Unbreakable

Chapter Six

            I cleared my throat and she pulled away.

            She pushed up her sleeves and washed her hands in the sink in the middle of the island.

            “What can I do for you?” she asked again. I smiled and handed her the bowl of chicken kebabs that I would more than likely burn on the grill the second I put them on. “Do you know how to BBQ?” I asked raising an eyebrow at her. She nodded and I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

            “Don’t you worry now hon, we will get these grilled up real quick,” she took the bowl and handed it to Thomas who was looking at our outdoor kitchen with awe. I slapped Thomas on the back and told him to have at it. I didn’t touch food!

            “What do you two do for a living?” he asked causing my breath to catch in the back of my throat. Think Hope, think. What was it that they told me was my cover? I asked internally scorning myself for not making note cards for our facts. I said the first thing that came to my head. “Jeremy makes his living as an online web designer or something like that,” I chuckled. They looked at me confused and I continued. “I really don’t know what it is he does. He crawls into the office and won’t come out for a couple hours unless he has to pee or he is hungry,” I laughed trying to sound confident. I would remind what it was I was telling them.

            “Oh hon, that makes sense. How is your marriage successful if you don’t see him all the time?” she asked abruptly. “How is the sex?” she asked again, making me spit out the beverage I was drinking. My face flamed as much as the grill did as I tried to calm my breathing.

            “It’s fine,” I whispered barely audible.

            “Oh I made her blushed” she grinned elbowing her husband in the ribs.

            “Stop it woman, you might get us kicked out of the party and man does this food smell good!” exclaimed Thomas. He pulled the kebabs off the grill and I took one from the plate and ate it. It was delicious. The sauce was amazing and they were cooked perfectly. I thanked him for cooking and returned to the kitchen to put out the rest of the food that we would be serving. Jeremy hadn’t come back and it was well over an hour. People were just starting to arrive.

            I ushered people to the backyard and showed them where the food was. They all showed themselves to the food and grouped in clicks figuring out what to talk about. I tried to ease drop as much as possible but people kept coming over and saying how nice the house was or how good the food was. I laughed at Joey when he ate the spicy hummus and dip that I had made. Okay from a jar, but it was still good. He spit it into a napkin and hides to hide his embarrassment.

            There were other neighbors from the block, ones that hadn’t come to our house to give us anything yet. A short woman and her boyfriend were cuddling on a chair snacking on each other’s plates while they made kissy faces at each other. The look on their faces caused a pit in my stomach. I wanted to throw up. I hoped that Jeremy and I didn’t look that that or no one would expect us to.

            I made a mental note to stay away from them. Another kid, in his early twenties was huddled over the food table eating as if he hadn’t eaten anything in his life. I was sort of taken back by the hood somewhat covering his face.

            “Hey there, I’m hope,” I exclaimed, walking over to him and holding out my hand to take in his own. His eyes were dark and grey as I shook his hand. He looked away from me and kept his eyes from making contact from mine. He gave a week smile and shoved some food into the pocket of his sweatshirt and turned to walk away. “What is your name? I asked already knowing he was Douglas, the grandson of the old woman across the street. She was his only family and instead of going to a foster home, they forced him to live with her and take care of her.