hands when I read that line, so funny and so real. And what a sad ending, filled with heartbreaking stupidity and a lack of courage, and fear too. So personal and chatty too, as always, you can hear and see the speaker so well. So, are you doing a food series?
Matt, hmm.. a food series. Interesting idea. Actually I was probably hungry when I wrote that. Once I wrote a story about a man who ate a lot of donuts and it caused me to eat a lot of donuts during the course of that writing… and donuts aren’t that good for you!!
thanks so much for what you said!
Wonderful, Susan. You’ve got evil just beneath the surface, like the pie crust that won’t cover it. So much more in this and yet the simple narrative is enough to please as well!
Susan , yes the mother is quite the old evil lady, and it was fun to write this, though god knows what/where inspired this writing, thanks!
What detail! This line made me want to continue on and find out what kind of family this is: When Lacey wants an apple her mother makes her bake a whole pie first. From scratch.
Melissa, yeah, a strange opening. I didn’t know where it would lead so I just started with her baking the pie. Thanks so much!
Just sinister.
I agree with what everyone has said. :) To me, Lacey seems like she is such a sweet, sensitive girl (Her name seems to fit that description! I like it), but her mother is turning her into disturbed, angry little girl.
Ah, fabulous. This has such a fairy tale feel, the anger and frustration simmering just under the top crust of that pie. Peace…
I’d think that Lacey would simply stop asking for apples… Besides, they come with their own natural packaging, why would the mother make her make them into pies? She’s just cruel.
I say next time Lacey takes the apple and throws it right at her tormentor. It’d serve her right.
Oh, and yes, good story! :)
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