2004

Margaret remembered when the two brothers started to bond.

Charlie had just turned seven months. Donnie was playing with some of his toy cars. Curiously, the baby crawled to where his big brother was, grabbed a car, which was half the size of an adult fist, and put it in his mouth.

"Charlie! That's icky! I don't want your cooties!" the older boy yelled and roughlytook the car away. The baby pouted.

"Don't yell at your brother!" Margaret scolded, then tried to explain patiently. "Sweetie, that's how babies explore. With their mouths. You used to do the same thing when you were his age. Why don't you teach your brother how to play with the car?"

"Why can't he take a nap?" the boy asked.

"He just did."

"I liked it better when he was sleeping all day" Donnie hadfound how tiresome an older baby could be.

"Didn't you want a brother to play with?" Margaret asked. "You've got to teach him how to play!"

Reluctantly, he did.

"The car goes like this" Don moved it around, as the baby watched. "And if you like, you can make it crash" The boy got another car, and crashed the two, having them jump as far as his arms would go. "Boom! Or you can have the car fly and crash into furniture when mom and dad aren't looking" Don crashed a car into the sofa.

Quickly, the baby got the hang of moving around the cars, though he did it awkwardly. Soon, both boys were absorbed in playing them. Margaret smiled when she went to check onDonnie and the babyfew minutes later.

"Isn't it fun, playing with your brother?"

"Yeah..." Donnie admitted. Then, Charlie started 'crashing' a car into the wall.

"Charlie! No!" Margaret moved him farther from it.

Soon, Alan returned his wife to the present, by serving her some tea.

2005

"I know what that's like." Charlie told David with understanding.

Marc, just then, got a call on his cell phone. He looked troubled a few seconds after answering it. Soon, he hung up, and said. "I gotta go"

"What's wrong?" David asked, his face full of concern.

"A friend of mine is having...a crisis..." Marc said, as he got up, and pulled out his share of the cost.

"Go! Don't worry about paying!" David insisted. "Drive safe!"

"Okay dad. Bye!" With that he left. So, it was just the David and Charlie again.

TBC