The One Great Gnome

The One Great Gnome — page 3 — Sarah rubbed her eyes and stretched She looked out the window There was a thick layer of fog on the ground but she could still make out the endless fields of trees and rolling hills Not a single bookstore in view No coffee shop on the corner no flashing Take Out neon sign no Chin’s Fruit Market nothing Sarah her dad called again If you don’t move it I’m gonna eat your breakfast Sarah turned from the window and went to get her slippers and robe She looked around and saw nothing but boxes so she just wrapped her comforter around her and walked down the steps The wood creaked under her feet Sarah entered the kitchen She saw her dad trying to hang some spices on a homemade rack But nothing was straight and the spices looked like they were about to slide off Her father also seemed to be having a hard time because he had a towel wrapped around his thumb He saw Sarah staring at it I haven’t found the bandages yet he laughed Sarah shook her head and smiled Last night the kitchen had been nothing but piled-up furniture and boxes But today well it looked like a kitchen Her parents must have either stayed up late or gotten up early to get it into shape About time Her dad smiled as she sat down Sarah ran her hands over the smooth lime-green top It was the same linoleum kitchen table with the mismatched chairs where she had always eaten Even the old toaster which seemed to 3

The One Great Gnome — page 4 — only have one setting on it BURNT sat on the counter It was nice to see Sarah felt something brush against her legs Smokey she said as she petted her cat I bet you like it here she said Plenty of places to explore She’s been out all morning said her father He put a glass of orange juice and a bowl of cereal in front of Sarah It was Chocolate Blasts her favorite Mom never lets me eat these she said as she poured the milk over it Where is she anyway You know your mother said Dad as he sat down next to her She doesn’t start her job at the library for another hour but she was so excited she went early Sarah’s dad grabbed one of the puffs of cereal from her bowl and popped it into his mouth Hey that’s mine Sarah laughed Get your own Her dad laughed too and got back to unpacking the last box in the kitchen I know this isn’t easy for you kiddo he said as he pulled out a jar of peanut butter and put it in a cupboard But this has been a dream of your mother’s for a long time to live in the country AND to be the head of a town library Sarah knew that Even though they had lived in Manhattan her mother had every issue of Country Living and tons of books on farmhouses and barns stacked on the overloaded shelves in the apartment I know I know said Sarah as she ate She wondered 4

The One Great Gnome — page 5 — what Lily was having for breakfast but made herself think of something else Can I explore what’s around she asked her dad as she brought her empty cereal bowl to the sink Well I don’t have to worry about you being run down by a taxi here said her father Go ahead I’ll just be alone in here unpacking all by myself Sarah ran upstairs and found her clothes in the second box she opened After getting dressed she came down the creaking steps again and went out the front door The fog had lifted and she could see the yard a bit more easily Although her parents had wanted her to come while they were looking Sarah didn’t see the house until they moved in the day before She had hoped that if she didn’t go see the house maybe the move wouldn’t happen That didn’t work out Sarah hopped onto the gravel driveway and followed it to where it met the road At the mailbox she looked left and saw nothing but trees and the road twisted around a bend and out of sight She looked right and saw a newer house across the street Sarah wondered if a girl close to her age lived there Sarah turned around and got a good look at the outside of her own house It was big and it looked as though it had been around a long time It reminded her of the farmhouses she had seen in her mother’s books but this one didn’t look nearly as nice It was three stories tall and seemed to have 5

The One Great Gnome — page 6 — once been painted white but the paint was all cracked and flaky The few shutters she could see hung at strange angles Sarah looked up at the roof many of the shingles had fallen off Her mother had told her the house needed work but it had good bones Sarah wasn’t so sure She ran around back There was a long stone wall and she jumped on top of it Instantly the rock she was on started to slide and she barely got back to the ground without falling She made a mental note not to do that again The yard seemed enormous to Sarah When she lived in Manhattan and wanted to run around Sarah’s mother would take her and Lily to Central Park which is a huge park right in the middle of the city No need to do that here This backyard was already like a park She counted at least four giant trees that she thought she could climb And one even had a big branch to hang a swing from She would have to tell her dad about that one As Sarah continued to look around she saw a smaller house attached to the side of the main house Her dad had said it was called a bungalow and was used as a guest house or as a place for a caretaker to live It was in just as bad shape as the main house Then Sarah noticed something at the far side of the yard It looked like another house but it was tiny and almost all covered up with ivy It looked like the vines had tried to swallow it whole Sarah went closer The building was about eight feet wide and about ten feet long One side was a wall of windows which were mostly broken Sarah guessed it was 6

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