"So was y'all's day?" I said.
Kathy started to talk. She's the one who usually responds to this question. "Well, Patty signed for piano lessons as extra credit."
"I find it very inspiring," said Patty.
"Oh, that's good," I said.
"And," Kathy continued. "Robert was invited to be in the school's baseball team. And he wanted to invite Andrew and Jerry for a sleepover next Sunday night."
"Is your room clean?" I asked him.
"Oh, sure, Spiny. Spit n' span. Clean as a mirror."
"Have you done your chores?"
He nodded.
I turned to Patty. "Has he behaved?" She nodded. "Yes. Very."
"All right then," I said. "After dinner, you can call your friends and tell them it's okay with me."
"Gee, thanks Spiny," Rob said.
"How was your day, Greeny?" I asked him.
"I played with Ellen after school." Ellen is our dentist's six-year-old daughter.
"You didn't get homework?"
"No. We don't get homework for first two weeks." Lucky, I said to myself. I sure wish we middle-schoolers didn't get those five tons of homework we get.
"And as for me," said Kathy, "tonight Richard and I have our date."
"Did you decide where to go?"
"First, we'll go to a movie. Then, we're going to Arnold's." That's a restaurant about three minutes from the Palace. It's a drive-in. But it's styled like a 1950's drive-in. It's where teens hang out. Burgers, soda, fries, malts, etc. They even got a jukebox. Music from the 1950's to today.
"What time is he picking you up?"
"Seven, seven-thirty."
"Okay, remember our rule. I want you in your bed, with pajamas on, no later than ten thirty."
"I know," she said, nodding.
Well, even though Kathy and I are both 14, and she's my stepsister, I'm the head of the family. I gotta make rules.
"Hey!" Larry said. "Don't you want to know about my day?"
Kathy exhaled. "All right, go ahead."
"Well, I joined the French Foreign Legion, I set loose radiation into the city, and I accidentally fired a nuclear weapon at Indonesia."
We all stared at him. Very, very seriously. Then he just laughed. "Kidding! All I did was put a whoopee cushion under Spiny."
Moving on…
We finished dinner, and guess what we got for dessert? Homemade chocolate fudge brownies! Mmm. And the boys had made lemonade.
After dinner, Rob and Greeny and I picked up the dirty dishes. Kathy showered and got ready for her date. Then, I was in the Relaxation Room. I was slouched in a large, $5,937 red leather sofa, reading a book.
Patty was at the other end of the sofa, doing her Biology homework. And Larry was in his black leather swiveling chair, with white headphones in his ears, connected to a mid-size stereo system.
Kathy walked in, her hair set back, wearing just a touch of make-up, a light brown spaghetti strap dress and skirt. And her hair smelled like…peaches, I think. Or was it apples? No! Definitely, peaches.
Let me tell you, when you see your sister dressed for a date, whom you've had to raise by yourself, you get that feeling. Nostalgia. You know. A fatherly meeting.
"You look great, sis," I said, with a wink.
"Just wonderful," said Patty.
She smiled. "Thanks, guys." Then she walked to me. "Spiny, help me with my diamond necklace."
"Sure." I stood up. She turned around while I wrapped the necklace around her…well, her neck. Obviously. It's called necklace for a reason.
"This is mom's, isn't it?" I asked when I finished.
She nodded. "Yeah, it is. She told me once that this was the necklace she wore on her first date with your dad."
"That's the most romantic thing I've ever heard of," Patty said.
The three of us smiled. But I could feel my throat closing up and my eyes got watery. Dad I thought. I really miss him. He'd been my best friend. We were very open with each other. I told him all my secrets. He was warm, gentle, funny, friendly, understanding, and always ready to listen. I don't recall one time he ever got mad at me.
It had been 3,526 years since he'd died, but I think of him every day. I'm sure the rest of my family thinks just as much of their mom.
Even though the five of us have gotten along pretty well without much adult guidance, I've always felt that it would be nice to have a mom and a dad around. If my father we're still alive, I'd still call him "daddy."
My thoughts were interrupted when the doorbell rang.
"Well, that must be Richard," Kathy exclaimed.
"Oh, right," I said.
We all walked downstairs to the front door. Patty opened the door and there he was. The guy who'd more or less stolen my sister's heart.
Let me give you a description of Richard Sorrell. Eyes: brown. Hair: medium brown. Height: six feet one inch. Weight: 145 pounds. Age: 16. Has wide shoulders, thick arms, large hands, and a goofy smile.
I don't really like him. Wouldn't want him as my stepbrother-in-law. Come to think of it, he'd also be my adoptive son-in-law at the same time. You know, since I'm the legal guardian of Kathy, Rob, Patty, and Greeny.
"Hi, Patty," he said, in the overconfident voice he's got.
"Hello, Richard," Patty responded.
Then, he looks at me. "Hiya, Your Majesty, sir." Oh boy! Don't tell me that didn't sound pathetic. See what I mean? What goofball addresses government leaders saying, "Hiya!"
Of course, I'd never tell my sister. Wouldn't want to hurt her.
"Hi, Kath," he says to her.
"Hi, Richie," she responds. Why is it that love is so mushy when you see it with other people but not with yourself?
Then, I said, "Now remember, I want her back by ten. Not a minute later."
He nods. "Yes, sir."
Then Kathy kisses Patty and me goodnight, while Richard opens the door with his left hand, put his right arm around Kathy, and says, "Goodnight, everyone."
After the door closed, we heard car doors opening and closing, the sound of a dark green 2014 Hyundai Sonata engine starting, and finally the car engine fading into silence.
After a tense silence, Patty said, "What do you think?"
I walked up to her and said, "What do you think?"
"What do you think I'm thinking about what you're thinking?"
I sighed. "I think of Richard the same thing that Fal thinks of Larry."
"What's that?"
"Yech! That's what."
She tiled her head. "Yech? That's what you think of Richard?"
I shook my head. "No, I think of him as…blech!"
She chuckled. "Why don't you like him?"
I shrugged and we started walking upstairs. "I don't know. He's goofy, he's a C- student…and he's got his own car," I muttered.
"But you've got the TIV."
"You kidding! I hardly think of an armored tornado chase tank as a romantic automobile. I can't take out a girl in that!"
She smiled. "I bet it would make her feel safe."
I smiled sarcastically. "Don't try to make feel better."
Anyways, a while later, Patty and I we're playing tennis on Wii Sports in the Game Room. On opposite teams. She was beating me 30 to 15 on the second round. "Give me a chance will you, Ms. Steffi Graf," I said.
"Not in a million centuries, Mr. Roger Federer," she said.
Boy, she beats me at tennis every time. Not just on the Wii. We've got a real professional-sized tennis court out back, next to a swimming pool. We also have a soccer field, a small baseball field, a Ping-Pong table, a hot tub, a bowling alley, a field for flying model airplanes…
I think you get the idea.
So, Patty and I are here playing on the Wii, then Robert comes in. "Done with homework," he says.
"Are you sure?" I ask.
"Yep. I bet I'll even get a 64," he said.
Patty and I exchanged glances. That's comforting I thought. Oh well. Kids are kids.
"Well okay. You can watch TV for a while. Then I want you to brush your teeth and get ready to go to sleep."
"All right." Then he left.
I turned off the Wii. I said to Patty, "Can you see if Greeny's done taking his nap? If he is, will you give him a bath?"
She nodded. "All right." She was about to leave, when she stopped at the door and said, "What if he's not done?"
"Give him a bath anyways."
She left, while I returned the Wii controls and the game disc to their proper places.
Then the doorbell rang. Kathy's back so soon? I asked myself. Took me no less than three minutes to reach the front door. I opened it and…nearly fainted from emotion. It was her. Lilia.
She had come to my front door. She had her hair in ponytails and was wearing a red-and-black striped soccer uniform. Boy, she looked cute!
"Hi, Spiny," she said cheerfully and joyfully.
Took me a while to find my voice. "Hi."
"How are you?"
"Oh…j-just…fine, fine." I stuttered. Calm yourself I said to myself. Don't get nervous. Talk clearly.
"That's good," she answered.
There was a long, awkward silence. We both looked down. I got chills and started feeling hot and cold at the same time. My legs felt weak. I literally had to grab the doorpost to keep from falling.
"Well, uh, I just wanted to stop by and say hi," she said in a soft voice.
A soft warm breeze blew from the west…east…who cares? Anyways, the wind blew through her chocolate-brown hair. She looked so beautiful. I had to fight the urge to run my hand through her hair and stroke it. I could even smell her sweet perfume.
"Oh…okay," I responded.
"And, to, um…bring you this." She handed me a large glass bowl with aluminum foil wrapped over it. The tip of our fingers touched, sending electricity through my arm. I uncovered it.
"Hey! Blackberry pie!" I looked up at her. She was smiling. Oh, her smile is so perfect. Perfectly white teeth with no gaps or spaces in between. All of them straight. "How did you know that blackberry is my favorite?"
"Kathy told me," she answered. Kathy told her? What else had my chatty sister told her?
"Oh…she did, huh?"
She nodded. "Yep."
Silence again.
"Well…"I said. "I'm sure I'll have love it." Then, I have energy for one more sentence. "If you bake as well as you are pretty, then this pie has to be good."
She smiled. "Oh, well, thanks." She blushed. She looks so adorable when she blushes! I had to hold the bowl tighter to resist the urge to kiss her.
"Well thanks," I said quickly.
"Sure. I'll see you around."
We both waved goodbye and I closed the door as she walked back to her house.
Patty showed up. her sleeves rolled up, and her hands and pants soaked in water and soap. "Who was that?"
"Lilia. She made me blackberry pie." I showed her the bowl. "Aww," she said. "Cold feet, warm pie."
"Oh, come on." I started walking up back to my room. I sat on my bed and started eating the pie.
It's not good. It's great. It's magnificent. Patty came in, Greeny with her and wrapped in a green towel. "I'm done playing submarine, Spiny."
I smiled at him. "Okay, Greeny. Dry yourself, then change into your pajamas, brush your teeth, and off to bed."
"Okay." Then he walked up to me and hugged me. "I love you, big brother." I hugged him back. "Me too, pal. Goodnight." I kissed him on the forehead and ran to his room.
"Rob!" I called out.
"Coming!" he answered. He showed up at the entrance of my room. "Yes?"
"Take a shower, please."
"What for? I'm going to sweat while I'm asleep."
I stared at him. "Shower anyway."
Then he smiled. "If I take a shower, will you give me something?"
"I'll give you something," I said, grabbing my belt.
Well, that made him run! I mean, he ran like greased lightning.
Kids.
Patty had been standing there for a while. When Robert left, she came in and sat at the end of my bed. "Hey, Spiny?"
"Yeah?" I said, looking down at my journal for an empty page, eating pie.
"Do you like Lilia, or do you love her?"
I stopped cold and slowly looked at her. "Excuese me?"
"Come on, you heard my question."
I sighed. "Yes, I love her."
"Oh. Okay. Just curious."
"Why do you want to know?"
"Because she feels the same way about you."
That made me jump. "Huh? What? Who told you? How do you know? Where'd you hear it? Did she tell you?"
"Calm down. I just know she does. The way she's acting, the way she talks, even the way she expresses herself facially, it's obvious she's smitten."
I couldn't stop the smile that spread on my face. "Heh. Wow, I knew that I was charming but, I didn't think she'd notice."
She shook her head. "I don't think it was your good looks or your charm." See, even my own stepcousin admits I'm charming. And cute. What's the difference between handsome and cute? I don't know. Ask any teenage girl who's been in love before.
"Actually," Patty said, "maybe your qualities, like, spending time with your family, being a responsible king, and being an honest student."
"Yeah, I guess so. Well, I guess I have time to think over all of this."
She nodded. "Well, I'm going to bed. You going to wait for Kathy?"
I shook my head. "No. I'm too tired. I'm hitting the sack, too. I'll just watch some TV."
"All right," she said, standing up. "Goodnight, Spiny," she said, kissing me on the forehead.
"Goodnight."
She left my room and closed the door. I put my journal away, and I got under the covers. I took off my watch, which made me change back to dinosaur form.
Then I turned off the lights and turned the TV on.
"Boo!" said a voice.
"Hi, Larry."
He appeared beside me, with a scary mask. Well, it didn't look scary to me. It looked silly. Pitiful.
"How'd you know it was me?"
"I know you, Larry. I've known you for 11,200 years."
"Worth a try," he said to himself. "I was down in the lab trying out the new laser guns and the non-radioactive nuclear bombs."
"Successful?"
"Oh, sure." Then, he had a very concerned look on his face. "Except I accidentally disintegrated your laptop with the laser."
I dropped the TV remote and slowly turned to look at him. "You did what?!"
He laughed pathetically.
"You fool! That laptop was the one my dad gave me when I was nine!"
"Well…look at it this way. Your laptop and you're dad are now in the same state: lifeless."
I gave him the steel eyes and grabbed him by the neck. "You. Are. So. Stupid!"
He smiled. "I reintegrated it." I let go if him, dropping him on the carpeted floor beside the bed.
"Thanks," I said sternly.
Then, he rolled up into a ball and fell asleep just like that beside the bed. Oh well. Live and let live, right?
And that, my friend, my dear reader, is a day in my life. Well, two days. And these were normal circumstances.
I have to be lots of things: King to my country, father and mother to a family of four…well, five, actually. I'm also cousin to Patty, stepbrother to Kathy, half-brother to Robert and Greeny, best friend to Larry and Dimetroodon, student to Sauropolis Junior High, and possibly friend and/or boyfriend to Lilia.
But don't you worry. This is not the end.
It's the start of the beginning. But for now…welcome to my world.
Please leave your reviews! This is my first fanfiction, so please try go easy on me. Thnks!
