It's been a week since Dean forgave Lola, and so much bonding had happened: outings and visits to and from the Coles' and Dean's. Well, today, a Tuesday, Anita and Jerry stayed home; weren't they supposed to be somewhere? The couple seemed busy making little changes to the house; it turned out Anita loved the wine cabinet at the Coles' house and wanted one. Now her man had to satisfy her, but you couldn't say she was, because she kept giving the "not satisfied" look.
"Don't you think this thing would be better in the living room?" Jerry said tiredly.
"Can't you see how cramped the living room is?" Anita asked.
Okay, maybe take a walk to the living room in your mind; imagine it. Here's the description: four chairs, all facing each other, roughly 17 feet apart, with a centre table, very few pictures hung up, a few lamps, four stools, and a TV screen, just one, plus the speakers. As for the dining table, a beaded curtain led to the dining room and kitchen.
"There's a space this cabinet could occupy over there, bae, like they knew you might need a wine cabinet. I mean, look at the store- why do you think it's called a kitchen store?" Jerry said, squeezing past.
"We need a bigger house," Jerry scoffed.
"Well, at least I'm being considerate, showing gratitude to my living room," Anita folded her arms, looking like she wasn't talking about the wine cabinet or the house anymore.
Jerry understood. He dropped the tool in his hand, walked over to her, held her hands, then smiled.
"This is about Dean."
"Haven't you noticed that ever since his father came into his life, my son has been different. He doesn't depend on me like he used to. When he comes back from their outings, we hardly get to talk. I've seen how he relates to the Coles, apart from Lola, sha, but..."
"But... he is still your son; he loves you; he just needs to connect with his father's side, you know. He'd been alone all his life; now he knows he has a family with siblings. Imagine what joy you brought into his life," Jerry interrupted.
"He respects you, and guess what? A mother who loves to see her child happy would do exactly what you did, and you think he doesn't know the kind of sacrifices you made and still make? He needs them just like I need you; he's a teenager," Jerry added.
"That's not even my problem; my main concern is that the same man who was so invested in his illegitimate son's education has just dropped that to zero now that the boy started bonding with him."
"We're forgetting the fact that he has a few months to live," Jerry reminded her.
"Would it be bad of me to wish... you know?"
"Shh... walls have ears, my love," Jerry hugged her.
"Hmmp... I don't mean to disturb the whole couple thing," Connor said, startling them.
"Jesus!... how did you get in?" Anita froze.
"Wait, you guys didn't hear the door squeak?"
"Well, I actually thought we'd locked it," said Anita.
"Maybe you two forgot, but your son is basically six houses away, on the field playing soccer," Connor raised a brow.
"Yes, we do remember; it's his usual spot most of the time, especially now that he chooses to leave school early a lot," Jerry said, smiling.
"So what are you doing here?" Anita demanded an answer.
"I came to get some ice. Dean took a fall and got a muscle spasm, I guess. He says he doesn't think it's a joint dislocation... you know... maybe ice and a little stretch might help. He says there's ice at home; looks like he needs it more often than not," Connor said.
"Lazy boy. Okay, it's in the freezer," Anita sighed, pointing at the freezer.
"Wait!" Jerry stopped him.
"You didn't happen to hear anything when you came in, right?" Anita asked.
"You mean the part where you wish my father dead and blame him for Dean falling behind in his studies?... Yep, heard it," Connor shrugged.
"But don't worry, I'm literally the dumb one in the family. I'm pretty good at hiding things, forgiving, and fixing our family's shit... while my dad and mom get to be the parents," he added.
"I'm sorry, it's not easy for me."
"I get it, ma'am. I lost a brother when he got sick and ended up in the hospital. He lived with cancer for a while. He wasn't the fun guy I used to hang out with, and when the cancer got worse, everything got worse. There was this one day he followed me out to a party, not a big deal of a party, and I did it to make him happy. Then I lost it when he passed out there," Connor paused.
"Not seeing him every day and night was a lot for me. He was someone I shared my happy and sad moments with, and while he was fighting cancer, some other shit happened, and when he died, it felt worse. I didn't think I'd recover. Then I met Dean; it was like he'd reincarnated. I'm not saying I forgot my dead brother, but your son, my brother, means a lot to my family. But you should know, you are everything to him," Connor continued, and it looked like it all landed deep.
"Hmm, not to sound weird, but why do you have this wine cabinet stuck in the store?" Connor had spotted it.
"Where do you think it's meant to be, my boy?" Jerry gave a crooked smile.
"Your living room seems way less occupied than ours," Connor nudged.
"You have three workers, two cooks, and lots of servants in your house," Anita tried to make a point... both men looked lost.
"All I see at your house are wine, food, snacks, and so many photos hung up; no one would notice how occupied you say it is, because the beauty makes it feel spacious," she added.
"Okay, I think I'm just gonna..."
"Yes! Be gonna be going, abeg... your oyinbo dey give me stress," Anita waved him off.
Connor took the ice and left. At the field, Dean sat between Lilly and Mr Cole. Even though he'd been there for a few hours, all eyes were on Dean. The way news and gossip travelled in the country, everyone had already tagged him "bastard" because he'd never had a father to show off, and they had plenty to say about his mother too.
"I'm not gonna lie, those eyes have been on me for a while," Lilly opened up.
She took the ice from Connor to help Dean, and he led her to the spot. Mr Cole smiled at his son; he'd realised it even before Lilly could that the boy hadn't had his birth father around, and now he was the talk of the street.
"They're used to seeing Uncle Jerry come cheer me up, and even so, they still don't care; they spread whatever gossip they think fits the streets. They seem surprised I have a real father," Dean laughed at his own line.
"I'm guessing your mom doesn't come because of that," said Connor.
"Nah... she used to, till she got into a fight that exposed a lot of her past, so I stopped coming for a while, until some of my friends literally came looking for me and she had to give me permission again."
"Do most of the boys go easy on you?" Lilly asked, wiping the ice's sweat off his knee.
"Most of them," Dean smiled, and when his siblings and father looked up, they understood the smile.
"Hi," a dark-skinned girl passing by waved at Dean; she looked like she was maybe sixteen.
"Hi," Dean waved back with a smile, and the others raised their brows in suspicion.
"Hey! Hi!" Lilly walked over to her and shook the girl's hand. Dean felt embarrassed; no one could stop Lilly once she got moving.
"My name is Lilly. I'm Dean's little sister, and that's our big brother and my dad," Lilly said, brimming with excitement.
"Come meet his family. I can tell you two are friends, the way he smiles at you and you at him," she continued, dragging her along to where her brother and father sat.
"Oh!" A flower dropped from the girl's hand as Lilly dragged her along. Dean rushed to pick it up.
"Thanks, frog," the girl pouted. That got everyone's attention.
"Pshhh... yeah... frog... my spirit animal is an eagle," he said, smiling.
"Hibiscus, huh?... for who?"
"Purple hibiscus, a hope flower," she smirked.
"Okay!!... It's a nice flower," Dean blushed.
"You two seem to know a lot about each other," Lilly smirked.
"We're classmates; we go to the same school. Her name's Nikka," Dean smiled. He could feel his heart pounding faster than he'd expected.
"So you're not going to introduce me to your dad?" Nikka asked.
"I was thinking the same thing," Mr Cole scoffed.
"Nikka, meet my dad, my older brother, and my little sister; she's a twin."
"It's like your father did all the work... like he vomited you out," Nikka smiled politely.
"Well... thank you."
"Dad!... this is about him and her!" Connor cut in.
"And hey... everyone... like I said before... this is Nikka, and she and I are classmates."
"Hi Nikka!!!" they chorused.
"Nice flower, by the way!... I hope it gives your love life a perfect ending," Lilly said. Connor pinched her.
"Thank you... I'm glad Dean finally gets to see his father; he sure won't feel alone. He has siblings," Nikka said, a bit seriously, hinting that she thought Dean was a little nerdy.
"Are you saying he acts nerdy at school?" Connor asked.
"No!!... not at all... it just earned him a bit of a name around the neighbourhood."