To my disappointment I didn't see Joe for the next two days, but she had to spend time with her family and I with mine. We tried to talk on the phone every night, so we wouldn't totally break contact. She told me, she was really annoyed by her aunt and uncle. They and her grandmother were asking a lot of questions about me. At our house the things went pretty slow. Lilly was often over with Shelly. It turned out that a had a magic touch with her. Maybe it was because I was the only male influence she had and a male voice was different to her, sometimes a change is good.
Opening my eyes I could make out that it was already morning. I was looking forward to today. Today was the reunion and we would have a BBQ at dad's at noon. Not having seen my aunt and cousins for about three years I was thinking about how they would have changed. But all of that was only secondary matter. Joe had agreed to tag along and I would have an excuse to see her again.
I closed my eyes and rolled over to get another five minutes of rest. I dozed off until I felt someone drop into bed next to me. Turning my head a saw my niece.
“What are you doing here Tiffany Bear?” I asked her still sleepy.
“Alice kicked me out of bed. I need five more minutes. Please.” my little niece begged. I rolled over and put her arm around her. I pulled her closer to me and gave her a kiss on the forehead. We felt each others heartbeat. The silence only lasted for about five minutes, when I heard Shelly screaming downstairs. Getting up to my feet I started to put my clothes on. Tiff just stayed in bed and didn't move.
“Hey Tiff.” I said shaking her. “You have to get up, we have to be at dad's at eleven.”
She rolled at her back and opened her eyes.
“Do you remember your aunt and cousins?” I asked my niece.
“Not really. Just uncle Steve and his family. Not aunt Millie and the triplets.” Tiff answered. “Why are you looking forward to this so much?”
I just smiled and as I opened my mouth Tiff answered her own question. “It's because Joe is coming, right?”
“Yes.” I replied.
“I hope it works out between the two of you.” Tiff said as she got up and went towards the door. “You look so happy when you're with her.”
The next moment she was gone. She was right. I just put on a track suit, I would change into something nicer before we left. I couldn't wait to see Joe, but before I had to talk to Alice. What we had done was not really wrong, but if I wanted Joe it had to stop. The last two days nothing had happened, but I had seen Alice look at me. When I went down the hall I heard the hairdryer and looked into the bathroom. Alice had just gotten out of the shower after one of her morning runs. After stepping inside I closed the door. Alice switched off the hairdryer and smiled at me.
“I need to talk to you.” I said to my little sister.
“About what?” Alice asked when she laid away the hairdryer.
“About what happened between us.” I said nervously.
“I understand.” Alice replied. “You regret what happened and.....”
“I don't regret it.” I said cutting my sister off. “It was a wonderful experience and I love you. But you need a brother and not a lover.”
She looked to the ground and exhaled. “I know.” she agreed with me. I was relieved she saw it the same way. I stepped over to her and took her into my arms. She looked up at me and I kissed her forehead.
“Joe is a lucky girl.” she said with tears in her eyes. “I wish I had someone like you in my life.”
“You will.” I told her and pulled her even closer. With everything that happened to her I wanted to be there for her. In the moment she needed every support she could get. No matter what her decision may be. She pulled away from me and wiped away her tears. She tried to smile, but failed.
“And don't worry, I won't tell anybody.” she assured me.
“I never worried about that.” I told her. After a short pause I added “Have you decided anything about the baby?”
“Not really, I talked with Joe about it, but.....” she started, but I cut her off.
“Joe knows?” I asked a little shocked.
“Yeah, I told her at the mall.” Alice said. “Sorry slipped my mind.”
“No worries.” I answered. To my own surprise I really wanted to know what Joe had told her. “And what did she say?”
“She congratulated me.” My little sister said. “And told me she would keep the baby.”
“Really?” I asked. That was not the answer I had expected. “That's new.”
“Don't be so surprised.” Alice replied with a smile. “She would have it, because she knows you would be there for her. When I asked her if she had thought about kids, she said if she ever had one, it would be yours.”
After Alice had dropped this bomb in my lap I couldn't wrap my mind around the words. No words would come out of my mind. I gulped. Alice was amused, she waved a hand in front of my eyes and I blinked.
“For a second there I thought you had a heart attack.” she said. Slowly I regained control. She patted my back and opened the door. “Don't let her get away.”
After she was gone I went to the kitchen and had breakfast. Everybody was a little strange because of the reunion and nobody wanted to upset mom. After we finished I got upstairs and searched for some more elegant clothes. After five Minutes I had found black jeans and a dark blue button-down shirt. To complete the outfit I put on my good black shoes, the only pair of good shoes I had. I got my keys from the table and went by Alice's room. After knocking I opened the door. Tiff was already ready, while Alice was running around in just her underwear.
“I gonna go pick up Joe.” I told them. “Are you taking Kim's car?”
“Yes.” Tiff answered and turned her head towards me. “See you there.”
I closed the door and got into the car. In about five minutes I pulled onto Joe's driveway. |