All characters that are from the TWILIGHT saga by Stephanie Meyer belong to Stephanie Meyer. All others belong to me. I do not receive profit for these stories except for the joyous enjoyment of reviews.
This story follows right after When I'm Gone: Third Installment to GONE Saga, so if you haven't read that one or the two before, please do.
The timeline of the story will coincide with Gabriel Michael Laskaris' growing up years, starting at Seth and Rosa's wedding day, April 12th and will progress from there.
AN: Brad -13yrs,9thgrd/Bailey -13yrs,9thgrd/Vivi -12yrs,8thgrd/Nika -12yrs,8thgrd/Tyra -5yrs,1stgrd/Xavier -1yr/Alyx -6yrs,2ndgrd/Andrey -6yrs,2ndgrd and as always, Gabe's age and school grade is next to the chapter.
Enjoy as you read and please review -it would help me post sooner...which, by the way, I'm almost done with the next chapter.
Chapter Fifty-Two (12yrsd,8thgrd)
Third Wednesday of June
"Sometimes it seems she doesn't like me."
"Are you fucking kidding? She looks at you like the sun comes out of your ass."
"No need to sound so sarcastic," Gabe turned his head to look at his cousin, the mid-day sun coming in through the large window across the twin size bed he was laying across, "We all know it's true."
Brad scoffed as he picked up a thin copper wire, hunching over his desk, "Not possible, what with your head being in the way."
Gabe had to laugh at that one -it was a brilliant come-back after all, "Good one."
Brad lifted a shoulder in a shrug, keeping his concentration focused on the task at hand, which was putting together the motherboard to his computer, "I have my moments."
Gabe watched his cousin handle the tiny wires and small tools, including a welding pen, "What are you doing?"
"Working on the motherboard for my computer," Brad set aside the welding pen, letting the copper cool before he took a miniscule silver screw from the compartment box where he had everything he needed, "But don't worry, I can multitask so feel free to continue whining."
"I'm not whining."
"Really," Brady turned to look at his cousin, his vision blurred due to the magnifying glasses attached to the headlight strapped around his head, "'Cause you sound like a whiny little bitch to me."
"Ouch," Gabe stretched his arms over his head which hung off the side of the bed, not voicing the fact his cousin looked like a total geek with that headband light/magnifying thing he was wearing, "Maybe I should have gone to Bailey."
Brad scoffed as he turned back to what he was doing, carefully attaching the next piece to the green board, "She would have called you a girl from the get-go and asked if you were on your period."
Even though he didn't look back, Brad knew his cousin was in agreement due to the chuckle he heard.
The silence was comfortable as Brad continued working on what he was doing, Gabe staring out at the upside down view on the other side of the window. A bird flying past the window had him turning his head, his attention snagged by a strange contraption hanging from the corner of the window, "What the hell is that?"
Brad looked up to see what his cousin was pointing at, turning his attention back to his pet project as he answered, "A solar panel. It's how I light up my room at night."
Gabe's eyebrows lowered as he turned to look up at the ceiling, noticing for the first time the bare light bulb hanging from a hole, the wires connected to it taped against the ceiling and leading to the solar panel, a string attached to the base of the bulb, "Does Uncle Sam know you re-wired the light in your room?"
Brad shrugged, not at all preoccupied whether his dad knew or not, "It's saving them on the light bill. Besides, it was a project for school so I don't see why he would care."
"Because you could have burned down the house."
"Not possible," Brad set aside his screwdriver and picked up the hot welding pen, "I called the company and had the electricity shut off to avoid that from happening -I'm not stupid."
Gabe didn't say anything, just turned his attention back to the view outside the window, his head feeling slightly heavy probably due to all the blood that was pooling in it from him being upside down, "So is that what you want to be when you grow up?"
"Be," Brad set his welding pen down, turning in his seat as he took off his light/magnifying glasses, "I'm thirteen, Gabe. All I want to be is racing my bike and finishing my computer before the end of the summer."
"You don't think about what you want to do when you grow up?"
Brad rolled his eyes as he set his light/glasses aside, turning off the welding pen before standing up and stretching his arms over his head, "That's your problem, dude. You're so focused on the future you can't just enjoy being. You're twelve, man. Let time do what it does and you be who you are now. There'll be plenty of time to worry about jobs and careers and crap like marriage and kids."
Gabe sat up, the room spinning for a couple of seconds before the dizziness dissipated, "There's nothing wrong with planning for the future."
"Except the future is now," Brad hitched up his khaki shorts, shoving his feet into the Vans he had gotten for Christmas from his Grandma Linda, "Just like now is past -time is subjective and if you don't live in the now, the future becomes a thing of the past without you."
Gabe stared at his cousin for some time before shaking his head, "I hate when you read philosophy. Can we go now? Bailey and Marc are meeting us at the start of the track."
"One more major alteration," Brad opened his bedroom door, Gabe following behind him as they headed down the hall towards the front door, "And it's ready for the motorized bikes."
Gabe rubbed his hands together, excited because he was finally getting to drive the bike he had gotten on his tenth birthday. Two years of waiting made for a serious build up of anticipation, especially with Marc being able to use his to test out the traction of their track.
"I checked out the Dry Hill website," Brad stepped out onto the porch, his mom and little sister working on the flower beds that wrapped around the left side of their house, "They have junior competitions for twelve to fourteen. All we gotta do is have our parents sign the waivers."
"Oh, is that all," Gabe groused as he picked up his bike from the front yard, Brad taking his from the side of the house where it was kept chained to the railing -he'd put too much of his chore money into the bike to just let it lie around for anyone to take, "Mom's never going to sign a waiver concerning me, a motor bike and injury liability."
Brad laughed, getting onto his bike and pushing off, calling over his shoulder as his mother waved to him, "I'll be back by dinner, ma!"
"You be careful," she called back out, not seeing Brad roll his eyes as he picked up speed, his cousin keeping pace right next to him.
"So there's a fair in Forks next weekend," Gabe tried to sound nonchalant but knew he failed when Brad looked over at him as they made their way across First Beach, "I was thinking we all could go."
"What do you mean by 'we all'?"
"You know," Gabe shrugged, the salty air ruffling his hair and tugging at his clothes as he stood up on the pedals to go faster, his breathing normal as he spoke louder to be heard, "Marc, Bailey, you, me...Vivi and Nika."
"Oh no," Brad was a quick study, just a bit under his cousin Emmie in the genius level so he knew where Gabe was going with this, "No way, man. Not gonna happen."
"Oh come on," Gabe sat back on the bike's seat as they got pass the beach and onto the packed dirt that led towards the forest, "I need you to be my wing man."
"Your wing man?"
"Yeah," Gabe nodded as they both slowed down some more, the echo of voices inside the forest letting them both know Bailey and Marc were already in there working on their track, "Just ask Nika to go on the Ferris wheel with you. Bailey and Marc will more than likely wander off on their own so when they do, you can make your move."
"Oh, so that you can make yours," Brad scoffed as he got off his bike, "It's just cruel, Gabe. The girl has a crush on me -if I ask her to join me on the Ferris wheel, she'll think I feel the same way, which I don't."
"You know, you say that so much I'm starting to wonder if it's true."
Brad wasn't amused by Gabe's teasing being his friends at school did enough of that concerning Nika's strange behavior around him, "You can be your own fucking wing man."
"Okay, man, okay," Gabe reached out to stop his cousin from walking away, "I was just kidding. Come on, help me out. I'm desperate, here."
"Obviously," Brad let out a heavy sigh, leaning his forearms against the handlebars of his bike, "You're really into her, uh?"
"Yeah," Gabe worked hard at not showing embarrassment but didn't succeed, the tip of his ears bright red despite his copper colored complexion, "But she's always at dance class, hanging out with Nika or Marc's in the fucking way. Last time we went for ice cream, stupid idiot tagged along even though he wasn't invited."
"She's his little sister," Brad straightened up, running his fingers through his shaggy hair to get it out of his eyes, "Can you blame him?"
"It's not like I'm going to do something stupid," Gabe let out a frustrated sigh, kicking at a rock before turning to look at his cousin, "Come on, man. I swear, whenever you find some girl you're interested in, I'll be your wing man."
Brad stared at his cousin, fighting back the desire to laugh at the pleading blue eyes looking at him, "Your begging is kind of pathetic."
"So you'll do it?"
Brad let out a sigh as he gave a nod, "Yeah -but if Nika starts stalking me, I'll kick your fucking ass, got it?"
"What the hell's taking you two so long," Bailey glared at them as she walked out of the forest, Marc a couple of steps behind her, "Stop gossiping like fucking girls and let's get to work."
"Sheesh," Gabe rolled his eyes as they moved towards the forest line, Bailey and Marc turning around to go back to where they had been, "Relax, will you? We still have five hours of daylight."
"If it takes five hours to finish the trench, I'm going to shove a stick up your ass," Bailey threatened her cousin as they made their way through the forest, the track they used cleared of stones and branches -it was kept clean and neat year round, all four taking turns to do the upkeep.
Brad leaned closer so he wouldn't be heard by his sister, "Now try telling her about your girl problems -see if she's more understanding than I am."
Gabe couldn't hold back the smile, reaching out to punch Brad hard on the shoulder, "Shut the fuck up, man."
They're laughter increased when Bailey turned to glare at them, neither caring when she muttered loud enough to be heard, "You two are worse than fucking girls."
The County Fair
"I'll be here at ten thirty," Leah looked over at her son and his cousins, "Don't make me wait long."
"We won't mama," Gabe unsnapped his seat belt along with the rest of them, leaning into the front seat to kiss her cheek; "We'll be here on time."
"Good," Leah grinned as the side door to the van slid open, Nika hopping out followed by Bailey and Brad, Marc stepping out and reaching up to give his sister a hand down, "You all have fun, okay?"
"We will," they all called out, Gabe sliding the door closed once he stepped out, all of them waving as she drove off.
Gabe turned to his group of cousins and friends, the lights and music behind them accompanied by screams and laughter, "Let's get our tickets then see where we go first."
"Bumper cars," Bailey spoke up, pulling out a ten dollar bill from the pocket of her jeans as they lined up at the ticket kiosk.
"Totally," Marc stood behind her, looking over his shoulder to make sure Nika was still between Vivi and Gabe, "Then we have to try the Tilt-A-Whirl."
Nika grimaced as she looked over at Vivi, "Last time we were at a fair, I wanted to do the Tilt-A-Whirl but didn't meet the requirements. Just as we were walking away, the group that was on the ride came out and this kid threw up right on my sneakers -it was disgusting."
"Then no food before the Tilt-A-Whirl," Gabe moved to stand at Vivi's other side, Brad hanging back behind them all as Bailey reached the ticket window, purchasing her pass into the fair.
The lady behind the window looped a blue bracelet around Bailey's wrist, telling her it would give her entrance to all the rides but not the games or food stands.
Marc was next, the lady giving him the same spiel, along with the rest of them. Once inside the fair grounds, they all stood to the side in a huddle, discussing what to do first.
"Let's go find the Tilt-A-Whirl," Gabe threw that idea out, "That way we can get it off the list then find something to eat."
"Oh," Vivi's gold-brown eyes lit up as she caught sight of a stand some feet away, "They have funnel cakes!"
They all laughed, even Bailey who faintly thought how much like a child Vivi had just sounded. Reaching up to flick her bangs off her forehead, she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, "Why don't we split up?"
"Or," Marc arched an eyebrow as he turned to look at her, "We could each suggest one option for all of us to do."
"That sounds like a good idea," Nika nodded, not at all keen with the idea of walking the fairgrounds with just Vivi as company, "Daddy said to make sure we all stay together 'cause there might be some weirdoes around here."
"Fine," Bailey let out a sigh, looking around at the crowd, deciding she too didn't like the idea of being on her own, "Tilt-A-Whirl then bumper cars after that, yes?"
"Shooting booth to follow," Marc pointed towards the booth across from where they were.
"The roller coaster after that," Gabe threw out his option, all of them turning to look at Brad who gave a shrug, "I don't really have anything -" he sucked in a breath at the shooting pain caused by Gabe stomping on his toe, "I suppose we could do the Ferris Wheel."
Vivi reached up to push her thick braid over her shoulder, "All I want is to try out the food -they're selling fried ice cream over there."
Marc turned to look over his shoulder, his eyebrows lowering over dark brown eyes, "How the hell do you fry ice cream?"
"We'll ask when we go get some," Gabe's smile widened as he clapped his hands, "Let's go get in line. We don't have time to waste so let's have some fun."
They waited at the Tilt-A-Whirl for seven minutes, all of them staying close together. Marc did his best to keep an eye on Gabe but Bailey's conversation was interesting enough to distract him from his mission to keep his sister away from him. Gabe himself was carrying on a conversation with Vivi and Nika, Brad staying to the side, not really saying anything because the topic wasn't interesting to him at all.
Once on the Tilt-A-Whirl, they were split up, Gabe making sure he was in the spot next to Vivi, Marc and Bailey right across from them while Brad and Nika were next to each other several spots away from where Vivi stood.
The ride had them all screaming in frightening delight, Vivi's hand holding on tight to Gabe's while Marc glared at him, jaw tight as he kept his grip on the bar.
They when on the rides in the order suggested, Marc occasionally shouldering his way between Gabe and Vivi whenever he deemed them being too close. While at the shooting booth -both Bailey and Marc were enjoying themselves there -Vivi pointed out a tossing ring booth some spots down from the shooting one, Gabe going with her while Nika and Brad just hung back, neither saying anything to the other.
"Hey, how about the Ferris Wheel," Gabe called out as they walked through the grounds, Vivi and Nika sharing pink and blue cotton candy while Bailey munched on a turkey leg, Marc eating a bratwurst hot dog and Brad popping peanuts into his mouth, "The line isn't that long."
They headed that way, unconsciously paring up, Brad giving Nika a tight smile as he moved to stand next to her, Gabe and Vivi behind them, Bailey and Marc in front.
Taking Vivi's hand, Gabe held up a finger to his mouth as he pulled her back, letting people cut in front of them. Vivi leaned in to whisper, "What are you doing?"
"Let's let them get on," Gabe watched as Bailey and Marc were seated in one of the bucket seats, both of them talking and not paying attention as the bar went down and the wheel moved to bring down the next empty seat, "Then we can do something together -without your brother breathing down our necks."
Vivi giggled at that, looking over to see Bailey and Marc already several feet off the ground, Nika and Brad in the seat below them. Turning to smile at him, she gave his hand a squeeze, "Let's go while he's still distracted."
They ran off, both of them laughing as they heard Marc yell out her name. Keeping her hand in his, he pulled her around a food stall towards the carousel, "Wanna give that a try?"
Vivi grinned, loving the way the horses and carriages moved up and down as they went around in a circle, "A carriage or separate horses?"
"I'd like to sit with you."
She blushed as they stood in line, majority of those waiting for their turn young children with parents. Once on the carousel floor, they went in search of a carriage, finding one that was painted white with pink roses and ribbons on the edges.
They sat together, hands clasped between them as the carousel began to move, Gabe's thumb tapping the star charm that hung from her bracelet. He hadn't seen her without it since he gave it to her and he fleetingly wondered if she ever took it off.
"How's dance class?"
She smiled up at him, happiness bubbling inside her because he had asked, "It's great. Miss Trinity is having us learn another form of dance to implement into our ballet individuals. There's going to be a competition end of July and she's going to be picking the three best individuals and three best duos to compete. Nika and I really want to get to do both."
Gabe nodded, liking the way her gold-brown eyes danced with excitement, feeling a stab of irrational jealousy that something like dance can make her face light up that way, "So what other dance are you learning?"
"I picked up jazz," Vivi reached up to tuck a stray curl behind her ear, her shoulder up against his as she happily explained, "I'm using the new Taylor Swift song for my individuals. Nika and I paired up for the duos and are figuring out how to blend the jazz and ballet with her tap."
"Sounds like a challenge," Gabe tugged her up off the bench once the ride finished, keeping her smaller hand in his as they jumped off and headed towards the games, "Where are the competitions going to be held?"
"Seattle," Vivi couldn't hold back a skip of excitement as she looked up at him, "Would you like to come and watch? I can ask Tia Rosa to buy you a ticket."
"Sure," Gabe smiled down at her, a strange sensation in his chest that felt like a hard pull, "You came to all my games during the school year so I can go to your dance things."
Vivi smiled up into his blue eyes, the butterflies in her stomach flapping up a storm as the humming tension increased between them, finally breaking when Vivi looked away, her bottom lip tucked between her teeth.
"Hey, look," Gabe pointed at a booth some feet away, "Darts. Come on -I'll win you a teddy bear."
Vivi giggled as he tugged her towards the booth, his hand already pulling out a couple of dollars from his jeans' pocket, "What if they don't have teddy bears?"
Gabe looked at the prizes hanging on the sides of the wooden flats that made up the stalls, one of them catching his attention as he pointed at it, "What about that one?"
Vivi looked towards where he was pointing, smiling as her eyes landed on the plush toy -a furry wolf with pointy ears, his color a deep brown with some red in it, "Ah, it's cute. You think you can win it?"
Gabe gave her a cocky smile as he handed his money over, getting three darts for every dollar; being told he needed to pop three balloons in a row to be able to win a prize, "Watch me."
She giggled, happy to stay nearby and do just that.
Marc was pissed -not only had Gabriel snuck off with his sister but she had obviously gone along with the stupid boy. Had the damn Ferris wheel not stopped when the seat he shared with Bailey had reached the top, he wouldn't have been able to see them heading off to the carousel, holding hands.
Damn but it pissed him off to see him that close to his sister.
"Will you relax," Bailey leaned against the side of the seat, refusing to look down because she had just realized she didn't like heights -an interesting phenomenon considering she didn't mind looking down from the cliff's height of fifteen feet into the churning ocean beneath, "All they're doing is holding hands."
"That's how it starts," Marc watched them get off the carousel, his jaw tightening when they got lost in the crowd, "Holding hands then kissing -I swear if he kisses her, I'm going to rip his face off."
"Okay," Bailey looked over at him, trying to comprehend the venom behind his words, "I understand the whole they're not right for each other shit, considering it's just wrong for them to be together but you seem to have a bigger issue over it. Why?"
"He's no good for her," Marc crossed his arms as he leaned back, their bucket seat lurching as the wheel started to move again, "I know he'll hurt her without even trying and my sister doesn't deserve that."
"You don't know that."
Marc turned to give her a condescending look that really ticked her off, "Really? Your kind imprints. You don't fall in love, you imprint. Simply put, he'll get her heart then break it when he imprints on someone better suited to pass on his fucking genes."
Bailey rolled her eyes, letting out a huffing breath, "You're a fucking dickwad. For all you know, she's the one he'll imprint on -if he ever does."
"It's a matter of time," Marc got off the seat as soon as the bar was lifted, Bailey following behind him as the wheel moved to let the next couple off, "And I am not going to let it happen."
Brad kept his hands in the pockets of his jeans as they followed behind Marc and Bailey, able to tell already Marc was pretty ticked off.
"You think it'll get ugly?"
Brad looked over at Nika, noticing for the first time how her eyes were a bit slanted at the ends, lashes so dark he wondered if she was wearing any make-up, "Depends on what Gabe and Vivi are doing when Marc finds them."
Nika shook her head as they moved around people, her long legs keeping pace with his wider strides, "For Vivi's sake, I hope nothing happens. She really likes Gabe but Marc is her brother."
"Try explaining that to Gabe," Brad reached out to pull Nika to the side, saving her from a collision with a guy twice her size that wasn't looking where he was going, "It ticks him off how protective Marc is of Vivi."
"Why wouldn't it," Nika fought back the blush that threatened, her arm tingling where he had taken hold of it even though he was no longer touching her, "Marc pushes protective to a whole other level."
"Yep," Brad grimaced as he caught sight of Gabe and Vivi, looking to see if Marc had seen them yet -this wasn't going to end well.
Especially because Gabe and Vivi were a hair's width away from kissing.
Vivi's smile nearly blinded him as he gave her the stuffed toy, his chest tight as she hugged it against her chest, "Thank you! I really, really love it."
Gabe chuckled as he reached out to tug at the wolf's ear, "Are you going to give it a name?"
Vivi bit her bottom lip as she looked into the glass eyes looking up at her, a little surprised to find they were blue with wide black pupils, "I'm not sure...what do you think I should name it?"
Gabe watched her studying the wolf like it were a matter of life and death coming up with a name for it, finally giving her a suggestion, "How about Spastic?"
Vivi looked up at him in surprise, "Spastic? What made you think of that?"
Gabe shrugged, not wanting to tell her that the idea of her sleeping with the plush toy he won for her and calling it after his alter-ego made him feel strange but in a good way, "Just came to me. Do you like it?"
"Mhm," Vivi held the wolf up to her face, her lips spreading into a smile as she looked over at him, "I think it's perfect."
They smiled at each other, neither looking away as the rest of the world faded away, leaving just the two of them. Gabe reached up to touch her soft cheek, his fingers feeling a bit rough to her but she liked it, her eyelashes fluttering as he moved closer.
She was really hoping he was going to kiss her.
Gabe was gathering up his courage to close the last bit of distance between them when a hard shove send him flying into the packed dirt, passing people moving to the side as he shoved himself to his feet, his jaw tight as he shoved Marc, "What the fuck is your problem?"
"I've told you, time and time again," Marc grabbed Gabe's shirt in his fists, pulling him forward to growl into his face, "Stay away from my sister."
"Marc, stop it," Vivi tugged at Marc's arm, her stomach cramping painfully at the look on her brother's face, "Let him go."
Marc shoved Gabe away; his sister let out a sigh of relief as she moved back, which was a good thing because Gabe wasn't as willing to let it go at that.
His head snapped back as Gabe's fist connected with his jaw, Marc swinging hard enough to break Gabe's nose, both boys going at it with silent intent in causing maximum damage.
Vivi kept yelling at them to stop but neither listened to her, both of them too busy in showing who the hell was boss over her, which was simply ridiculous because she didn't belong to either one of them.
Bailey let out a shrill whistle in an attempt to get their attention off each other but it didn't work, people crowding around them as someone yelled for the police.
Brad shook his head, already knowing this was not going to end with them outside the fair grounds at ten thirty waiting for Aunt Leah.
Sure enough, it didn't end the way they had planned. Instead, all six of them sat in plastic chairs in the small hallway of the Forks Police Department, the secretary behind the small desk occasionally looking over at them to make sure they were all behaving.
The deputy walked out from a door that led to the jail cells, giving them all a narrow eyed look, "Sheriff Swan will be talking to you in a few minutes so sit tight and don't cause any more trouble."
"I don't even know why I'm here," Bailey grumbled under her breath, shifting in the uncomfortable seat as she sent a pointed look towards Marc, "I had nothing to do with it."
Brad let out a sigh, leaning his head back to rest against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, "Neither did I but you don't hear me whining, do you?"
"Oh shut the fuck up."
"Bailey Susannah Uley," Charlie's gruff voice had them all sitting straight in their chairs, six pairs of eyes trained on Forks' Sheriff as he walked down the short hallway to where they were sitting, "I expect better language from you, young lady. I'm sure your mother wouldn't appreciate knowing you have a filthy mouth."
Bailey bit her bottom lip, dropping dark brown eyes to the tiled floor, "Sorry Uncle Charlie."
"Mhm," Charlie looked over to Gabriel, who was sporting a broken nose along with dark bruising over one eye. Looking at Marc, he noticed the swollen jaw and dried up blood slashing across an eyebrow, "Now can you two explain to me what the hell you were thinking, rolling around like a couple of hooligans?"
Marc threw a glare at Gabe but didn't say anything, both of them understanding the unspoken rule that came with the dichotomy of them being friends and enemies at the same time -there was no tattling on each other.
Charlie let out a sigh of frustration, "I've called your parents. Gabriel, your mom's taking you to the hospital to get your nose set. Marc, your Uncle's on his way over and he'll be taking you too just to make sure you don't have any broken bones."
"I don't," Marc muttered through his teeth, the ache in his jaw making it impossible for him to open his mouth wide enough to speak clearly.
Charlie let out another sigh, shaking his head as he reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose, "As for the rest of you -I'll be dropping you off at your homes. Sandy, keep an eye on these two, will you?"
"Yes Sherriff," the secretary nodded, her dark hair cut at an angle, the ends brushing her jaw line.
"Okay," Charlie took his hat from the hooks beside the front door, the keys to his cruiser already in hand, "Let's go, you four."
Bailey, Brad, Vivi and Nika stood up, quietly following behind him as they filed out of the station, leaving behind a sullen Marc and angry Gabriel, the four seats between them not enough space to keep either one from glaring at each other as they waited for their parents to arrive.
The night had definitely not ended in the way they had all planned.
Third Weekend of July
"Are you sure this is gonna work?"
"Yeah. She thinks we went to the beach with Uncle Seth and Zak. We'll sneak up on her -she's gonna scream."
They both giggled as they quietly snuck around the side of their house, able to hear Ty and Avy playing in the sandbox, "I say, if we make her jump, it counts."
"Oh yeah," Alyx nodded, carefully leaning around the corner to make sure their sister was where they thought she was -yup, sitting right in the middle of the sandbox with her back to them. She was helping Avy fill up a bucket with moist sand.
Pulling back, he looked over at his twin and partner in crime, "Alright, this is gonna be tricky. We can't let Avy see us or he'll blow the whole thing. Got the lizard?"
"Gecko," Andrey slipped his hand into the front pocket of his denim overalls -Alyx was wearing a similar one but with a green shirt instead of blue -pulling out a small gecko they had caught in their mama's flower garden, "You pull her shirt, I drop the gecko."
"That's the plan."
Looking around the corner, they were pleased as punch to see Avy had moved to sit next to Ty -now they both had their backs to them, which was perfect.
"Fast and quiet," Alyx whispered, both of them nodding in unison as they moved across the backyard towards their younger siblings, both intent on one thing -to get the jump on their five year old sister for the first time ever.
"Mama's watching from the kitchen window."
They stopped in their tracks, the shock on their identical faces warranted considering their bare feet on the grass had made no noise, the sun in front of them so there had been no shadows to warn them either and they hadn't turned around at all during their sneak attack attempt.
Looking at each other, they turned to see their mama was indeed watching from the large kitchen window.
Ty tapped the bottom of the upside down bucket before pulling it up, leaving behind a tower of packed sand, Avy clapping his tiny hands in complete awe of his sister's talent.
Setting the bucket to the side, she twisted to around to give her brothers' the 'naughty boys' look she had picked up from their Daddy, "Put Skippy back in the garden. He eats all the bugs so they won't eat mama's pretty flowers."
Alyx stomped his bare foot, angry their plan had been foiled -again, "How'd you know we were coming?"
Ty tapped her temple, brown-green eyes bright with inner laughter at her brothers' constant failures at scaring her, "I'm smarter than you. I saw you and Ady catching Skippy earlier today and knew you were up to no good."
Blue eyes narrowed at his sister before he looked to his brother who gave him a shrug, momentarily distracted with keeping Skippy from escaping. Letting out a dramatic sigh of frustration, Alyx turned to head back where they had come from, Andrey alongside him, "We'll get you someday."
Ty smiled at her brother's muttered words, giggling as Avy smashed his hands into the sand tower, "Not gonna happen."
Leah chuckled under her breath as she watched her boys stomping across the yard, the only one visibly upset Alyx being Andrey usually just tagged along whenever his younger twin had some plan for mischief.
It had been a long summer, those two having tried her patience endlessly with their antics. In the past month alone, they had freed Emmie's ladybugs inside the house, re-decorated their new upstairs bedroom walls with magic markers, melted their crayons in the dryer, colored Zak's aquarium water purple and almost got themselves killed by deciding to become superheroes, which required them to learn to fly.
Had Rick not arrived from work -he was teaching summer classes this year for extra money -at just the right time, her boys would have jumped off the porch roof without any thought to the consequences. Now, thanks to that particular stint of theirs, Rick had bought locks for their window, knowing they would likely attempt it again no matter what he told them. It seemed those two had this thing where they had to find out for themselves what was good or bad instead of taking someone else's word for it.
It was during the summer breaks Leah truly appreciated their teachers despite the constant calling in during the school year. Their fertile little imaginations were in constant turn-over, both of them quite adept at getting out of minor trouble with their dimpled smiles full of charm, although minor trouble was rare with those two. Unfortunately for her, she fell for the big blue eyes and dimpled smiles no matter how big or little the trouble –were it not for Rick, her two boys would be well in their way into becoming delinquents without comprehension of consequences.
The sound of the front door opening had her looking over her shoulder as she set the knife to the side, putting the cut up potatoes into the boiling pot of water.
Alyx and Andrey trekked into the kitchen, their little bare feet leaving behind footprints -they both preferred running around without shoes whenever they were allowed. Rick stated it was the Quileute in them that had them running around like little heathens.
"Mama, mama," Alyx ran into the kitchen, Andrey right behind him, his hands cupped which let Leah know there was more than likely some critter in there she was not going to like, "Can we keep Skippy?"
Leah took a deep breath as she looked into their adorable little faces, "Who, exactly, is Skippy?"
Andrey spread opened his cupped hands enough for the reptile's little head to pop out, Leah jumping a bit in surprise, "Oh! A lizard."
"It's not a lizard," Andrey corrected her, smiling down at the big brown eyes that stared up at him; "It's a gecko."
"Well, uhm..." Leah bit the inside of her cheek, not at all excited about the gecko as they were. It was almost hilarious how, being a woman who hated bugs and reptiles or anything that wasn't fuzzy and cute, she had five boys -and one girl -who were fascinated with the cold blooded little critters, "Don't you think Skippy would be happier outside?"
"Ty says he keeps your flowers bug free," Alyx hugged her jean clad leg, his small feet stepping on hers, "But he's lonely -he needs a friend."
"Slinky will be his friend," Andrey spoke up as he moved closer to her, not seeing how she nearly climbed onto the counter to keep distance from the little green reptile in his hands, "They'll get along really good. Promise."
She stared into their puppy dog eyes, knowing she wasn't going to be able to say no but there was one more thing she needed to ask, no matter how hesitant she was about the answer, "Uhm...who's Slinky?"
"Our snake."
Leah's eyes nearly popped out of her head as she squeaked out the hated word, "Snake?"
"Yup," Andrey nodded once as he went back to keeping Skippy from escaping him, "We found him last week in your garden -they might already be friends!"
"We gotta get them back together," Alyx exclaimed, hopping on Leah's foot as he tugged at her jeans, "Please, mama. Please."
Oh, how she was looking forward for school to start.
