Subtle Reminders

by D. J. Pierson

  “She said something about ordering a bunch of pizzas.”

  “Sounds good.”

  “Lex is going to a sleepover this weekend with a friend from her dance class,” I heard BC say. “The mom of the girl asked if I would mind coming over to help the girls do their hair and makeup. Apparently, my sister told this girl how I did her hair in that braid you taught me and they want me to teach them how to do it.”

  “That’s kind of cute, actually,” Mindy said, giggling.

  “Glad you think so. I told her it was you who showed me how to do it, so I’d have to bring you along. She said she’d love to have you, as well.” Since the weather was cooler, BC had ditched the skirts for jeans. She also had on boots that made her taller and, even though I didn’t think it was possible, hotter.

  “Are you listening to me?” Vince bumped my arm.

  “Sorry. What did you say?”

  “Give it up, man. She’s not into you.” We watched BC and Mindy sit on opposite sides of the lunch table from each other. Since that first day, I hadn’t had the courage to sit next to them.

  “We’ll see.”

  Later that night, I stared at my ceiling for hours, wondering how to get her attention. She seemed more untouchable every day. I heard some dude from one of the other homerooms in our wing had a crush on her and planned on asking her to the movies that weekend. It felt good to know she was going to a lame sleepover. If I didn’t do something before he did, they’d end up married with five kids before high school graduation. I wasn’t about to let that happen.

  At the game the next day, I went 4-4 including the game-winning double to left-center. Their outfielders had shitty arms, so I made it a little more entertaining by sliding into second, even though I knew I was safe by a mile. That was the only dirt on my uniform. I never went home clean from a baseball game. It wasn’t in my nature. Mom needed something to do.

  After I showered and packed a bag, because Vince had talked me into spending the night, Jack dropped me off at Vince’s house. Honestly, I was exhausted from not sleeping the previous night, but figured I wouldn’t be able to doze off if BC started dancing through my damn head again anyway. The second I entered the house, I regretted it. Giggling and loud chatter could be heard coming from the basement. There were a lot more girls down there than just his little sister, who was enough to deal with.

  “Oh… Hi, Joe,” Mrs. Lyons said, noticing me staring down the steps to the lower floor. “Congrats on your big hit today. I heard it was a beauty. Sorry I missed it.”

  “Thanks. What’s going on down there?”

  “Veronica is having some friends sleep over for her birthday. Thanks for coming to keep Vince company.” I’m gonna kill that son of a bitch. “Would you mind running upstairs to tell him the pizza’s here? I think he’s in his room.”

  “No problem.”

  “Thanks.”

  I walked in and dropped my bag on Vince’s feet. “Pizza’s here, asshole.”

  “What the fuck?”

  “I’m going to kick your ass.”

  He smirked. “What’s the matter, Sully? Did the girls scare you?”

  “No, jerk off. Why didn’t you tell me? We could be hanging out at my house where it’s nice and quiet!”

  “You’ll change your attitude and, when you do, you’ll even thank me.” He saved the video game he was playing, then switched it off and led me back to the kitchen.

  “I doubt it,” I grumbled behind him. Screaming girls were so damn annoying. Good thing my parents stopped having kids after me because if they had a girl, I would’ve had to move in with my grandparents in Florida. I probably wouldn’t have minded so much. They get to play ball year-round down there.

  The dining room was full of a bunch of sixth grade squealers, so I wasn’t surprised when Vince headed in the direction of the kitchen. My chin almost hit the floor when I saw who was already seated at the table with Mrs. Lyons. BC and Mindy were halfway through a slice of pizza. Once those chocolate eyes met mine, I couldn’t look away, despite not wanting her to see me staring.

  “Any pizza left?” Vince questioned, unaffected by who was in the same room.

  “Help yourself,” his mom replied, pointing to the boxes on the counter. “Plain is on the right. The left side has a different topping on each one.” Vince said hello to the girls and Mrs. Lyons looked up, confused. “You know each other?”

  “They’re in our classes, Mom.”

  “I didn’t realize that. Small world, huh?” She stood up and went across the room to put her plate in the sink. “I’m going to go out to the garage to talk to your father. Could you just listen in case the girls need anything?” Vince sighed, but didn’t acknowledge her one way or the other.

  “Something wrong, Sullivan?” Mindy wondered.

  “Uh… No.”

  Vince handed me a plate with a couple slices of pepperoni pizza and I followed him to the table. “How are the makeovers, or whatever the hell it is you’re doing down there, going?”

  “Not bad. I’m getting pretty damn good at putting makeup on a moving face,” Mindy explained. “Those girls don’t stop talking for a second.”

  “Tell me about it.” Vince shook his head.

  “Did you guys win today?” Hearing BC speak, I glanced over. She had actually directed the question toward me. That was the first time she had spoken to me without me initiating the conversation.

  I cleared my throat. “Yeah, we did. It was a pretty close game until the end.”

  “Sully hit a three-run double to put us over the top. It was a beauty. Split the outfielders. You girls should come watch us play sometime,” Vince said. He needed to shut the hell up. If BC did come to a game, I wouldn’t be able to concentrate.

  “What position do you play?” Another question just for me.

  “Third. I used to play center, but I got bored out there.”

  “Brie plays shortstop for our team. She also happens to be the lead-off hitter, like someone else I know.” I had been batting in that spot since my second season. Mindy was the best first baseman on the girls’ softball team. I’d seen her play several times.

  “I didn’t know you played,” I said, intrigued. A girl who could play ball and still be as pretty as she was? That was definitely my kind of girl.

  She shrugged. “I used to play for another township with my cousin, but Mindy’s team needed another infielder. My parents were tired of driving to practices twenty-five minutes away, so I switched.”

  “And you’re halfway decent. Lucky for them,” Vince joked.

  Talking about sports finally broke the ice between us. We discussed movies we had seen and movies that were coming out, who our favorite actors were, and I asked her about music. Next to baseball, music was my favorite topic. I didn’t really care for playing an instrument, but I’d listen to it for hours. I preferred older stuff over what was new at the time. BC was a fan of some of my favorite bands. Could she be any more perfect?

  Minutes turned into hours as we sat at the kitchen table. Mrs. Lyons cleaned up around us, then got Roni and her friends settled for the night. I didn’t realize they had planned on going roller skating early the next day, which meant BC and Mindy were staying to help them get ready in the morning.

  Eventually, those two went to get changed for bed. Vince asked if I’d rather watch TV or go upstairs to play video games. I didn’t care one way or the other…until he suggested we see if BC wanted to watch a movie with us. Fifteen minutes later, Mindy and BC met us in the family room. They were both wearing flannel pajama pants and a t-shirt. Vince had conveniently spread out on the smaller of the two couches, taking up the whole thing. Mindy plopped into the recliner, which left BC the only option of sitting on the couch with me. I thought she was going to sit on the opposite end, but ended up sitting on the middle cushion only inches from me. When she shivered, I crossed the room and grabbed two blankets from the closet. On my way by, I threw one over Mindy, who blew me a kiss, then tucked the
other around BC.

  “Thanks, Joey,” she whispered, melting my heart. She probably could’ve said she hated my guts and it would’ve done the same damn thing.

  “No problem.”

  Before the first scene ended, I glanced over to ask if she needed anything else, but her eyes were already closed.

  That was the first night BC fell asleep next to me.

  “Joe.” The annoying crackle of Shannon’s voice broke through my daydream.

  “Yeah?” I tried to make it sound polite, but it probably didn’t come out that way.

  “I’m going to catch a ride home with Kevin. You don’t mind, do you?” Shannon wasn’t even looking at me as she spoke. “I know you feel obligated to hang out here all night, but I’m bored. Some friends from work invited me out.”

  Was she really going to make it that easy on me? “No, I don’t mind. Have fun.” The tension in my back and shoulders seemed to fade.

  “Thanks,” she said with more enthusiasm than she’d shown all day. The feel of her lips on my cheek disgusted me. “I’ll see you later.”

  Once she followed her brother around the corner of the house, I waited a few extra minutes before I got up. It was liberating, knowing she was gone.

  “Sully, come on. We need another player on our team,” Lex called.

  “I’m going to go eat something. Jack will play.”

  “What am I playing?” my brother asked, hearing his name.

  “Volleyball. Lex needs another player.”

  “Yeah, I’ll play.” He joined them without a second thought, giving me the opportunity to see what BC was up to.

  Maddie was so cute sprawled out on the deck, relaxing in the warm sun. I scratched her head, but the tired little thing didn’t even flinch. She definitely got in a decent workout. “My baby girl.” I grinned.

  The smile quickly vanished when I noticed BC sitting at the table, pain filling her beautiful face. I stood there staring, not knowing what to do. It wasn’t my place to go and wrap my arms around her the way I wanted to. Once she tried to stop crying but couldn’t, whether or not it was my place didn’t matter. I rounded the table and lightly put one arm over her shoulders. I would’ve done anything she wanted me to do if it’d make whatever was wrong better, so I didn’t think twice when she asked me to take the baby. What came as a shock was the pain I felt as she walked away from me still crying, and I was powerless to stop it.

  As the rest of the day wore on, I stayed close by my mom. It was best to avoid Joey and anyone under the age of twenty. He didn’t bother hiding his intentions when he popped into the house to check on me. Twice, he came into the dining room and sat down, joining my family’s conversation. The second time he did it, Mom noticed how I wouldn’t look in his direction, even though he asked me a question. I shuddered at the thoughts probably running through her head.

  When the sun went down, the guests began to filter out. While Lex and Vince said goodbye to everybody, my parents and I cleaned up the kitchen. Most of my family insisted I visit them before heading back up north, despite the reminder we’d see each other at the wedding the following week. Apparently, they weren’t aware of the plans my sister had for me during the length of my stay.

  “Everything turned out nice,” Mom spoke, packing the last of the food in the refrigerator.

  “Very,” Dad agreed, handing over the bowl he had washed for me to dry. “It’s safe to say that you were the highlight of the day.”

  “I’m pretty sure that title belongs to the happy bride-to-be, who was in her element hosting a party.”

  “Not even close, Brie. Lex is just really excited you’re here. We all are.” He smiled, then went back to scrubbing the pan. I knew he didn’t mean to make me feel bad with his comment, but it tore another hole in my already tattered heart.

  “What part of ‘Leave it. I’ll take care of the mess later’ did you people not understand?” Lex sure knew how to walk into a room.

  “We understood it just fine, Alexa. We chose to ignore you,” Mom clarified. “Kind of the same way you ignored us as a teenager.”

  My sister turned her gaze to me and I shrugged. “Don’t look at me. They said I had to help.”

  “You always have to be the good one,” she joked, coming over to take the towel from me.

  “She’s more laid-back than you. That’s all,” Dad intervened. I grabbed another towel from the drawer, twirled it around itself, then slapped my sister’s leg with it.

  She jumped. “Ouch! You bitch!”

  “Alexa!” Mom reprimanded, but Lex ignored her.

  She copied my action with the towel and abandoned our dad at the sink, holding a dripping dish. I ran behind Mom¸ seeking protection. Lex chased me, but I moved the opposite way.

  “If I get whipped, you are both grounded,” Mom warned. Lex and I exchanged a glance, then lightly tapped her with our dishtowels and ran. “Rich!” she screamed as if my dad would do something about it. We pushed at each other all the way to the couch, which shook when we fell onto it in a fit of laughter. We lost the towels in our shoving match somewhere in the hallway.

  “Hey, babe? Where’s the…” Vince was in the family room searching for something in a drawer of the end table. At first, he was oblivious to our state of hysterics, but quickly figured it out. “What did you do?”

  “What makes you think we did something?” Lex asked, wiping tears off her face.

  He looked up. “Well, your mother is coming this way with a wooden spoon and a red face.”

  “Shit!” we yelled at the same time and took off out the front door. We made it as far as the middle of the lawn before Lex pulled me down onto the grass.

  “She won’t come out here. We’re probably safe,” she whispered, out of breath. Both of us lay on our backs in the grass, looking at the sky.

  “That doesn’t sound very reassuring,” I said. The door swung open, causing us both to jump.

  Vince stood on the porch, shaking his head. “If this is how you act when you’re together, maybe it’s better you live far apart.”

  “What’s wrong with how we act?” Lex dared him to answer.

  “Do you know where the cards are?” They weren’t even married yet, but he already knew when to change the subject. They were definitely going to be together for a very long time.

  “I know where the ones we use to play strip poker are,” she replied. I covered my ears and hummed so the rest of what they said would be blocked out.

  Eventually, we went back inside. Mom and Dad had packed up to go home for the night, which made me a little sad. Lex thanked them repeatedly for all their help, hugs and kisses were exchanged, and Mom gave Lex strict instructions on when to have me back to her the next day. They negotiated over what time, while Dad and I patiently waited. We had no desire to pick sides when those two were at war.

  Once our parents left, Lex showed me the rest of the house. The basement was unfinished, but Vince wanted that to be the first project they tackled after the honeymoon. Of course, Joey and Jack were going to help him. Lex said it was fine with her because when the weather turned cooler, she could send them down there and close the door.

  “This is the guest room,” she announced, switching on the light inside the doorway at the top of the stairs. The walls were painted light blue, and the queen-sized bed had a navy-colored comforter on it. My bag sat on top of it. Looking around, I noticed the furniture seemed familiar. I asked why and she told me it was Vince’s from his parents’ house. When he moved out, they moved into a smaller place. I started to wonder if my mom and dad would do that, then forgot all about it when I realized Lex expected me to sleep there.

  “No way am I touching this bed. I don’t even want to think about what he has done in that thing.”

  “Do you honestly believe I’d let that mattress into my house? God only knows who’s been in it! We ordered a new one when we bought our bedroom set.”

  “Good thinking, sis.”

  “Damn straight.” />
  We continued with the tour. She showed me the bathroom and two other bedrooms. One bedroom was empty, and the other contained a desk with a computer, a chair, a bookcase, and a floor lamp. The master bedroom and bathroom were beautiful and, obviously, Vince had no say as to what went in there. The four-poster bed was draped in light colors, a perfect contrast to the dark wood of the furniture. A sitting area, exactly what Lex had always wanted, completed the room. Her dreams were coming true and I couldn’t have been happier.

  “Since the kitchen is clean, do you feel like sitting in the hot tub? I have a whole bottle of tequila we can share.”

  “Sounds tempting, but I didn’t bring my bathing suit.” I had sobered up since the afternoon, and it was probably best to stay that way.

  “Oh, but you did bring it.” My sister smirked. “Well, technically, I brought it. I’m the one who snooped through your stuff and packed you a bag.”

  “Do you even feel guilty?”

  “Not one bit,” she said. “Go get it on. I’ll meet you downstairs.” The brat shoved me toward the door. “Stop sulking. It’ll be fun.”

  Just to annoy her, I took my time changing. She had picked the strapless two-piece I purposely bought because Lex sent a text one day last week about going to the shore. After work one night, Laney and I went shopping. It was perfect because it wouldn’t leave any tan lines which could be seen in my bridesmaid’s dress. After throwing my clothes back in the bag, I went to find her. She was in the kitchen, pouring shots of tequila. The salt sat on the counter, and a lime was sliced on a plate.

  “You’re going to be in so much trouble when you don’t make it to Mom and Dad’s tomorrow afternoon,” I said.

  “Don’t you mean we’ll be in trouble when we don’t make it?” Lex snickered, holding a shot glass toward me.

  “I know better.” I shook my head.

  “Nice try, Brie. Get your ass over here. You finally came home. We have to celebrate. It’s a rule.”

  “Says who?”

  “Says the little sister who has missed her big sister so damn bad,” she pouted. I hated when she did that shit.