My name is April. I'm 4. Mommy Sissy is waiting for my little brother – he should be delivered soon, she looks like a whale – but she's feeling exhausted lately, so she's sending me to Uncle Brandon and his boyfriend for a week.
I've never seen this boyfriend. Mommy says that he cured Uncle Brandon of his sickness. Like I cured her from hers, she says.
When we arrive, Uncle Brandon opens the door and calls: "Sweetheart, she's here!" The boyfriend comes, and he smiles at me. He seems really nice. He looks a bit like Scruffy, Amanda's dog.
When we're eating dinner this evening, Uncle Brandon often asks for things. "Could you give me the salt, Sweetheart?" or "Give her some more mashed potatoes, Sweetheart." I wonder how he did before he met his boyfriend.
During the night, I hear them wrestle in their room – it's unfair because I had to go to bed early, and they didn't – and Uncle Brandon says once: "Oh, Sweetheart, you're so tight." I thought Uncle's boyfriend was pretty generous, actually.
The next day, Uncle's boyfriend offers to play cards. We're having a nice game of Happy Families when Uncle Brandon comes in and says: "Is this a good idea, Sweetheart?" But Uncle's boyfriend smiles and says: "Don't worry, Brandon. I haven't played for money since we're together, and I don't plan on being reacquainted with my old demons." I don't know what a demon is, or what "reacquainted" means, but that makes Uncle Brandon smile.
The week goes by like that, and it's time to go back home. I cry a little, because although I miss mommy, I won't see Uncle Brandon and his boyfriend for a while: they're going to travel around the world for some time.
When I'm alone with mommy, I touch her large belly and ask: "Have you chosen a name for him yet?"
"I have a couple of ideas, yeah. What do you have in mind, love?"
"Sweetheart, like Uncle Brandon's boyfriend!"