“Well, look who it is. I’m so glad we are worthy of your attention,” Aunt Rosey says.
After Dad left us, my aunt thought it was a great idea for us to move into her house. It’s large with plenty of room. She nagged my mom until she gave in. Andshe’sthe younger one by two years.
You would think they were twins if you didn’t know much about them. They both have strawberry blond hair, hazel eyes, and freckles scattered on their face. I look like a spitting image of my dad, as does my sister, Addie. Unfortunately, his genes are strong.
You can tell them apart by how they dress. Aunt Rosey has a boho beach style, always wearing long, flowy skirts or a dress that shows off her tattoos. She doesn’t have as many as I do, but she’s the one who got me into them.
My mom is your typical coastal mom, always in light blues, different shades of white, sage green, and tan. Every day she wears the necklace I bought her for Christmas when I was eighteen. A simple chain necklace with a turtle charm. Her favorite sea animal.
“Who is that handsome man standing in front of us?” my mom says.
I playfully roll my eyes and walk up the steps to the porch.
“Can I get you a drink? Water, lemonade, tea, beer? It’s notyourbeer, but you know, hospitality and all.” Rosey waves her hand.
My hand holds my chest, and I close my eyes, “My own family, how could you?” I open my eyes and smile.
“Rose, stop messing with your nephew and get him a drink.”
Aunt Rosey gets up, muttering something under her breath about my mom, which she ignores.
“Come sit.” My mom pats the seat of the other wicker chair next to her, smiling at me like she hasn’t seen me in months instead of days.
Growing up, my mom overcompensated, showing extra love after my dad left. Sometimes, it felt like she was trying to protect us so much that it felt forced. I never blamed her for doing that. She wanted us to know that it wasn’t our fault. But how do you convince a small child that a parent leaving you isn’t your fault?
Just to make her feel better, I would always nod my head in understanding, give her a kiss on the cheek, and tell her I love her.
My body slumps into the chair, and I let out an exaggerated sigh. I let my head fall back and close my eyes for a moment, but when I do, all I see is Ellie. The way her hair always smells like vanilla and strawberries, how the sun makes the swirls of blue in her eyes look like a calming sea, or when you get her to laugh just hard enough that a snort slips out of her, making her laugh harder.
“Penny for your thoughts?” my mom asks, taking me away from those crystal-clear eyes.
“Ellie’s back in town,” I reply quietly, turning my head to look at my mom.
She smiles at me and nods. “Your sister told me after you and Ellie left the brewery. How is she doing?”
“Addie didn’t tell you why she came home?” I arch a brow.
“All she mentioned was something about an ex-boyfriend and her job. Ex-boyfriend, I assume she’s talking about Charlie?”
My face grimaces when she says his name. I try not to let him have that effect on me, but the guy sucks. I had no issue with him when they first started dating—of course I wallowed in despair when I saw that she was moving on, but if she was happy, then I was happy. As the years went on and I got to know him more, there were things that I noticed that made me question him as a person.
There was one time we went to the Christmas market that Dove Point has for the season. Ellie came across a booth where there were handmade aprons. There was one that she wanted. The color was off-white, with these little flowers embroidered on the upper half of the apron and then on each pocket on the bottom.
I remember the look on her face when she saw it. She let out a small gasp, her eyes bright with excitement at what she’d found. Ellie said she absolutely needed to get it, but Charlie told her she had enough at home and that there wasn’t enough space.
Her mood completely changed after that. After we were done walking around, I went back to that booth and bought it for her as a Christmas present. When she opened it in front of Charlie, all he did was glare at me while I had a smug smile on my face the entire time.
The screen door opens, and I’m jolted out of my memories when Aunt Rosey comes back out with my drink. She hands me fresh lemonade and then sits down.
“So,” Aunt Rosey says, “what's going on with that blond guy? The one with Ellie. Are they still going out?”
I rub the stubble on my jaw. “No, they’re not together right now.”
“Oh no, what happened?” Mom asks gently.
“Well, from what Ellie told me, she was dealing with a lot of stuff at work. I guess she was so wrapped up in that, that it caused some issues between them.” I feel my jaw clench when I think about what I’m going to say next. “He ended up cheating on her.”
“He cheated on her?” Aunt Rosey exclaims.
