Lemons

Mrs. Dickerson calls Tobin and Lemonade to report a nest in the woods, complete with a roof, which she has seen from a distance. They stop at Mr. Harold’s house first, arguing along the way about whether Bigfoot might like Twinkies or not. Three of the neighborhood kids join the investigation, meeting Tobin and Lemonade at Mr. Harold’s house to research a sighting in the woods.

At Mr. Harold’s, the kids go into the woods and split up to investigate. Lemonade and her new friend Eliza go one way, and the boys go another. When they meet up again, the boys profess that something is following them, and Eliza starts to cry. They decide to head back, and when they find Mr. Harold again, he claims that he saw something that may have been a person running off with one of his chickens.

At Mrs. Dickerson’s, Tobin and Lemonade learn that someone stole a large pumpkin. She also sees a shelter off in the trees. Lemonade compliments Mrs. Dickerson’s gardening skills, and Mrs. Dickerson tells her how much she’s like her mother. For the first time, Lemonade thinks of her mother and smiles.

Tobin and Lemonade investigate the pumpkin patch, and it appears that the pumpkin was cut with a knife. As night falls, they go to the shelter, where they find newspapers, clothes, and a photograph of Tobin inside. Tobin and Lemonade are speechless.

Tobin reasons that it must be his own photo that he dropped and someone took. He and Lemonade turn to leave, but they hear footsteps approach and shine their flashlights in the direction of the sound. A ragged, thin, smelly man appears, and Tobin doesn’t recognize him at first. The man begs Tobin and Lemonade to leave, and when he calls Tobin by his name and claims that the photo belongs to him, Tobin realizes that the man is his dad, Scotty. Lemonade and Tobin hear Mrs. Dickerson calling from the house, and Tobin’s mind races as he tries to piece together what he’s seeing. Tobin’s dad says he’s been watching Tobin and his mom, and as Mrs. Dickerson gets closer, Tobin’s dad panics and cowers in the corner, asking them again not to tell anyone he’s there. Tobin calls out to Mrs. Dickerson to call Charlie and Debbie, knowing that his dad needs help.

Charlie and Debbie arrive, confused and worried. When Debbie eventually recognizes her husband, she falls to the ground, wraps her arms around her husband, and cries. Everyone cries as they witness the long-awaited reunion. Lemonade is both happy and sad, as she is happy for Tobin’s family but sad that she will never have the same reunion with her own mother. She and Charlie hold hands, squeezing tightly and comforting one another.

After taking Tobin’s dad to the hospital, everyone heads home. Before bed, Lemonade wants to know what happened to Tobin’s dad. Charlie explains that Tobin’s dad has a mental health condition called combat stress reaction after being in the Vietnam War; Tobin’s dad felt confused and afraid to bring those feelings home to his family. When he arrived at the airport, the sounds triggered memories, and he fled to the woods, where he watched his family and hoped he would be able to reunite with them. Lemonade tries her best to understand what she is hearing and asks Charlie if it’s okay to feel envious of Tobin’s family. Charlie tells her that it’s normal, and they are thankful to have each other.

Lemonade dreams about being at the ice cream shop with her mother again. She says she wishes they could have had more time together. Lemonade tells her mother about Tobin’s reunion with his dad. Lemonade’s mom reminds her that with every loss, she can create something beautiful. Lemonade wakes up to Tobin banging on the window, instructing her to take care of the agency for the day while he is at the hospital. Lemonade is excited to have control of the agency, and she feels happy for Tobin.

Lemonade checks the answering machine, gets a call from Charlie, and sleuths through Tobin’s notepad. She finds notes about her arrival in Willow Creek and about Tobin’s longing to be with his dad again. Momentarily, Mr. Harold calls and announces that he saw a Bigfoot again.

Lemonade arrives at Mr. Harold’s house alone. The first thing she does is remind him that the Bigfoot sightings turned out to be Tobin’s dad, but Mr. Harold insists that he saw the real thing. The two creatures he saw smelled of skunk and threw rocks at him. The big one also growled at him. Lemonade is grateful that she remembered the camera.

Lemonade goes out into the woods, agreeing to yell back at Mr. Harold every five minutes to let him know she’s safe. Lemonade hears the howling and catches a skunk-like odor. Suddenly, Lemonade comes face-to-face with a young Bigfoot.

Lemonade is sure she is dreaming. The Bigfoot has big, crooked toenails, smells of skunk, and has reddish-brown fur. The Bigfoot stares at Lemonade, and she stares back; they are both afraid. The Bigfoot sniffs at her, and Lemonade puts her hand out to touch it, but it backs away. She tries to talk softly to it and tells it she’s here to help and make friends. Lemonade then remembers her Twinkie and puts it out for the Bigfoot to eat. The Bigfoot grabs it cautiously and eats it in one gulp. Mr. Harold comes trudging through the trees, scaring off the Bigfoot, and Charlie is there. Lemonade announces that she just met her first Bigfoot.

Tobin’s biggest concern upon hearing about the sighting is that Lemonade forgot to take a picture, but she explains that she was in shock. Charlie and Debbie are eager to hear the story, and everyone congratulates Lemonade on her discovery. When she announces her plans to stay in Willow Creek, Tobin decides to promote her to vice president. Lemonade makes a vow of secrecy and loyalty, and Tobin gives Lemonade her very own safari hat, complete with “Bigfoot Detectives Inc.” written on the brim. He puts it on her, and they stand together, grinning ear to ear and planning to meet first thing the next morning to continue their investigations. The story ends as a Bigfoot howls from the forest.