Epilogue – The Report
Sitting in the middle of the room, a young girl had her head down as she listened to the report being given by her classmate.
She was nervous. Her turn was coming up so she fidgeted with her blonde braid and straightened her headband so that the flower was angled to the side of her head.
Once the report was finished and the student was returning to their desk, the teacher called out for her to take her turn.
Sliding out of her seat, she smoothed out her cotton frock. It was soft gray and reminded her of her mother's picture which was a confidence boost she needed. Her report was on her family which was a complicated subject to explain to her classmates and often brought up awkward questions.
Walking to the front, she took up her position while mentally running through how to give a public speech to help calm her nerves. Then taking a deep breath, she started.
"Hello, my name is Alicia Naeva Abbott Montgomery and this is my story."
My mother was born in Washington DC and although she always loved the idea of international travel, she preferred to stay close to home and read about faraway places. When she was older, she went to work for the airlines as a flight attendant. She changed routes every so often shifting which part of the country she got to visit, but she always returned home to her native Washington.
For a few months, she had the cross country route from DC to Palm Springs where she occasionally saw and eventually met my father.
He is educated, charming, handsome, and well-traveled due to his government work so he intrigued my mother.
On one of his return flights home, she traded duties with another flight attendant for the opportunity to meet him. They talked and by the time the flight was landing they had a rendezvous arranged for later that evening.
Their romance was a brief whirlwind for the few days she was able to remain on a layover. When she left, she had his name and knew he was a government man, but it was a few weeks before she realized the complications of their relationship.
I was born the following spring and she named me Alicia Naeva for her love of European names, Abbott as her family name, and Montgomery for my father. Due to the brevity of their relationship, she never contacted him about my existence but chose to raise me on her own.
Although I don't remember it, we had a few happy years where she worked in the local tourism meeting people from all over the world while still being home to take care of me at night.
Then, one night she was on her way home when there was a car accident. My mother didn't survive.
With no living relatives in the area, I was placed in the foster system and a search began for extended relations. Through my father's name and a DNA test against my eldest brother in an adoption agency, I was matched to my family.
My caretakers took me on a trip and I got to fly from Washington DC to New York where we had an appointment at the agency to meet my brother.
I'm told I was scared and shy preferring to hide behind my foster parents rather than meet the strangers I was being presented to. However, my sister-in-law soon coaxed me out with a treat and made some general conversation to catch my interest. My brother, he was possibly more nervous than I was and left most of the interactions with me to his wife.
After the initial introduction, it took several weeks for the paperwork to be processed, and with my father's consent; I was officially adopted by my eldest brother and his wife.
What few possessions I had were packed up and moved while a guest room in their townhouse was converted into my bedroom.
Our situation was awkward at first.
I still missed my mother so I was reluctant to let Elizabeth take a motherly role in my life and I had never known my father so I didn't know what to do with Peter. Meanwhile, they were each new to their roles and were learning how to take care of me as well.
That's when I met my other brother, Neal. Due to my eldest brother being my father and my sister-in-law being my mother, this made my second brother my uncle.
Falling into the role easily, Neal drew me pretty pictures, performed magic tricks, and sang songs to me until I was able to relax around him. He was the most at ease with a child, something our eldest brother jokingly contributes to Neal being something of a child himself.
Slowly, I found points of commonality with my siblings.
Elizabeth and I would play dress-up, bake cookies, and plant pretty flowers in the garden. She encouraged me to remember my mother and often told me stories of her own. If I cried, she'd hold and comfort me until the grief passed again. Although she's legally my mother, she's also my sister, confidant, and friend.
Peter had a different approach to interacting with me so we went to the park, played games, and he taught me to love baseball. He told me stories of how his adopted father had played catch with him, watched the games, and even took him to a few when he could. I've always loved that he was willing to share that passion with me. So although Neal doesn't understand, I love the sport. It's time spent with just Peter and me.
As you can guess, Neal is where I learned my love of art as it is something he is very passionate about. He takes me to museums and has taught me to draw from our first meeting. Over the years he expanded my lessons into painting, ceramics, and other mediums as he feels I'm old enough or ready.
When I was little, an old friend of Neal's and he began to grow closer until they finally married and I gained another sister-in-law. Sara is an insurance agent so she has a different approach to art, but she appreciates my skills and always insists on seeing my latest works. She enjoys taking me shopping and encourages me to read about faraway places, much like my mother used to. We talk about locations around the world and what it might be like to visit them someday.
Expanding my family through my siblings' friends, I have many aunts and uncles.
Uncle Mozart, or Mozzie, is a frequent visitor due to his long-standing friendship with Neal. He is a conspiracy theorist so he always has a new story or theory to share. Also, he is just as good at sleight of hand as Neal is so he makes sure to teach me a new trick each time he visits. It's to prevent me from being taken in, or at least that's what he always tells me.
Peter has some agents who work for him at the FBI so uncle Jones and aunt Diana are often around for work or just to socialize. They've been on my dad's team for years and are close friends. Uncle Jones tells me stories about his days in the military and teaches me legal things, like what's wrong with uncle Mozzie's theories. Aunt Diana is the daughter of a diplomat so she tells me stories about growing up traveling. She teaches me self defense and says every girl should know how to take care of herself.
Aunt June used to be Neal's landlady. She was a Jazz singer and I love to hear her perform whether she's accompanied or not. Her husband had been a con artist so has so many interesting stories between performers she's met and the jobs her husband pulled. I love their mansion, it has hidden doors and secret compartments so it reminds me of a mystery novel.
Then there is uncle Chuck and aunt Sarah. They're old friends of Neal's who live in California so we don't see them very often, but they play online games with us so we're often in contact. Uncle Chuck is a computer engineer so he teaches me how to build programs and always brings me comic books when he is able to visit. Aunt Sarah was raised a con artist before going into government work so she has so many stories to share about her experiences that I never tire of talking to her. However, she also makes sure to keep me grounded. She didn't find herself until she met uncle Chuck so she encourages me to explore who I am and not get too caught up in who the people around me are.
To branch further back in the family, there is my father who legally performs as my grandfather. He is still a government man, but he has mostly retired from fieldwork and only does the odd training class to pass on his expertise. In an effort to be active in my life, my father calls asking for updates as to what's been going on in my life and gives advice for any question I have. Although he doesn't visit often, he makes the effort a few times a year while usually bringing his long-time girlfriend, the mother of my brothers, along with him. We spend a few days catching up on each other's lives and there is usually at least one event like an opera or an orchestra concert to entertain my father before he returns home.
In addition, I have my other grandparents. Peter's adopted parents are some of the normal influences in my life as grandpa is a bricklayer and grandma does office work for the construction company, which is how they met. Elizabeth's father is a psychologist while her mother works in a specialty foods shop. Although they mean well, they can be difficult as grandpa analyzes everything while grandma sometimes tries too hard.
Finally, Peter and Elizabeth had a son, my nephew and little brother, Neal. He is only a toddler, but he is sweet and I enjoy spending time with him. Elizabeth often lets me help take care of him and I look forward to watching as he grows older so we can talk, draw, and bake cookies together someday.
Little Neal is named for big Neal because Peter initially rejected Neal when they discovered their biological bond due to his undercover role, and although they repaired their relationship years ago, he still seems to be trying to ground Neal and show him how much he is loved and wanted.
I think my mother would be happy with how my life has turned out so far.
Through our shared genetics, I have her blonde hair and blue-gray eyes so I can see something of her in the mirror every day. My family keeps her alive in photos and family videos so that I never forget her while sharing pieces of their own lives so that I know where I come from. Going forward, I have been encouraged to find my own life from their foundation. I don't know where I'll go, perhaps I will pursue art and express myself through different mediums, maybe I will travel to distant lands in grand adventures like the ones I read about, or I could go into government work like so many of my family and become my own hero like what I admire in them. But, whatever path I pursue, I have been raised to do my best no matter what others may think, to do the right thing by myself and others no matter the consequences, and to experience the world around me as it's full of wonders and beauty.
Having completed her report, the young girl deposited the papers on her teacher's desk and shyly returned to her seat. Although she kept her head down and focused on her notebook as she sketched, she could feel the eyes watching her and hear the whispers as many of her classmates had learned more about her than they had expected.
The rest of the day passed slowly as other students gave their reports and other classwork was done while the teacher quietly graded. However, at the end of the day, she was glad to see her papers returned with a large A-plus written at the top.
When class was dismissed, she packed up her bag and headed out to meet Elizabeth. Her sister was picking her up and they discussed the general events of the day until arriving home.
Going through their normal routine for the evening, Alicia did her homework and helped with the household chores before spending some time entertaining herself with little Neal while dinner cooked.
As dinner drew nearer, Peter and big Neal arrived home from work.
"How was the report?" Peter asked while greeting her and little Neal.
Elizabeth joined them and big Neal took a seat to listen to the events of the day after his own greetings.
Smiling, Alicia pulled the papers from her bag to hand to Peter. "I got an A-plus."
"Congratulations! I knew you'd do well with it." Peter hugged her and kissed her head before passing the report to Neal for him to read.
Watching as Neal read through the pages quickly, Alicia discussed her presentation and the tips Peter and Elizabeth had given to make the task easier.
When he was done, Neal quietly lowered the report and gestured that he wanted his own hug.
Responding to him, Alicia dove into his arms and hugged her favorite uncle/brother.
"Thank you," Neal whispered in her ear. "You're one special little sister/niece."
Giggling, Alicia loved the way he always referred to her by both titles. He'd told her he'd never had a little sister or a niece so he needed to get the most he could out of having her in both roles. "You're welcome, brother/uncle. We all love you and you're one special guy yourself."
With her aunt Sara's arrival, Alicia was distracted by showing her the report, but she didn't miss the way Peter had caught Neal in a hug on his way to help with dinner.
Working together, they finished the preparations and were soon sitting down to eat. Looking around the table, Alicia was confident that she did indeed have a loving family and a promising future before her that her mother would be proud of.
Thank you, everyone, for reading, reviewing/commenting, leaving kudos, choosing to favorite, and following :D
So far, the votes for completed stories rank as below which means I'll begin posting "A Tale of Two Sisters" next week :D
A Tale of Two Sisters: 4
The Yearbook Incident: 2
