by Sara Daniell
I played with the bow on the box. "Do I open it now or wait?" I asked quietly.
“Now," Rick smiled.
Everyone started opening their presents. I opened the box and gasped as I saw the charm bracelet with a crown charm on it.
"Thank you," I whispered to him. It was beautiful and perfect.
Havock smiled up at me from the floor. "Welcome," he whispered back.
I put it on then opened the gift from Garrett. It was a gift card for hobby lobby. I smiled. "Thank you." I whispered to him.
"You going to take me to get art supplies now?"
"Whenever you want."
"Watch it now," Havock mumbled without looking up at us. I laughed and nudged Havock with my foot in his ribs. He grunted and kept opening his presents. I saw a pile of old records.
“What's up with the records?” I asked.
“Come up to my room later and I'll show you.” Havock grinned.
I opened the rest of my gifts and couldn't believe what I got from Rick and Johanna. I got books, clothes, and art supplies. I also got a straightener and make up. "Thank you guys so much," I said with a bright smile.
"There's one more thing!" Johanna said as she clapped her hands. "Rick, go get it please."
Rick went out the backdoor and Johanna followed. While they were gone Havock got up and stole a quick kiss.
"I'm in here," Garret groaned.
"Don't care," Havock said in a sing song voice to Garrett. He kissed me again then sat back down when he heard the backdoor open.
I laughed and shoved Havock's shoulder. "They got me enough," I said.
Their parents walked in with a little yellow lab puppy with a giant red bow wrapped around its neck. Johanna set it down and it ran over to me.
I gasped and picked it up. Tears filled my eyes. "Really?!" I squealed.
"As long as you potty train it," Rick teased.
Johanna laughed. "Yes, really, sweetie."
"I can do that," I said with a watery laugh. I wiped my tears then petted my new baby. "Thank you so much."
"You're welcome. Alright, boys. Help me clean up all this paper so we can have breakfast."
Garrett petted the puppy before standing to help.
I petted and played with the puppy once the boys cleaned up the paper. After a while he curled up in my lap and went to sleep. I looked at Havock as he came back into the living room.
I smiled brightly at him as he sat on the floor next to me. I nudged him with my shoulder. "So, when will your family be here?"
"In a few hours. Garrett is picking up some from the airport after lunch."
"I really love my gift. Thank you, Havock," I said in a way I wanted to earlier. With my eyes locked on his.
"I only had to give up buying ten packs of cigarettes to get it. Damn, you must be special or something."
I laughed. "Well, now that I know that remind me to thank you properly later," I whispered. I then said something to him in French. Quietly.
"What the hell?" He said with a grin.
"Are you trying to impress me, Princess?"
I shrugged. "Not really. Just having fun saying stuff you don't understand." I smiled brightly.
"How do you know I didn't understand it?"
I blushed bright red. "Because we'd be upstairs right now." I cleared my throat and turned even redder.
He laughed. "Now I gotta know what you said."
I shook my head. "Later."
"So, what are you gonna name him?" he asked as he petted the puppy.
"I don't know. Any ideas?"
"Bon Scott, lead vocalist in ACDC." He laughed when I scrunched my nose. "The rest of my suggestions you won't like either then."
I laughed. "It took me days to name Charlie. Dad finally told me I needed to name him because he wanted to know what to yell when he peed in the floor." I chuckled at the memory then suddenly pain filled me. I'm here happy and dad is still missing. What kind of daughter did that make me? My smile and laughter faded.
"Breakfast!" Johanna yelled from the kitchen.
My mind jerked back to the here and now. "So Scott. I like that," I said as I tried not to have a break down.
Havock noticed something was wrong but it was like he couldn't find the words to comfort me, so he didn't even try. He nodded then helped me stand.
I kissed his cheek. "Thank you," I whispered. Him not trying to say meaningless words helped me pull it together. I looked at Scott as he yawned and followed after me pulling on my pant leg.
HAVOCK
After lunch I got in a short nap before everyone got to the house. I didn’t sleep much last night, which I was completely okay with. Having my hands all over my princess was more than worth it, and I’d never sleep again if it meant being that close to her every night. I sat up and ran my hand through my hair. I went to the bathroom, brushed my teeth, and looked at myself in the mirror. I still had that drunken sleepy look, so I splashed cold water on my face. I wiped my face on the towel then walked out of the bathroom. I could hear laughter downstairs and knew some of my family had already arrived. I felt bad for Reese. I’m sure they were all surrounding her and making her feel awkward. I was hoping I would be up before they all swarmed her.
I went downstairs and to the kitchen which was the obvious hang out spot at the moment. The local family had brought tons of food over and this was the only thing I liked about these gatherings. Mom smiled at me then went back to talking to Uncle Rob. I looked around for Reese and laughed when I saw her backed in a corner holding Scott while she nodded and smiled at two of my aunts.
I walked over and smiled. “Hey, there’s my two favorite aunts.” I kissed both their cheeks and looked at Reese. “They bring the best food."
Aunt Jenn laughed and squeezed me tight with a big kiss on the cheek. “How’s my troublesome nephew? Causing trouble”
“You know it,” I laughed.
Aunt Jenn ruffled my hair. “Good boy. If your momma was dumb enough to name you Havock, you oughta’ make her pay for it!”
“Oh I am. Don’t you worry for one second, Aunt Jenn.”
Aunt Alyson laughed and gave me a sideways hug. “Boy you better stop growing or they’re gonna have to make a special house for you! Please tell me you plan on playing basketball like your father did?”
“No ma’am. I tend to stay as far away from sports as possible.”
“Ah, you must be one of them hipsters. I forgot. Too cool for school,” Aunt Alyson teased. We all laughed.
I looked at Reese. “See you two met Reese.”
“She’s lovely!” They both squealed at the same time. I nodded and took a good look at her. Was there a good reason she looked so good? Not that I’m complaining but I have male cousins that are on their way who will notice her low cut shirt and skin tight jeans. And why is her hair all straight and fixed? And make up? Then it hit me. Mom was all over this situation. She was so dead. The door opened, and I could hear squeals and laughter. I knew everyone else must have just walked in. I gave Reese one last look then turned around. I had the immediate urge to stand in front of her with my arms sprawled out to the sides to block her. Nothing to see here, she’s mine, carry on with your lives. Then mom just had to come over. She grabbed Reese’s arm and guided her to the center of everyone. Did anyone else think it was hot in here? Or was it just me? Oh that was just me and my anger making my blood boil when I saw the way Matt and Aiden looked at Reese. Mom introduced her to everyone and they all “oohed and ahhhed” like she was a pretty new car.
Matt walked over and patted my shoulder. “Hey, your sister is nice.” As in nice he meant hot, and I wanted to punch him in the face.
“She’s not my sister,” I mumbled. I needed a cigarette. But mom would bitch, and I didn't feel like hearing it after everyone left.
“Dinner time!” Mom announced and everyone congregated to the dining room.
We have a small table in the kitchen but the dining room has a large table we use for holidays. I sat d
own and watched while everyone else took a seat. I wasn’t particularly happy when Matt and Aiden sat on either side of Reese. I saw Garrett watching me from the corner of his eye. He knew me too well. It was only a matter of time before I claimed what was mine and I’d fight tooth and nail to let everyone know she belonged to me.
As dinner went on, everyone talked and got caught up on everything since the last time we saw them. I found a new love for ranch potatoes smothered in bacon and cheese. They were amazing and the only thing semi-distracting me from my two cousins making googley eyes at my girl. I was just about to enjoy another bite when Aiden turned his attention to me. He was pre-med at Harvard and thought of himself as a god of brilliance.
“So, Havock. You haven’t said a word.”
“The potatoes seem to have shut me up.” I honestly didn’t mean for my tone to be so asshole like that time, but it did. I wasn’t apologizing, though.
“They are good. I hear Garrett got accepted to Florida State on a football scholarship. Have you decided what you’re going to do? It’s about time to decide, don’t ya think?”
“I have decided.” I wished everyone would stop looking at me and enjoy their food.
“And what have you decided?” he asked with a condescending grin. He knew I was smart as hell and it intimidated him. It always had. No one could out do Aiden, he'd make sure of that.
“That I’m undecided.” I smirked and shoved my mouth full of potatoes before I could say anything else. He laughed and so did everyone else. Everyone else except my princess. By the look on her face, she knew he was pushing my buttons.
Aiden nodded. “Right. And that will get you where in life?”
“Anywhere I want.”
“You have to do something for money.”
“I’ve saved plenty of money to have time to decide. I want to travel for a while. Get to know this big world we live in before I decide what I want to be when I grow up.”
"What on earth could you have done to save up enough money?” He laughed.
Does anyone else at this table besides Reese see what he’s doing right now? She’s too nice to shut him up. And if I shut him up it won’t be good. Someone could make him stop any second now. I looked at his mom, Aunt Jenn. I turned my eyes back to him.
“Since I was old enough to use a lawn mower I mowed yards in the summer and when I was old enough to actually have a real job, I started work at Bill’s Auto Repair. I help him out in the summers. Mom won’t let me work during school or I would. I’ve saved every penny. Do the math. Or do you need a calculator?”
Everyone’s faces turned serious. My last comment was the kicker. Mom looked at me in shock. If there was ever a time I was on my best behavior it was at these stupid gatherings to make her happy.
“Havock! Apologize to your cousin!”
“Seriously?! Am I the only one who noticed what he was doing?! He was pushing my buttons on purpose!” He did that all the time. Just not in front of everyone.
“Havock, apologize! He was not! He was just asking you questions like normal people do!” Mom was fuming.
“Like normal people do?” I laughed coldly. Sorry mom, but shits about to get real in here. “He was taunting me because he knows that I could take his pre-med bullshit and dance circles around it! He wants to be the big success in the family and I’ve always intimidated him! He wants to see me fail!” And that was the truth. In everything he has always tried to be better than me. Trip me up if he saw I was doing something better than he was. It was so damn annoying. Everyone’s eyes were huge. Maybe I went overboard, but just before he decided to play 100 questions, I saw him flirting with Reese and it sent me over the edge. Everyone started awkwardly playing with their food, but dad and mom kept their eyes on me. I knew I wasn’t welcomed at my own dinner table, so I stood and walked outside. I couldn’t stand to be in there any longer.
It wasn't long and I felt a tug on my pant leg. I looked down and saw Scott. "Hey," Reese said from the other side of me. She looked at the snow falling down and smiled. "I've never seen so much snow here. It's really coming down." She laughed a little as Scott started trying to catch snow. He'd barked at it, wagged his tail, and then bit at it.
I pulled a cigarette from my pocket and lit it. "Go inside, Reese."
Her smile faded. She walked off after Scott. She scooped him up and went back inside. I heard the door close but then it opened again. Garrett came and sat next to me on the tailgate of my truck.
"Plan on staying out here all night?"
I flicked the ashes off my cigarette. "Do you plan on being annoying the rest of the night?"
"Could you be serious long enough to have real conversation?"
"I can try, but I'm not promising anything."
"I knew what he was doing but you can't let shit get to you like that. He wanted to piss you off. You should've just let it roll off your shoulders and not let him get to you like that."
"I should do a lot of things..."
I finished my cigarette and stood. "Are we done here?"
"Whatever," Garrett said then followed me inside.
I would've sat down by Reese but my two cousins were firmly planted beside her.
I rolled my eyes and got a chair from the dining room and pulled it into the living room.
"Time for our family game of charades!" Mom said excitedly.
I should've stayed outside. Aiden tried to pet Scott but Scott snipped at his fingers and snuggled closer to Reese. Reese smirked then petted his head.
"Alright, time to break up into teams." Mom gave everyone a few minutes to split up.
"What's charades?" Reese asked Matt.
I looked at Reese. "It's dumb. You don't have to play if you don't want to."
Mom cut her eyes at me then looked at Reese. "Don't listen to him. It's so much fun!"
Mom then filled her in on how to play.
I was going to refuse to play, but I've caused enough trouble tonight. Mom put Reese in a group with Matt and Aiden. She held Scott and looked uncomfortable. I watched as Matt and Aiden's eyes flicked to her chest.
Garrett pulled up a chair next to me and nudged me with his elbow. "They leave tomorrow," he whispered.
"Plenty of time to kill them in their sleep." I didn't whisper.
Mom looked at Garrett and I. "You boys get to go first."
Reese chewed on her lip to keep from laughing. She looked pale. Really pale.
Mom brought the bowl over with the different things written on folded up paper. Garrett pulled a paper out and looked at it then showed it to me. I was worried about Reese. She probably hadn't checked her sugar with everything going on, but I knew if she needed to she would. Maybe she was just nervous. Reese excused herself from the room for a moment. She whispered to mom then went up stairs with Scott. I wanted to follow but that would be suspicious. If something was wrong mom would've followed her.
Garrett and I discussed how we'd act out being a janitor. I talked Garrett into being the toilet bowl. I, all of a sudden, loved this game when he knelt on the floor and made his arms in a circle out in front of him. He looked like an idiot, especially when he stuck out his tongue as the flush handle. I took off my shoe to be the toilet scrubber and pretended to scrub around his arms.