by Nia Arthurs
In our day and age, women like Elizabeth were far and in between. Women like my mom, Melody, Mia, Susan and Persia were the women I admired, the women I wanted to emulate.
I was so caught up in my internal crisis that I didn’t step back when Susan sped toward me on a tower so far off the ground, I could see the tree tops.
“Lexi!” I heard Drew’s deep rumble filled with panic and woke up to Susan’s impending arrival.
Crapstickles.
Before my brain could urge my legs to step back, Drew wrenched my arm and pulled me into a full frontal hug, protecting me from what could have been a very painful collision. I breathed in his Drew-scent which was mixed with sweat. His heart raced against my face and I felt each thud like a little hammer of cupid bows.
Darn it. Just when I’d decided to get over him.
He held me for a moment longer than necessary. Quickly I regained my faculties. I thought of Catherine and pushed him away.
“Thanks.” I said softly, avoiding his eyes.
“Baby,” Melody drew near to me, “What were you thinking. You could have been seriously injured.”
“I know. I’m fine.” I shrugged off her babying tone.
“I’m sorry, Lex.” Susan stepped up to me, her orange helmet gleaming in the sunlight, “I had no idea you were going to stand there.”
I glanced around at all the concerned faces of my family and summoned up a smile.
“Relax. I was distracted by the view.” I lied.
But it wasn’t a stretch of the imagination to believe. As one our group appraised the fluffy tops of the trees, like an army of upright broccoli stalks. The sun baked our heads and gave everything below a brilliant yellow hue. Through a break in the forest, we could see the Belize River lazily snaking its way to join the Caribbean Sea.
It was a truly beautiful sight.
“Okay.” Melody accepted slowly.
Little by little, the group reclaimed it’s lighthearted banter, but Josh remained by my side for the rest of the lines. Whenever he felt that I was too close to the edge or to the place where another rider would land, he’d squeeze my palm and pull me away.
Maybe I should just forget about Drew and wait for this little boy to grow up indeed.
As slightly stalker-ish and pedophilic as that thought was, it made me smile and my attitude brightened from that moment on.
After our zip lining adventure in which Susan had lost a flip flop and Peyton shared a passionate kiss with an unsuspecting bird, we slowly made our way to the second story of the main hall to enjoy the buffet lined up for all the cave tubers and zip liners. Since most tourists made the mistake of eating before zip lining and also since it was nearly two o’clock in the afternoon, we had the breezy cafeteria to ourselves.
The roof was made of thatched leaves and coconut fronds. The floor was roughly hewn slabs of wood secured with nails. The rustic appeal of the restaurant gave me a warm feeling. Archie and Tyrone joined two long tables together and we positioned ourselves according to our relationship status. Josh and Eryn as the two youngest sat at the head of the table. I sat beside my little companion of course. Unfortunately, Drew sat beside me, followed by Catherine who sat beside Susan and the married couples followed one after the other.
While we feasted on delicious rice and beans, baked chicken that melted in your mouth, potato salad that was meh, and fat, juicy fried plantains, Josh and I discussed the merits of zip lining without a harness. I felt that it would be better to fall to a painful end than to spend so much time having your innards plucked by the strap of the harness. Josh disagreed.
Our argument was lively and intense until I was interrupted by Drew.
“Hey,” he touched my elbow and immediately, my pulse skittered out of its regular tempo. “They all want to know who animated “Mali and Dorian”. “
“Oh,” I shrugged lightly as though it were no big deal, “I did.”
“Are you serious?” Melody leaned forward from her seat at the other end of the table to gape at me. “You did that? By yourself.”
I shrugged again, “Yeah.”
“It was funny.” Susan applauded with her sticky hands.
“Dorian was inspired by me, wasn’t he.” Peyton popped his collar.
The very brown skinned Dorian had absolutely no physical similarities to the very pale (and pink) Peyton. I laughed anyway.
“Did you all watch it?” I addressed the group.
Heads bounced in agreement.
Spencer raised his hand hesitantly, “Actually, I didn’t want to watch it. Melody forced me.”
My sister punched her husband in the arm.
“Ouch.” He protested, and then quickly added after a glare from her, “But I enjoyed it.”
I smirked. “Thanks, Spence.”
“You’re welcome.” He slowly continued to eat his food, watching for his wife’s approval.
Those two always cracked me up.
“She’s very talented.” Drew glanced at me and then boasted to the rest of the table, “I have teams to perform what she can do in less than a week.”
“Psh,” I waved away his compliments, “It was nothing.”
Catherine caught my eyes and smiled at me, “I’m really glad that your show went well.”
“Thank you, Catherine.”
I caught a glimmer of uncertainty in her eyes and felt bad for my earlier thoughts about Drew. Catherine didn’t deserve to be judged because I was pining after her date. I tried to rectify my thoughts and get to know her as a person instead of as my competition.
“So Catherine, what do you do?”
“I’m a teacher at Bernadette York.” Catherine replied, gingerly picking at her plantain.
A teacher? Wow. I’d have never pegged her for a teacher.
“Cool.” Mia nodded her approval, “I give you props, girl. I love hanging out with kids, but only in spurts.”
“Hey!” Joshua protested.
“Oh, you’re not a kid anymore, honey.” Mia consoled him.
Josh puffed out his chest at her words.
“What level do you teach?” Peyton asked.
Though they’d been living in Belize for a few years now, Peyton and Spencer still kept their American lingo.
“I’m not sure what level we are in the States, but I teach Standard three.”
Drew calculated in his head, “I think it may be fifth or fourth grade. I’m not sure.”
“Ooh,” Persia winced and hooked a thumb at her son. “That’s the nine year olds.”
“Mom, really?” Josh waved his arms.
I laughed at his easy offence.
“Actually, I love kids. They’re fun and creative and they teach me probably more than I teach them.”
“Are you sure you’re a good teacher then?” Peyton spoke up.
Mia shifted her foot.
“Ouch.” Peyton frowned.
Marriage made these women violent.
Hm, note to self.
“My teacher, Mrs. Sheppard, she’s nice.” Josh put his two cents into the conversation.
“Nicer than me?” I gasped, faking offense.
Joshua put a hand to his chin in thought. “I guess.”
I pretended to throw a fit. “Well, you can marry her then.” I folded my arms.
Josh’s eyes grew round. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
I wiped at my eyes, “As soon as we go back home, I’m giving you back the ring.”
Drew casually draped a hand behind the back of my chair and I tensed immediately, my body craving for his touch but my mind urging me to keep my distance.
“You bought her a ring, man?” Drew grinned.
“Yeah,” Josh shifted his gaze between me and the raven-haired man. “It was my favorite ring pop.”
“We’ve already picked out her dress.” Melody piped up from her seat.
Persia snickered behind her hand and tried to keep a straight face when she said, “I’ve already pre-ordered his tuxedo. I had to
estimate how big he’ll be in the next twelve years.”
“Twelve?” Drew arched an eyebrow at me.
“Yeah,” I nodded and tried really hard to keep up my sorrowful act, “Boys mature slower than girls. I want my husband to at least be twenty one when he marries me.”
Drew’s hearty laughter warmed me up from the inside out.
“That’s nice to know.” He nodded and then removed his hand, settling into his own chair.
I froze. Was that flippant comment a sign that maybe Drew would propose to me one day?
Snap out of it, Lexi.
The way Drew turned around and interacted with Catherine, his date jerked me back to reality. In this world, Drew and I were friends. Just friends. Only friends. Friends with no benefits.
I was okay with that… I would learn to be okay with that.
Melody drew me out of my thoughts when she leaned back and stretched. “Ya’ll ready to go home?”
“Do we have to?” Josh whined, reminding me that he was indeed less than ten years old.
“Yeah, little man. But I’ll tell you what. If your mom allows, we can go to the park afterwards and shoot some hoops so the day doesn’t have to end.” Tyrone offered.
We all waited with baited breath to see how Josh would respond. Persia schooled her face to be carefully neutral as she paused and tipped her head toward her son. Josh narrowed his eyes at Tyrone and I gave up, figuring that Persia would eventually have to move on from Tyrone, especially if Josh didn’t get along with him.
“Okay,” Josh agreed slowly.
“Okay?” Tyrone’s grin caused his whole face to beam, the healthy brown tone seemed to emit a bright light.
“Yeah,” Josh shrugged. “Everybody’s coming too right?”
“Of course!”
“Yes!”
“Definitely!”
Rings of agreement rolled around the dinner table. We actually hadn’t been planning on going to the park. I had a date with my bed and my pillow. I needed to sleep off all the walking I’d done today. But there was no way on earth that I would say no to that precious little boy.
“Cool.” Josh nodded.
I knew Persia was disappointed that Josh wasn’t warming up to Tyrone as quickly as she’d thought. But like the zip lining towers, sometimes you had to tackle the important things in life one level at a time. Eventually, you’d reach the top and soar.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Though most of us were tired and drained from our exciting experience at the Blue Jaguar every member of the Reyes family crew was present at the park that evening, even Drew who dropped Catherine home and then swung right back to join us.
Spencer and Melody went to Mom and Dad’s to pick up baby Alexis and bring her out to the playground. Mia, Peyton, Tyrone, Persia and Josh assembled on the court to play a healthy game of HORSE. As per usual, their competitive natures stepped forward and turned the friendly event into a die-hard contest. Susan and Archie were busy playing on swings, their laughter echoing over the mostly deserted playground.
I sat on the bleachers next to Drew who leaned back against the stair above and closed his eyes. His tan was really doing things to my mind. I scooted away before I did something stupid like touch his bicep.
“Today was nice.” I ventured, hoping that conversation distracted me from this insane attraction.
“It was.” Drew nodded, closing his eyes against the sun. He peeked one lid open to ask, “What did you think about Catherine?”
“Me?” I wondered why Drew would ask me that. My opinion certainly didn’t matter if he truly liked the girl.
“Yeah.” Drew straightened and stretched, “you’ve always been honest with me. What did you think about her?”
“I thought she was nice.”
Drew arched an eyebrow. “‘Nice’ seems to be your word of the day.”
I grinned softly. I didn’t know what else to say. Drew turned his head away and I tried to distract myself by paying attention to the game on the court. Josh’s sneakers squeaked as he employed impressive maneuvers before scoring a basket. Tyrone high-fived the little guy and he heartily returned the contact. Peyton talked smack as Mia grabbed the ball and stood in the center of the court to make the shot. Those two were the most competitive couple I had ever known.
My gaze moved over the green seesaw, the pink monkey bars, and the black slide baking in the sun to the couple pushing each other on the swings. Archie with his tattoos and his stubble and his twinkling silver eyes pushed Susan who arched her neck and laughed the laugh of a woman who was loved both in front of others and behind closed doors. I couldn’t withhold my own smile as I looked at them. Susan was good for Archie. I was glad that I hadn’t allowed my jealousy to override an opportunity to make a good friend.
Was I doing the same with Drew and Catherine?
The thought bothered me. I swung my legs and fully faced Drew.
“Look,” I said firmly, quelling my trembling fingers as I admitted, “You’re right. I have always been honest with you. You know… except for the moments when I’m not.”
He seemed surprised by my outburst but I continued. “What you do with your personal life is none of my business.”
He opened his mouth to protest, but I lifted a hand to stop him. “But,” I admitted, “As your friend, what happens in your life concerns me. Period.”
He tilted his head and waited for me to finish.
I took a deep breath.
Catherine’s not the right one for you. I am.
Instead I said, “Catherine is kind and sweet. She fits in with us really, really well. If you want to get to know her better, I say go for it.”
Drew appraised me. His blue eyes seemed to smile even as his lips remain neutral.
“What?” I asked, wondering what that look was about.
“Nothing.” Drew shook his head.
I narrowed my eyes at him but before I could investigate further, Spencer and Melody returned with Alexis. Even though I wanted to stand, scoop her up and keep her all to myself, I knew her parents wanted to make up all the time that they’d spent away from their daughter so I kept my seat next to Drew.
“I’m hungry.” Drew commented after Melody, Spencer and Ally waved at us. The little family headed for the see-saws.
“What? So soon?”
Drew checked his watch, “Lunch was like two hours ago.”
I glanced at his stomach which lay flat and firm beneath his T-shirt. Don’t ask me how I know that.
“Your stomach is a bottomless pit.”
He pursed his lips, “Don’t pretend that you’re not up for a snack too.”
I had nothing to say. He had me. There was always room for Oreos in my belly.
“Fine.” I shrugged, “There’s a grocery store down that street.”
“I want food.” Drew insisted.
“Okay, okay.” I thought, “A little café is down the seaside. Do you want to try there?”
“Let’s go.”
I yelled to the groups skittered across the park, “Anyone want food?”
The guys on the court snickered. “You just ate!” Mia yelled.
“Don’t judge me.” I countered.
“We’re good!” Susan yelled back.
“Us too.” Persia agreed. It was strange seeing her arms without bangles. The jewelry lay to the side in a neat heap as she played.
“Okay!” Drew waved at them and we started on our trek toward the bistro.
Drew seemed quiet. I didn’t mind. Though I’d grown up next to the sea, I was still blown away by its beauty and I enjoyed my silent observation of it. Today, the water was a deeper green than blue. White puffy clouds floated overhead and birds chirped as we strolled. The white sails of yachts in the distance fluttered in the breeze.
“You ever think about leaving this country?” Drew questioned randomly.
“No. Why?”
“With your programming skills and your talent for animation, you could make a lot mor
e money in the US.”
I shook my head and continued down the path running parallel to the Sea.
“I don’t think I need to live in any particular place to make money, especially the way the internet is connecting the globe.” I spotted a colorful blue bird and smiled, “Plus, I like walking next to the water on a Saturday afternoon with my friends. I like the laid-back, peaceful pace of the city. Where in America would I get to walk down the street and visit my mom or Mia or Melody? This is home.”
Drew nodded.
“What about you. Where’s home for you?”
He raised his head and stared straight forward, “Home is in New York. I have a big apartment. It’s very cutting edge. I prefer to work from there.”
“What about family? Friends?” I pried.
Drew shrugged. “My dad lives in California and I have a handful of friends. But I really don’t go out much. Since I was a kid, I had this dream of being successful. I knew where I wanted to be in life and I did my best to get there. I’m proud of where I am. Unfortunately, I had to make a lot of sacrifices to get here and a buzzing social life was one of them.”
I glanced quickly at him. I couldn’t wrap my mind around the fact that a man that handsome would ever be in need of company. I bet the women threw themselves at him.
Speaking of women…
“What happened to your mom?”
His expression fell. “She died five years ago, right before my business took off.”
He fisted his hands and I could tell that this was a very heavy burden for him.
“She never got to see me make it.”
Moved by the hurt in his tone, I did something completely out of character. I reached out and held his hand. Usually, when people get all sobby on me, I stand by awkwardly and hope that they get themselves together before I’m expected to do something.
This time, the urge to grasp his hand was natural and sincere.
I doubted that Drew felt my touch as he continued to lay his heart before me.
“When I was just starting out, my dad thought I was crazy. The gaming industry was so saturated and I was just a punk kid that dropped out of college to play videogames.”