* * * *
“Nightmares suck.” A few short hours later, Bryn lay in bed staring at the ceiling. A crack in the plaster traveled the full width of the room. Bryn had named it San Andreas and had watched its progress over the last two years with morbid curiosity, wondering if he’d wake one morning covered in plaster and looking at the sky. Light filtered through the institutional gray blinds, telling him his birthday had arrived.Hmm, don’t feel any different.He raised one arm. Not any hairier. A peek beneath the covers showed him a chest still bereft of a single, solitary hair. “Not a wolf then.” He prodded histeeth. They didn’t seem any pointier than usual and he wasn’t craving raw steak for breakfast. “Not a vamp either. Wow. Totally normal. Whatever that is.” Pushing away the remnants of his bad dream from his mind, he swung his legs out of bed. He sat for a moment, shrugged, then went through his usual morning routine before dressing and heading for the kitchen.
The moment he walked in, ten eager faces turned his way. Expressions ranged from boredom to curiosity to outright fascination. Bryn held up a hand. “Before any of you brats say a word, no, not a wolf, not a vamp. Just me.”
He was swarmed by a crowd of kids who all apparently needed to check him over in person. Summoning his last ounce of patience, he stood still for an entire minute before shedding them. The youngest he tucked under one arm before depositing her on a chair where she dissolved in giggles.
“Annie, please tell me there’s coffee.”
“Do I look like your maid? It’s in the pot. Pancakes are on the way.”
Bryn dragged himself to the coffee pot, poured a mug, downed it then got himself a refill before he resumed his seat. He was no longer the center of attention and conversations carried on around him. He poured juice for the little ones then broke up a fight over the cereal boxes. His head pounded.
“Didn’t sleep well, huh?” Annie deposited a plate of fluffy pancakes in front of him. “Birthday boy gets the first stack.”
“Thanks, Annie, and no, I didn’t. Weird dreams.”
The familiar chaos of breakfast carried on around Bryn and he let it wash over him. The other kids weregreat but his tolerance was limited, particularly first thing in the morning. Annie slid two Tylenol his way.
“Lifesaver.” He swallowed the tablets with more coffee.
“You should switch to decaf and I can’t believe I need to say that to an eighteen year old.” Annie waved a batter-coated spatula at him.
“Noted.”
Next came gifts. There were pictures and crafts from the littlies and the three biggest had pooled a few dollars to get him a black ceramic takeout cup with a skull and cross bones on it. “I love it.” Bryn was genuinely touched. “It’ll be so useful at school. Thanks, guys.”
Annie gave him a hand-knitted black scarf with a single pale blue line across each end. “It’ll get cold at Harvard.” She hugged him and suddenly he was mobbed with lots of warm bodies, all demanding hugs. Tears pricked at his eyes.
“You guys! Stop!” The kids drifted away and Bryn was left with Annie. “That was…sweet.”
“They like you, despite that emo façade you put on.”
“Hey!”
“We’ll have cake after dinner tonight, okay?”
“Yeah. I’m full of pancakes now.”
“I’ve put a little money in the bank account we set up for you…no arguing, it’s what you’re due. A little kick-starter for college books, that kind of thing.”
“I don’t know what to say. Thank you.”
“That’ll do. How’s the head?”
“Pounding. Strange—I don’t tend to get headaches.” Bryn knuckled his temples. “Think I’ll go lie down. Try to catch up on some of the sleep I didn’t get last night. Now I know I’m not…special.”
“You’ll always be special to me, sweet cheeks.” Annie ruffled his hair.
Bryn made gagging noises. “Stop already!”
“Go to bed.”
The next thing Bryn knew was someone shaking him awake. He groaned and cranked an eyelid. “Annie?”
“Hey, Sleeping Beauty. You’ve been out cold for eight hours. You need to get your rear downstairs.” Annie yanked open the drapes, flooding the room with light. “I hope you haven’t picked up the flu or something.”
“Ow, fuck!” Bryn hid beneath the covers. Sleep had not improved his headache.
