Day Two

We arrived at our house the next day, when it should have only taken one; but you all know how Rocky drives...heh heh. Mom, Dad, and Tum tum greeted us warmly with hugs and, 'you look so much this' and 'you're so much that' it was totally embarrassing.

Our parents looks haven't changed too much over our time being gone at school. Mom has gotten some grey now, along with Dad and he's finally shaved off that goofy looking mustache he was cultivating over the years.

Tum tum was a sight to see; the kid actually wasn't fat! I'm just joking, of course, he looked pretty much how we'd left him, only his hair is no longer styled like a mushroom anymore. It's a little tossled, which I could only guess was the 'In' style at school now.

Mom filled us in on how he had been off sweets for a while after a really bad toothache, that happened somewhere around the time Rocky and me left for college.

They welcomed Neilissa in right away; and she seemed to love the attention from them; maybe she felt they were like or maybe better than her own parents- no offense to her, though- and once we all had our moment of freezing 'Hello's' frome outside, they finally let us walk in to warm up.

"You boys can share the room at the end of the hall and Neilissa you can use this room here," Mom pointed to Dad's old office which was now actually my room. "under the stairs."

Dad took 'Lissa's luggage into my room for her.

"Thank you Mr. Douglas, I appreciate the hand." She replied and followed him inside.

"You guys won't believe the cool stuff I got for Christmas this year." Tum bragged.

Even at 17 the kid was still a kid, still short, and is still a brat showing off any little thing- It's great to be home.

"I thought only Santa was supposed to know that?" I commented.

"Yeah, like he's real." My little brother replied.

I shook my head laughing to myself, and shoved my suitcases into my room without unpacking and rushed downstairs into the kitchen for the Christmas cookies I knew would be there.

Rocky, on the other hand, I already heard dividing up dresser space; and had to roll my eyes thinking about how I was gonna fit my- usually just tossed inside- clothing in some tightly packed drawer.

"Hi sweetie, you are just in time to lick the spoon," Mom announced, handing a wooden mixing spoon, coated with cookie badder, off to me while she rolled the dough out and started to cut the shapes.

I watched her with my first-come-first-serve reward going into my mouth once in a while; I mentally smiled over missing all of these things, from when I was a kid to now; sometimes Rocky and me don't get to come home as often as we'd like to.

"What do you think, honey..." Mom was saying holding up cutters. "Should I make more stockings this year or Santa's?" She then looked up at me; I shrugged uncertainly; hearing foot steps behind me, from the sound of it they're boots, I turned my vision slightly seeing Neilissa walk in and take a seat on the stool beside me.

"Well, my Mother always made stars when I was growing up." She commented to Mom's questions, and mom just laughed to herself.

"May I help?" 'Lissa asked.

"Sure! I'd love some, since my son is presently busy snacking." She stressed looking at me jokingly.

"Hey, I am not a crook." I said doing one of my impressions, and held my hands up in defense. "The cops sent a man in with a spoon of dough, I'm the real victim."

"Mm hmm." Mom said.

"You two are so adorable." 'Lissa commented to herself, placing a cutter into the dough that looked a lot like a reign deer but the antlers were missing on one of their heads- I wonder what happened to them?

"Hey!" Tum ran over to where I sat, and poked me in the back with his index finger making me jump from the sudden touch. "That's my spoon, you big jerk."

"Tum tum." Mom warned and gave him a glance.

"What?" He replied with a shrug; snatching the spoon from my hands then, he began to eat off what was left.

I couldn't watch, bleh.

"So, how'd you three kids meet?" Mom asked 'Lissa and me.

"I was your son's instructor for the first year, but we ran across some unfortunate problems along the way and I was fired." 'Lissa answered coolly.

"That's terrible." Mom replied dramatically. "Well, what happened? Did you get another teaching job?" She then asked.

"Yes, I did. After the whole mess was straightened up, I was given back my old job; but I'm teaching an elective class now."

Mom nodded.

Dad came up behind her, and planted a kiss on her cheek. "I gotta go to work, hon' I'll see you at dinner." He mumbled to her and she said something back I couldn't hear and gave him another kiss, and he walked out waving to all of us. "Goodbye kids, I'll see you later."

He walked out of the kitchen, patting Rocky on the shoulder when he walked past him. "Baking without me, I'm hurt." Rocky walked over to the counter and grabbed a cutter for himself; and we all spent the morning cutting and baking cookies.

...

Later on that night.

I was getting ready for bed when a slip of paper fell from my jeans pocket. I bent over to pick it up, wondering what it was. The flyer! How could I have forgetten about this thing? I looked it over trying to see in the darkness, but it was really hard; so I walked into the bathroom for privacy, making sure to lock the door. Sitting on the tub, I begin to read.

"Jefferson McRea, taken at age 5," It stated, "from the shopping district outside of Pheonix, Arizona."

I studied the little boy in the picture as hard as my eyes could look him over, then I started reading the rest.

"Distinctive features are dimples and a mole on his right cheek." My hand unconsciencely went up to my face and touched my cheek feeling an up-growth that I'd never gave much notice to before.

Startled, I got off the rim of the tub and ran over to the mirror checking my face. "Oh my God." I breathed out thinking I must be imagining things, because there was no way I had always had a mole on my cheek! "That means that-...no, no what am I saying. I'm Jeffrey Douglas, always have been always will be...My parents aren't kidnappers; and how could they steal a child? They wouldn't get away with it- wouldn't they tell me eventually if I was?!"

I was beginning to actually hear myself as I said these things, and I couldn't help but start laugh. It was an odd laugh that came from the bottom of my feet, and out of my throat. I didn't mean to laugh so hard but the sound wouldn't lower itself; it was making me uncomfortable, especially after Rocky had knocked on the door now calling through it.

"Colt, are you ok in there? What are you doing?"

God, Rock'... if you only knew. I thought.

"No, haha, Rocky I'm" I paused for a breath. "fine. Go back to bed."

I could tell he was listening on the other side of the door for proof, before he went back to his bed and dozed off.

"My parents stole me, yeah right. They're the most wholesome, decent, honest people I know...they wouldn't take a kid..." I waved the whole thought off and crumpled the flyer up dropping it into the waste basket beside the sink.

Walking into the bedroom, I climbed into bed. "Good night, bro." I said to Rocky cheerfully.

"Good night, Colt." He replied and went back to sleep.

It was all in my head. And now that I think about it, that kid looks nothing like me. I need to lay off the sweets before I go to sleep. Maybe then I wouldn't have had such a weird dream. Snuggling into my blankets and pillows, I closed my eyes and drifted off.