The Way You Move

1

~Cait~

I smile down at my little brother's frowning face. "So, you never knew your daddy?" Jay asks, a serious expression on his tiny face.

"No, I know him. I've met him, but I don't talk to him much anymore," I explain. His eyebrows pull in as he starts to concentrate on what he's going to say next.

"Why not? Daddies are supposed to be there for you and take care of you," Jay says, a frown still prominate.

"Well, sissy has me to take care of her and be there for her, so it's okay," Michael says as he walks into the room, picking Jay up. Tanner is behind him, his eyes meet mine and he swallows thickly.

I know he feels bad about Jay asking questions. After I stopped seeing my dad, when I was 10 and Tanner was 5, he always asked me questions about why my dad didn't come around anymore. When we got a little older it started bugging me more. I was 12 the first time I blew up at him about it.

It was a pretty normal day, honestly. I'd just gotten off the bus, Tanner trailing behind me, he was mad at me for one reason or the other. I'd probably taken one of his toys on the bus that day. I used to pick on him just for the hell of it.

Anyway, he started talking about how his dad this and his dad that. He went on and on about how Michael always did things for him, with him. Then he said 'your daddy doesn't even love you,' and I started yelling.

Our house is a street or two away from the bus stop. We we're at least three houses down. I don't know how Michael found out I was yelling, I don't think he would've heard me. However he figured it out, he was standing there next to me within minutes.

I told him what Tanner had said, he was grounded for 2 months and Michael started hanging out with me more at that time. It was the worst punishment Michael could've thought of. He was taking what Tanner had used to hurt me and making it a way to make me happy.

Michael and I have been really close since. I mean, we've always been close. He was always there when my dad would flake on me. He'd take me to do things or we'd just hang out at the house together, watching movies, listening to music, dancing, playing dress up and any other game we thought of at the time. Then Tanner came along, everything changed at first.

Michael was always doing stuff with him, and sure, I was jealous. I was 5 and he was the first man that had ever been there for me. After Tanner had started getting older, around 3, Michael started getting close with me again.

I was 8, I told him I didn't wanna be forgotten again. He explained to me that even though the baby needed his time, he was still there for me. That if I ever needed him, he'd be there. Things didn't change much, though. Sure, I could talk to Michael about a lot of things, but it was never just him and I. Mom didn't have a job yet, she was still in college, so she was always around. It was always us four. Michael, Tanner, mom, and me. Unless mom was at school or I was.

After mom had gotten out of college, she started a job. It was at some big, fancy building. A business. She started traveling a lot, Michael would always stay with Tanner and me.

When I was 12 and Tanner was 6, mom and Michael told us mom was pregnant. She stopped traveling, again. I kinda hated it. Michael and I had gotten really close with Mom being gone all the time.

He always gave me hugs and kisses, every day. I sat on his lap, a lot. I would lay with him, stay the nights in his bed instead of my own. He'd get people to watch Tanner and we'd go out and do things alone. I was happy. Then mom started staying home again, nearly all of it stopped.

There were things that we still did, hugged nearly all the time, he'd take me places, but none of it was the same. It was never just him and me. Tanner or mom and Tanner were always with us. I honestly got annoyed.