I entered the Battaglis' enormous mansion, enjoying how much cooler it was inside than out under the hot summer sun. I padded silently down hallways, through arched entranceways that led to quiet sitting rooms, and across the tiled floors or blue-patterned mosaics. The setup in the mansion was similar to all the Houses with the extended family living under the same roof. I kept to the places where we as guests could roam and unspooled my senses, searching systematically through the house for linen cupboards, coat and utility closets. That sort of thing.
Fifteen minutes later, I'd found them.
Ah-huh!
My parents were always disappearing into the closets of other people's houses. My mom said that how someone kept order within their closet said a lot about a person. Since she'd once been a servant it made her an authority on the subject, and I guess it made some kind of sense.
So it had become my parents' thing that they investigated closets together whenever they headed off to House Gatherings. My dad accompanied Mom, because, in his words—He needed to keep her out of trouble. I actually thought it was the other way around, but whatever-the-fuck.
Leaning a shoulder against the door frame, I rapped my knuckles on the coat closet door—knock, knock, knock.
Silence greeted me.
I rolled my eyes. "I know you're in there."
Annoyance still festered in my blood that everyone had forgotten about my birthday. And that included my mom who had given birth to me for fucks' sake. I banged louder with a fist and the ruckus accompanied my whisper-shouting of, "MOM! DAD!"
From behind the door came a startled squawk and an abrupt sound of clattering metal. Suddenly the door was flung open. My mother's cheeks were flushed pink as she quickly smoothed back the blond flyaways come free from her elegant hairstyle, before fussing with the undone top buttons of her blouse while saying, "And so, that's why someone needs an extra set of shelving to store all the additional winter coats in a closet."
My father pursed his lips and made an impressed, "Ooooh," sound as he nimbly fixed up his wayward tie, and then brushed his fingers through his disheveled black hair. When he swung his gaze forward and realized it was me, he clapped a hand to his chest as he burst into a grin and bugged his eyes. Buckling his knees slightly, he blew out a breath of relief. "Fuck, I thought—"
"Varen!" my mom yelled, stamping a furious foot. She turned a glare on him and pointed an angry finger at his face. "I swear it's almost like you want to be scolded."
His nostrils flared with excitement. "You are so fucking hot when you get all fired up with your prim manners." He pounced on her and she let out a shriek of fright as they tumbled backward, disappearing behind a curtain of fur coats. Behind the swinging coats, all I could hear was a rattle of hangers and wet-smacking-kissing sounds.
OH MY FUCKING GODS!
They were always making out!
I bent over, poking my finger in my mouth, pretending to gag. "Gross! Why don't you guys just go and get a room?!"
A minute later, my dad reappeared with his arm slung around my mom's shoulders. She clung to his side with bright eyes that were slightly dazed and a stupid grin plastered over her face. Dad pressed a kiss to the crown of her head before escorting her out of the closet. As I stepped out of their way, he wiggled his eyebrows at me. "Hey, son."
I hooked my thumb over my shoulder at the closet, and asked, "So what does this say about House Battagli?" Besides the fact, that their son was a fucking bully.
"That they're a bunch of pompous assholes," my father shot back with a full-blown grin and a loud jovial laugh.
My belly and shoulders shuddered with my crowing cackle.
While my mother threw up her hands in exasperation and muttered, "I give up," before storming off down the hallway.
"Apart from Aunt Rosa," I amended, taming my laugh. It wasn't her fault that her nephews were assholes.
My dad clapped a hand on my shoulder. "Too fucking right."
Dad cupped his hands around his mouth like a megaphone. "I'll get the kids!" he called out to Mom. She just tossed a hand in the air to show that she'd heard him. To me, my father angled his head toward my mother retreating down the hallway. "You go accompany your mom to our limousine. I won't be long rounding up your brothers." He paused, frowning while rubbing his chin with the tips of his fingers. "I hope."
We did have a tendency to split and get into trouble.
I headed after my mom while Dad went the opposite way.
I trailed my mother down the hallways and through the front foyer and out of the mansion, stepping from cool shadows back into too-bright sunshine. With each step across the porch, I grew more and more dejected that my family had forgotten about my birthday.
Shoving my hands into my pockets, my shoulders hitched up around my ears as I trudged behind Mom, making our way down the porch steps and down the pebbled driveway, past all the expensive luxury cars to our limousine parked on the lawns in front of the mansion.
It was my mother's curious voice saying, "Whatever is that?" which drew my gaze from my shoes to where she was staring.
I squinted at our limousine, perplexed.
There was something sitting on top of our vehicle that had us both slowing down and frowning. Perched upon the roof of our glossy black limousine was a single cupcake with a yellow-striped sparkling candle burning brightly. Little sparks crackled and popped in the air. Beads of wax melted down the candle's sides and thin strands of smoke wafted from the flame.
It was a mini birthday cake!
"It is someone's birthday today?" my mother wondered aloud, frowning as she tapped a finger to her pursed mouth.
"Mine," I grouched. But my black mood had lightened with the mysterious appearance of the mini birthday cake.
"I guess it's for you then," my mother replied with a sly smile that made me realize she'd known it was my birthday all along. She nudged me with her elbow, urging me to go get my gift.
"Is this from you?" I asked, stepping closer to the limousine.
Golden sunlight bronzed her cheekbones as she shook her head slowly. I doubted any of my brothers would have thought to do this for me either.
Reaching up, I scooped the cupcake up from the car's roof. The yellow crinkled paper pressed back softly against the tips of my fingers. The cupcake looked childishly put together. As if someone had clumsily slapped a whole pile of frothy chocolate frosting onto the cupcake and then haphazardly tipped a handful of blue and yellow M&M's on top before shoving a sparkling candle into the soft cake.
But did I care?
Nope. Because someone, other than my family, had remembered it was my birthday today and wanted to do something nice for me. A thrill zipped through my veins to pound my heart faster. Maybe it was the Troelsen girl with the pretty jade eyes that had smiled at me earlier.
I cradled the cupcake in my palms, made a wish, and blew out the candle. My mother plucked the partly-melted candle away, and I peeled the crinkly paper from the moist cake.
Mmm-Mmm-Yum!
I took an enormous bite, my teeth sinking through the whipped frosting and the chunky M&Ms. I chewed, rolling my eyes at the deliciousness, making nom-nom-nom noises.
So fucking yummy!
I mumbled around my mouth stuffed full of chocolate-y cake. "I thought you'd forgotten."
Mom ruffled my hair, her green eyes sparkling in amusement. "Oh, my darling Gray, as if we'd forget your birthday. We just had to get this morning's social event out of the way before we surprised you."
My eyes widened. "Surprise me?"
Wes, our driver, sidled up and informed my mother, "The luggage is stowed and the Lear is ready and awaiting your arrival."
"Excellent. Let them know we're on our way," she replied.
"What's going on?" I asked Mom.
Behind me, I heard the noisiness of my family arriving. The crunch of shoes upon pebbles, the loud chatter, and boyish laughter. I turned around to see my father carrying my baby sister on his shoulders. Her legs were draped on either side of his neck and she had her chubby fingers clenched in his black hair. "Gray-Gray!" she shouted, her sunrise eyes shining with exhilaration.
My older brother Kenton sauntered up with a flash of white teeth as he shot me a grin. He plucked a handful of passports out of his back pocket and waved them in my face. "This is what's going on, brother."
I cocked my head, my nose scrunching as I considered the passports.
Dad strolled to the limousine, each of his hands wrapped around Ferne's chunky ankles to anchor her in place. "This time, we're going abroad to celebrate your birthday. We'll hold one celebration party on the jet, the other after we touch down." Dad unwound Ferne from his shoulders and passed her to my aunt, who reached for her.
"Come here, my sweet, baby girl."
"Auntie!" Ferne squealed, her tiny fingers grabbing at Aunt Valarie's cheeks, squeezing them lovingly.
Dad leaned his back against the limousine and fished out a cigar from the breast pocket of his blazer. He lit it and expelled out a cloud of smoke before grabbing hold of my mother and drawing her into one of his familiar embraces. She rested her back against his front, tracing one of her hands back and forth over his arm that banded around her middle keeping her there.
She slid sideways, staring up at him with a wicked glint in her eyes as she stole his cigar from his pinched fingers. Straightening she puffed away on the cigar, grinning madly at my father's stifled cuss.
"Where are we going?" I gasped, my eyes flaring wide with building excitement.
"Japan!" Jett howled, jumping up and punching a fist into the air.
"The Hokkaido Festival," Caidan added, giving me the tipped-up-bro chin.
"No,"— fucking—"way!" I bellowed, my fingers clenching around the squishy cupcake tighter. I knew it! I just fucking knew why we were going there.
It was my father who was the one to say in a loud booming voice, sweeping a hand through the air dramatically. "The Wall of Death!"
Ferne asked in her tiny baby voice, "What's that, Gray-Gray?"
"Motorcycle tricks," I replied to my baby sister. "The bikers drive around the side of an enormous wooden barrel. It's harder than the Globe of Death." Holy shit, this was going to be awesome. I grinned at Mom. "Best birthday ever!" I'd been wanting to see the Japanese biker tricks in person since I'd seen a clip of them on YouTube.
"I'd hoped so," she smiled back, reaching out with a free hand, trying to wipe crumbs of chocolate cake from the side of my face while I batted her mom-hand away.
"Right, Crowthers, in the car now, we have a plane to catch," my father ordered, snapping his fingers. Before he let Mom go, he nicked his cigar back from her and bowed his head to growl into her ear, "I want to collect another stamp for my Mile-High Club, tabby cat."
I had no fucking idea about this club he belonged to, only that he was always going on about collecting these special stamps for his booklet every time we flew anywhere.
My mother rolled her eyes and pushed free from his embrace. Her soft yellow dress swayed around her hips she walked backward with a toothy grin and cheekily winked, "We'll see how you behave, Mr. Whiskers."
"Badly. Your favorite kind," he shot back.
Wes opened up the limousine's door and my brothers clapped me on the shoulder with a 'Happy Birthday, bro' as they passed by to pile inside our car. My father and aunt ducked in behind them. Inside the vehicle, I heard the muffled chatter; the squealing laughter from Ferne and calls for 'More!' as she was tossed back and forth between Kenton and Caidan; and the good-natured arguing between my father and his twin, Aunt Val.
I finished my mouthful of birthday cake before nudging my mother with my elbow. "Thanks, Mom."
She arched an eyebrow and gave me the stern mom-face. "You can thank your father for that one. I was quite happy to go to Disneyland."
I rolled my eyes, spreading my arms wide and waving my hands about myself. "Come on, Mom. I'm not a baby anymore. That place is for little kids." Hells, I was almost as tall as she was now that I was a godsdamned teenager.
A female voice calling out had our attention swinging wide. Marissa Wychthorn greeted my mother with a bright smile and a cheery wave. "Tabitha!" She was standing next to her family's limousine with its tinted windows rolled down.
My mother waved back. "Hi, Marissa!"
Not quite finished with eating my birthday cupcake, I followed my mother as she wandered up to speak with her best friend.
Byron was saying his farewells to the Battaglis, including a nervous-looking Rocco, while trying to usher his youngest daughter toward their limousine. Nelle was making it difficult for him. She wore the tiny pink headphones, flashing a missing tooth-gapped grin as she bopped around, listening to a song. Sending my senses spiraling across the lawn, I listened in, curious to know what song was flowing through her headphones. I didn't know why I bothered. A second later, her too-big skirt swung around her legs as she kicked up her tiny feet, half-dancing half-swaggering around the garden avoiding her father's reach. Her shrill little pipsqueak voice sang loudly along with Lily Allen's song. I was pretty fucking sure she'd purposely picked the song because it gave her leeway to swear as much as she liked while tossing a fuck you to Rocco Battagli.
I couldn't help laughing around the mouthful of cake, fuck you, very very much, indeed.
Byron managed to get hold of Nelle, swinging her up into her arms with a "Time to go, little Missy." He gave me a quick smile as he strode past and ducked into the limousine with his daughter.
I stayed beside Mom as she chatted to her friend, organizing to meet her for afternoon tea at the Monarch Towers later on next week. As I munched on my chocolate cupcake, I glanced inside the limousine and spied Nelle yanking her headphones off and settling herself down on the leather seat beside her older sister Evvie. She crossed her legs and then began to lick frosting from her tiny fingers.
"Mmm," I hummed, relishing the sweet chocolate melting over my tongue.
I spied Evvie frowning as she fussed with Nelle's hair. "Look at the state of you. You've got leaves stuck in your hair, your skirt is torn, and you've got chocolate frosting smeared everywhere."
Huh?
My chewing slowed, slowed right down until I was chewing like a cow on cud as my slow-ass mind processed what Evvie had just said.
A second later my heart jolted.
I sucked in a long whistling breath, my eyes rounding and bouncing between the remains of the cupcake in my hand to Nelle's chocolatey sticky fingers and back to my birthday cupcake again.
No fucking way!
Surely not?
Nelle had left me the mini birthday cupcake?
Maybe she wasn't such a spoiled brat after all.
Inside the limousine, Nelle glowered at her older sister and squiggled sideways to get away from Evvie's preening fingers.
She froze, suddenly wincing as if she'd sat on something hard.
Scowling, she twisted sideways and dug her hand into the pocket of her floaty skirt, and pulled something small out. Tendrils freed from the puffy crown of pale blond hair bounced sideways as she tilted her head, squinting curiously at the acorn pinched between her fingertips.
"What's this?" Evvie gasped. She stopped fussing with her little sister's hair to peer at the acorn closer.
It had seemed fitting to transform the acorn into something else while I'd been shadowing Nelle after seeing her perched up in the oak tree dealing to the Battagli bully. My fingers had worked on their own accord, carving feathering lines into its wooden sides.
"Oh my gosh ... This is so cute," Evvie gushed, smiling in astonishment and delight. "Look, Lise, someone's carved the acorn to look like a little bird."
"An owl," gasped Annalise, leaning over the space separating the seats to inspect the acorn bird better. "Who made it for you?"
"Don't know," replied Nelle, hitching a shoulder. "I just found it in my pocket."
I grinned, munching away on my delicious birthday cupcake as Marissa said her farewells to my mother before sliding into the limousine. The Wychthorns' driver closed the car door behind her and then rounded the vehicle to get behind the wheel. My mother waved goodbye to Marissa through the open window while I covertly watched the Wychthorn sisters ooh and ahh over the owl acorn.
"I wonder who it could have made it?" Annalise wondered aloud, her fingers brushing over the feathery cuts in the acorn that gave it the appearance of wings. "Who do you think it was?"
"It's the cutest little bird I've ever seen," sighed, Evvie. "Don't you think so, Nelle?"
"Meh," Nelle grouched while pulling a whatever-face just at the same moment she glanced out of the limousine window and our gazes collided. I watched her big eyes flare wide with astonishment as she suddenly clicked, her gaze ricocheting between me and the acorn owl and then back to me again. Her grays then narrowed and fired with dark mischief. Slowly, deliberately, while holding my blacks she flung her arm back—
And threw the acorn out the window.
My mouth fell open as I watched the acorn owl soar through the air to land on the ground and bounce across the lawn.
As the Wychthorns' limousine rolled away, so too did the sounds of Nelle's sisters' shrieks of disbelief.
My mother had witnessed it too.
And the pair of us stared at the little acorn bird tucked amongst the thick blades of grass.
"Nelle certainly is a handful," my mother murmured with amusement dusting her tone.
I huffed a laugh. "She sure is something." That girl, even at seven years old was wicked mean.
"Whoever she ends up with ... Good luck to them."
Fuck, yes.
I strode forward and bent down to scoop up the owl acorn. Straightening, I tucked it into my pocket just as my mother looped an arm around my shoulders and pressed a kiss to my temple. "Come on, let's go celebrate your birthday."
I let out a whoop of joy. "Hells-gate, yes!" Wrapping my arms around my mom I gave her a big, squeezy hug. "Thanks so much, Mom."
She pulled back to see me better. Beaming brightly, her green eyes sparkled with deep emotion as she chucked me under the chin. "Oh, my precious tamer, I'd do anything for you."
And I'd do the same for you too, Mom.
~THE END~