Shaun And Lea: Made for each other

Part 8: Parents

>>>

" It's over there" He said as he stopped the car and pointed to the building a few meters ahead of us.
A rustic hut made of solid wood logs, detailed designed and built by Rodie and my father, "pillar by pillar", was how he said when telling the story of how the two of them built the hut.
" It is a family project. Rodie was very proud of it, we would come in the summer vacations to fish in the lake and go hiking in the woods. In the winter, around Christmas, we would spend a week here before going skiing in the mountains. Those were cozy days sipping hot chocolate by the fireplace or around a campfire roasting marshmallows."
"It's a very nice cabin."
"It's a little abandoned, when I went to college we started coming here less and less, and after Rodie's death it didn't make much sense to be here without him. My parents are thinking of selling it since it is not being used and has been suffering from the weather. I don't know if I agree with this, it is a memento of Rodie, selling it is like getting rid of him. Anyway, I can't do anything about it, Rodie left the cabin to them as an inheritance."
"Are we going in?"
"Do you want to?"
"Yes, I would like to see the inside of the cabin."

As we opened the door the stuffy, dusty air made us cough.
"It's pretty chilly in here." Shaun said covering his nose and mouth with the sleeve of his jacket.

"It is, pretty dirty too."
I looked around at the furniture still in the same place it had been since the last time I was there, the armchair where Rodie sat wrapped in a blanket snuggling Donnie and me on his lap. The tears started coming out and before I knew it I was crying softly.
Shaun, who was standing next to me watching the scene, looked at me for a few seconds, a little scared. He lowered the hand that was covering my face and with the reinforcement of the other hand pulled me to him.
We remained embraced in the icy hut of old Rodie.
He wasn't there, but his presence was marked in every corner of that place and he would always be with me whether I was in Hershey fixing cars or in San Jose running the tomato juice.

>>>

Donnie made a point of sitting across from Shaun and I could sense that this had an unpleasant intention. The apprehension for what was to come at dinnertime had made me a little tense, more so because I sensed that Shaun was no different.

"The worst that could happen is that Aunt Lilly and Uncle Carl would talk a lot of nonsense, but thank God they decided to travel this year."
I tried to reassure him earlier while we had lunch at the restaurant near our house, that's when Mom called to find out where we had gone and gave the good news that my inconvenient uncles would not be coming for Christmas dinner.

"So, Shaun, huh? How did you meet Lea?"

"I already told you, Donnie. Shaun and I were neighbors."

"And you knocked on my door asking to borrow batteries."

"Don't get me wrong, Shaun. That's Lea, she loves to borrow and use other people's things. And she usually doesn't return or destroy."

I stared at Donnie already feeling the splinters coming out of him.

"Yeah, she didn't give it back the first time, I had to ask for the batteries back. But she has lent them out other times"

Shaun added, speaking close to my ear, using his almost whispered tone.
I laughed.

"But I didn't care" He continued

"I started buying extra batteries so I could lend them to Lea and not run out. So every Friday when she came to my apartment I'd be waiting with new batteries stashed in my desk drawer."

"That's sweet, Shaun. Did you do that? I need to make up for all the batteries you paid for."
I said, blowing him a kiss.
I felt the eyes on us. Mom and Dad smiled in a polite and restrained way. But Donnie was clearly incredulous.