From Me to You [Complete]

57

For some reason, after our parents leave to put some dishes and food away inside, they don't come back out. None of us are about to claim our rights to the dishes, so we continue to sit outside as fluffy clouds drift lazily across the sky.

"So, Joe, what kind of work do you do, again?" Jean asks rather coldly. I have a feeling he has been waiting a while to talk tonight, but stopped himself in front of our parents. Joe seems smug enough, but he casually leans back so that he can drape an arm over Ann's shoulders protectively. I look at Michael out of the corner of my eye with concern, and see him looking back. I realize how wrong we were to be excited about their fight earlier.

"I work seasonally, so I get the summers off." Joe seems nonchalant, like he isn't bothered in the slightest by anything that Jean could say or do. His eyes meet Jean's without flinching. Jean stares back determinedly, his face turning sour. Ann's brown hair shields her face, as she carefully stares at the napkin in her lap.

"Is that so?" Jean answers, making it sound like a challenge.

"I vote ice cream for dessert," Andy says suddenly, before Joe and Jean can say anything else. All of us turn to Andy and stare at him for a second.
"Me too," I agree, understanding why Andy wants to change the subject.

"Seconded."

"You can't say 'seconded', you're the third one agreeing," Robert says to Michael.

"No, I'm the second one agreeing, thank you very much," Michael replies in the typical argumentative tone used when talking to siblings.

"Seconded isn't even a word." Robert makes a face at his brother.

Luckily at that moment my dad opens the screen door to poke his head out. "Did I hear ice cream?" His eyes twinkle. "Once you guys finish the dishes we'll go get some!"

We grumble for a few seconds, but eventually slide out of our chairs. Andy casually asks Jean to help him clean up outside just as Ann suggests that Joe can help her rinse the dishes inside. I appreciate my siblings' delicate handling of the situation. Of course, I end up drying and putting away the same platter as always. It's a bit tense in the kitchen but luckily we all finish up quickly so that we don't have to stand around for too long.

There's ice cream at the convenience store where I met Mick. So for the third time this week, I head in that direction. This time, Ann and Joe take up the rear end, and our parents take up the front. Andy and Robert try to take Jean's mind off Joe and my sister, and Michael and I stand in between so that they don't have to look at each other too much. The walk seems to calm everyone down a bit, and maybe also the beautiful reds and oranges in the sky of the setting sun help too.

My parents hold the doors of the convenience store open for us to file in. It's cold from air conditioning, which I kind of forgot existed all week. The shelves are well-stocked, and I can tell there's pretty much anything you could ever need on sale. I glance over at the candy selection, amazed at just how much they have. I should eat the stuff Michael got for me sometime soon. I didn't even check which flavours he picked out.

Everyone gathers around a chest freezer near the cash register. They have four packaged kinds of ice cream for us to choose from. Even though my dad seemed excited to eat ice cream earlier, he ends up getting a red Popsicle of all things. My brother and Jean fight over who gets the last ice cream sandwich in the freezer, and Jean relents at Alice's insistence to be nice to guests. My parents pay for our family's ice cream, and Marc pays for the Lyons. We leave, treats in hand, walking back to the cottage.

Marc and Alice lead the way, taking us along the beach. My parents don't seem concerned about me being on the beach, which I think is just because no one is swimming in our group. There are still a few people out and about, sitting in groups watching the sunset, or touching up a sand castle. One group of teenagers that look a little rowdy are playing beach volleyball and drinking. I raise my eyebrows at Michael as we pass them by, and he laughs back –apparently their behaviour is common around these parts.

Michael and I ended up walking at the back of the group. I slow him down a bit so that we can have some alone time. The caramel Drumstick I'm eating is delicious, but it's still hot outside, even in the breeze on the shore, so it's dripping a lot as it melts. Michael gets a kick out of watching me, as he eats his chocolate Drumstick with ease.

"Why is mine so melty and yours isn't?" I complain, dodging a drip so that I don't get it on my foot. The sand makes it hard to dodge expertly, so I almost fall over.

He laughs. "Well, it's a perfected art. And once you've been eating these as long as I have...well..." He shrugs and gives me a wink. I am forced to stop talking as I try to stuff as much ice cream in my mouth as possible without getting a brain freeze.

"So did you have fun today?" Michael asks.

I consider. Well really I have to lick the ice cream before it melts all over the place. "Yes. Mick and Devy are...well. Mick is really nice. Devy is...interesting."

He laughs. "That sounds about right."

"But I got to paint my nails which is fun." I dangle my hand in his direction so he can admire the colour. They look nice in the orange light of the setting sun.

"Oooo," he says appreciatively. There's a pause as I once again need to save myself from getting ice creamed.

"Did she do a reading for you?" Michael asks curiously.

"Yes," I say, my forehead crinkling a bit as I think over what she said and what Mick told me later. I am still not sure whether or not I am supposed to take Devy seriously. I feel like she just left that decision up to me. I quickly dodge a drip as my ice cream continues to melt.

"So you didn't learn anything too interesting?" Michael continues, still curious, and a little cautious.

"Why, you hiding something?" I tease, looking at him and hoping he hears my light tone.

"No," Michael says sincerely, and looks down at his ice cream. Maybe he heard about Devy's reading with Mick's love interest.

I take pity on him, not wanting him to think I would do the same thing that her friend did. "She just said that I have a lot of positivity in my life. And that things are going quickly. I mean, that sounds pretty generic if you ask me. Nothing too weird." I feel content thinking about the reading that way. Nothing too serious about it.

"Oh, that's good," Michael answers, sounding relieved. We walk on in silence over the sand, watching Andy and Robert harass a seagull until it flies away. I continue to wonder if Devy's reading really had any truth to it without success.

I notice Michael watching me. "What?" I say self-consciously. "Did I get ice cream on something?" I look down at my clothes to make sure I don't have any drips.

"Nah," he says. "I'm just looking."

I blush, trying to immerse myself in my ice cream, especially trying to finish it before it completely melts all over me. Michael puts an arm around my shoulders and I look up at him. He squeezes me into his side. "I just want to make sure we enjoy our time," he says sincerely.

"Okay," I agree. "That's a good thing to want." I wonder what kind of things Michael has in mind for us to enjoy together.

He smiles at me, letting go of my shoulder as another drip falls and I have to dodge out of the way.