Secrets Left Neglected

Chapter 44

BEFORE

Tadhg

I tap my knuckles on the worn screen door vibrating the thin metal against my hand. I can hear Caoilainn giggling in the kitchen with her grandmother. Music from the forties drifts through the screen door as Mrs. McKittrick shuffles forward to open it for me.

"Hello, Tadhg," she welcomes me cheerfully. "Come on in. We were just getting ready to make some Irish pancakes with blueberries. Would you like some before we have our language lessons?"

I step inside and shrug off my windbreaker. Turning to hang it on one of the hooks next to the door, I reply, "Sure, that sounds great, Mrs. McKittrick."

Caoilainn's grandmother is tutoring me in Irish. My mother wants me to learn it and I enjoy getting to know my culture through the language. Plus it comes in handy when Caoilainn and I want to speak to one another and not have someone else understand what we're saying.

As I turn around from the hooks Caoilainn comes at me with an apron and I step back. "What are you doing?" I ask eyeing the ruffled thing skeptically.

"Putting an apron on you. Duh," Caoilainn sighs rolling her eyes. When she starts moving forward again I take another step back, bumping in to the China cabinet to the side of me.

"I'm not wearing that, Caoilainn," I say. "It's for girls. No way."

"But," she whines dropping the offending apron down across her thighs. "you'll be covered in flour otherwise."

Her grandmother looks between us and shakes her head.

"Hmmm, I think Tadhg may be right," she answers taking the feminine monstrosity away from Caoilainn and turning to go back to her linen drawer.

While Mrs. McKittrick puts away the apron I sneak a look at Caoilainn who's scowling. I stick out my tongue at her for good measure. She tries not to but a defiant smile slips out anyway and she sticks her tongue out back at me.

"Here you go, Tadhg," Mrs. McKittrick says standing up and handing me an old t-shirt. "You can borrow this one. Caoilainn's grandfather wears this old button up when he has something messy to do out here in the kitchen."

I look down at the care-worn garment and smile. It's a little beat up but it's much better than the apron of ruffles. Shrugging it on, I turn to look at Caoilainn who's busy gathering ingredients. When she bends over to grab the blueberries from the shelf on the fridge I almost swallow my tongue. Oh boy. I hadn't noticed before that Caoilainn was wearing a skirt.

Wow.

When I look up and find Mrs. McKittrick's knowing gaze on me, wooden tablespoon in the hand on her hip, and a glass jar of buttermilk in her other hand, I blush and quickly look away.

Crap!

"Uh, here, let me grab those, Caoi," I say, tripping over my two left feet as I move forward. Before I can catch myself I fall headfirst into Caoilainn. As she tries to move the blueberries in her right hand fall on top of the eggs that used to be in her left hand.

Yes, used to be.

A gasp comes from behind me as the reality of my situation crashes on top of me. Or rather, as the broken eggs do. Somehow, I end up on my ass sitting in front of Mrs. McKittrick's refrigerator covered in egg goo. Little blueberries are mixed into my hair as a finishing touch.

Mrs. McKittrick looks down at me sternly while Caoilainn just stares open-mouthed at me.

As I glance up at them both I watch their faces fall and then transform before my eyes.

Before long the three of us dissolve in laughter. Caoilainn laughs so hard she grabs her stomach and jumps up and down begging us to stop or she'll pee her pants.

I can't believe I'm covered in egg wash. Ew, there's a blueberry down the back of my underwear, too. I can feel it ooze as I stand up.

"Oh, my goodness," Mrs. McKittrick exclaims. "Oh gosh, I'm sorry, Tadhg. Oh dear." She's still trying to catch her breath.

"Well, look kids," she continues. "Tadhg's now wearing the last of my eggs." Trying to stop her laughter, she takes a deep breath. "Tadhg, you run upstairs and clean up. While you're doing that I'm going up to the mini-market to get more eggs.

By the time you're done cleaning up the kitchen, Caoilainn, and he gets his hair washed out, I should be back."

Mrs. McKittrick removes her apron and puts her spoon and the buttermilk on the countertop. She hangs the apron on a hook, switching it out for a jacket and her purse. "I'll be right back, kids." I can hear her laughing under her breath as she walks out to her car.

Left alone in the kitchen, I turn to Caoilainn and pick some shells out of my hair. "This is gross."

"Oh, I don't know," Caoilainn teases, leaning forward over the back of one of Mrs. McKittrick's kitchen chairs. "I think it makes you look kind of handsome."

"Oh, you do, do you?" I ask her, stalking closer while she backs up, a look a sudden fear in her eyes.

"Tadhg," she asks cautiously. "What are you up to?"

As I move closer I shoot a hand out and grab ahold of the sprayer nozzle next to Mrs. McKitrick's spigot.

"You wouldn't dare!" Caoilainn exclaims, backing up as far into the corner of the kitchen as she can before bumping into the wall.

"Oh, but I would," I reply devilishly. "I most certainly would!"

I turn on the facet and clamp down on the nozzle. Within seconds we're both covered in water. "Tadhg!" Caoilainn screams between giggles and water. "Tadhg, stop! Oh my goodness, TADHG!"

With all the water on the floor, I slip and lose my grip on the nozzle. Caoilainn promptly leaps forward, dodging my outstretched hands and grabs a hold of it. While she's near the sink edge she also grabs the nearby bottle of dish soap. Squealing as I take hold of her ankle, and pull her into my arms, Caoilainn upends the soap on my head. "My grandmother said to help you get cleaned up. Well, take that, Tadhg Madoc!"

"I can't believe you just did that, Caoilainn Noreen!" I'm hysterical with laughter and decide to have Caoilainn join me. Full of soapy fingers, we roll on the floor, trying soap-slime one another. Then, I'm tickling her and she's screaming hysterically about needing to pee again. In our laughter we eventually roll into the cabinets with a dull thud. Coming to a stop, I look down into Caoilainn's eyes and stare at her.

Man, she's beautiful.

I could lean forward and kiss her right on the mouth, and then---when my body betrays me, I leap backwards as if I were lit on fire. Son of a bitch, where did that come from? I think to myself.

"Tadhg?" Caoilainn laughs, catching her breath. "What's wrong? Did I hurt you?"

I stare at her in response.

"No," I finally manage after a second of silence. "No, I'm good."

"Oh, ok," she says in a huff. Looking around the kitchen, which is now a complete disaster, Caoilainn sits up and wraps her arms around her knees. She leans her chin forward on them and sighs. "I guess we better clean this mess up before my grandmother returns."

"Yeah," I say quietly. My equilibrium having returned, I stand up and reach down to help Caoilainn to her feet. "Yeah, let's clean up in here first, and then will you help me upstairs with my hair? I'm kind of a mess."

"Of course," Caoilainn replies, smiling. "I'll always help you, Tadhg. Come on, let's go. We'll do this together."