The Middle Child

Chapter 2

Sasha

“I put the piece on the chain, I did that shit for the haters, made in the image of greatness, I got that there from my maker, skipped over the minor leagues and took that shit to the majors, fuck all that salt they was tossing, sauce got plenty of flavor.” -Big K.R.I.T

I checked my phone to see that I was still pretty early, and that everyone would probably still be getting ready, which was just fine with me because I like all the alone time I can get in the mornings. As I was walking towards the kitchen, I could hear pots and pans clanging, as well as smell food cooking. When I walked in, I found Junior plating the food in a very fancy manner, kind of like how our chef does. I looked at him in shock and confusion, “Junior? What are you doing?”

He stopped and looked at me like I was slow, “Well Sasha, it’s an ancient technique, you see after you cook food, you transfer it to the plate like this here, you know, to prevent house fires and third degree burns,” he said sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes, “I can see that, Captain Obvious, I meant what are you doing like why are you the one doing it, and not the chef?” I asked as I took a seat at the island. Junior placed the plate in front of me as well as a fork. I gave him an unsure look. He saw my face and rolled his eyes, “There’s nothing wrong with it, just eat the food,” he said as he plated the food onto more plates. I shrugged and grabbed the fork, taking a bite. It was pretty good, and I didn’t instantly keel over, so I continued eating.

“To answer your question, I made a deal with the chef, he let’s me cook breakfast or dinner sometimes and he agreed to say he’s the one that made it so that mom and dad don’t find out. You just so happened to catch me before I could finish plating and sneak out, so now you’re the only one who knows my secret. And you better not tell nobody but God, if you do, I’m gonna lie like a rug and make you look like Pinocchio,” he said in a semi-threatening tone.

I scrunched up my face, “Boy please, who I’ma tell? TMZ? Better yet, who actually gonna take the time to hear what I have to say?” He looked away in thought, “Exactly. Besides, I don’t care what you do, it’s YOUR life, not mine. I spend 6 months minding my business and the other 6 staying out of yours. That being said, your secret is safe with me,” I said nonchalantly, “Why don’t you want mom and dad to know anyway? You’re a great cook, you should be proud to share that with them,” I said as I continued to eat.

He grabbed a plate and sat next to me as he began eating, “I can’t tell them, especially dad, that I love to cook, for one this is the only thing that I have that’s mine, and secondly it’s not like I can do anything with it, dad makes sure all my time goes into the business so one day I can take over and continue the family legacy,” he said mocking dad, I chuckled slightly, “Cooking is my meditation, it’s my sense of normalcy, it’s the only thing that I have for myself that no one else is expecting or training me to do for them. It’s the only thing I have that makes me feel like…me,” he said with a shrug as he continued to eat.

As I listened to him talk, I realized something; me and Junior are more alike than I thought. Sometimes I feel like my family forgets I exist and my parents, well, my father has pretty much failed to acknowledge who Junior really is. The only image of him he sees is the image he’s been creating of him. I feel sorry for Junior. I mean it’s one thing to be forgotten, but it’s worse to lose yourself, essentially becoming someone else’s puppet, and it’s even worse when that someone else is a parent. When it’s a parent you feel like you have no choice but to be what they want you to be, because all you want to do is make them proud of you.

I guess I’m not the only one who has it rough in this house.

I nodded my head in understanding, “Trust me, I get it. Sometimes I wish I didn’t understand so much, but all I can tell you is, through all the extra layers you’ve had to add onto yourself because of others, don’t let those layers make you lose sight or forget who you really underneath them all. And don’t stop doing what makes you happy. You only get one life, and you’re the only one who’s going to spend the most time with you, so don’t lose yourself and end up spending the rest of your life in a shell of what used to be you,” I said with a shrug as I finished eating. I got up and took my plate to the sink, rinsing it out before putting it in the dishwasher. I grabbed a bottle of juice out the fridge and leaned against the counter as I took a sip.