Steve, 13, and Bryant, 9, are two brothers spending two weeks of their summer vacation at their grandparents' house in Wilmington, North Carolina. They enjoy the spacious backyard where they can run and play with the neighbor's kids. They also have fun at the neighborhood pool and help with gardening chores. They love to spray water on the plants, the grass, and each other. Sometimes, grandma and other kids join them in the water fight. They help grandma bake cakes and pies, which they savor afterwards. Their favorite activity is fishing with granddad on Saturday mornings.
Bryant and Steve are spending Monday afternoon at their grandparents' house. Their granddad is at work and their grandma is watching her favorite soaps on TV in the living room. Bryant wakes up from a nap and goes to the bathroom. After he finishes, he sees Steve in the kitchen making a turkey and cheese sandwich with lettuce. Bryant decides to join his older brother and make a sandwich for himself too. They want to have Kool-Aid with their sandwiches, but when they look in the refrigerator, they find that the pitcher with the Kool-Aid is almost empty. The brothers decide to make some more and Steve goes to the pantry closet to get a plastic gallon of water. He takes the bottle, which is half full, to the kitchen counter and twists the cap off. He doesn't notice that the bottle has a red-letter X on it or that it smells strange. He pours himself a glass and takes a sip, making a face. Bryant does the same and makes a face too. They sit down at the kitchen table after mixing the Kool-Aid with this weird-tasting water, which smells like strong alcohol. They each pour themselves a glass and eat their sandwiches, talking and joking. They also add ice and finish almost the whole bottle. Soon, Bryant starts feeling woozy and wants to pass out. Steve wonders why his little brother is feeling sick and slurring his words. He stands up and feels slightly dizzy too. He sits back down and giggles silly with Bryant's head on the kitchen table, unconscious.
Grandma enters the kitchen and sees the boys asleep. She tries to wake them up and take them to bed, but then she notices the almost empty bottle with the X on it. She gasps, realizing that her grandsons drank the corn liquor mixed with cherry Kool-Aid that belonged to her husband. The boys had mistaken the hooch for water. She manages to drag both boys from the kitchen table. She puts one in bed and the other on the living room couch.
Steve wakes up on the living room couch with a hangover. He sees Bryan, who also has a hangover and feels dizzy and nauseous. Their grandfather is sitting in his recliner and says, "Evening boys, I see you almost drank all my corn." Steve says "huh". "My corn liquor, you boys mixed my hooch with Kool-Aid, got drunk and passed out. I should whip both your behinds with my belt, but I think you've suffered enough with your hangovers (laughing). And I made something for you two, drink up boys." Their granddad hands them a glass of something. Bryant takes a sip and says, "Grandpa, this tastes nasty." Steve agrees and makes a disgusted face. Grandpa says, "It's not supposed to taste good; it's supposed to make you feel better, drink up boys." A few minutes later, Bryant jumps off the bed and runs to the bathroom, almost tripping over himself. Grandpa laughs as he watches him. Steve is about to do the same.
The boys never touched their granddad's potent liquor again after that incident, and they didn't receive any punishment, because their grandparents thought that the boys' hangover, vomiting and diarrhea were enough of a lesson. The boys still had a good time and asked their grandparents and their parents if they could stay for the whole summer. Their father agreed, as long as they steered clear of their grandpa's hooch, and he laughed when he heard what had happened and the consequences. Their grandfather and grandmother also consented, and the boys avoided their grandfather's corn liquor as if it were the plague whenever they saw it.
THE END.
