Helping Sarah

“Sarah! Get up. We’re gonna be late” I yelled into the other room.

Every morning, just as late. I opened my younger sister’s door to find her still in bed, hand draped over one edge, covers askew. I pull the rest of the covers off and begin to shake her awake. As any guy my age would, I don’t skip the chance to admire her sleeping form. Her normal PJs are an oversized t-shirt and cute cotton underwear. Today is no different. She is above average for sure, related or not.

She groaned in protest, covering her face with a pillow from the early morning light. Not a morning person.

“Come on, we’re gonna be late if you don’t hurry up”.

With what appeared to be herculean effort, she pulled herself up and stretched. She stumbled to the bathroom and turned on the shower. We were definitely late for school again.

My name is Adam. Since dad left and mom works crazy long hours, I take care of the house. This means getting my sisters ready and to school, dinner, and everything else here. Sarah’s inability to get up in time is a constant source of stress. Enough so that I had been working on a solution.

“We’re gonna be late, huh?” My sister Clara asked.

Clara was the opposite of Sarah in so many ways. Usually up and ready before I was, she was a tremendous help around the house. She did well in school, but was a bit of a loner. She was pretty enough, but more in an awkward way.

“Yep. I think we should just leave her” I responded exasperatedly.

“And you never do” She smiled at me.

This was part of our daily banter. She couldn’t do anything to fix Sarah’s sleeping issue, but she was always great and keeping me smiling. Not about this anything in particular, but her optimism was one of her best qualities.

After Sarah finally got ready we all head to school. After dropping off Clara at her school as the bell rings, we head to our high school, knowing we’ll be late.

“You know you could just stop acting like my dad and let me skip school” Sarah mutters.

This is the first coherent thing she’s said to me all morning. As I mentioned, not a morning person.

“And you could just get up on time like Clara”.

She started to prep for another fight, but I cut her off.

“Listen, I’m sorry. I know you have problems sleeping. But I have an idea. I’ve been doing some reading, and I have a plan. I’ll show you after school”.

With that, she rolled her eyes and stormed off to the office to sign in late. I followed right behind.

Another difference between Clara and Sarah was their fashion sense. While Clara didn’t spend much time on her appearance, Sarah dressed to impress. She wore a tight jean skirt and a plaid button up over an equally tight top. No teenage guy would mind the opportunity to walk behind her as she climbed the steps to the office.