Grown-ups

Flash Fiction

Grown-ups

Dad looked at Sandy sternly, “You’re being rude.”

Sandy, surprised said, “I thought they were yellow…”

Surprised, and confused at the four-year-old, but determined to be the grown-up, Dad said, “Don’t be rude, don’t try to try to get out of this.”

Sandy looked up as if she was looking at a difficult puzzle piece, “Do you mean my shoes? They’re yellow… I couldn’t get them off because the ties were in knots.”

“What are you talking about?” Dad said, keeping his determination going.

“What to get out of? You said it. I know sometimes my shoes get knots but they’re ok today. Mom tied them… they’re not red…”

“Why are we talking about your shoes?” Dad asked, now calming down a bit about the statement, but getting more confused by the minute. Sandy had come in and said “You’re stupid in the kitchen.”

“You said my shoes were red, but they’re really yellow. Remember? You said red.”

“No no…” Dad caught on, “I didn’t say red, and it wasn’t about your shoes… I said you were being rude.”

“Oh… is that a different color?”

“No, it’s not a color at all. It’s when you are not being nice when you are talking.”

“What did I say?”

“You said I’m stupid in the kitchen…”

“Oh, that’s rude?”

“Yes, you called me stupid!”

“I did? Oh, so that stuff Mom makes for lunch isn’t called stupid?”

Confused again, Dad said “Lunch?”

“Yeah, that soupy stuff with the chunky things in it…”

“You mean ‘stew?’”

“Oh! I think I just remembered it wrong…”

“Harold!” came a call from the kitchen, “Do you want some stew for lunch? It’s ready!”

Harold was laughing so hard he couldn’t even answer.

Sandy just went into the kitchen thinking she would never understand grown-ups…