Chris was an only child and his mom had died in a bad car accident when he was only two years old. David had raised Chris on his own with a fierce determination to be as involved in Chris's life as much as he feasibly could. He structured his life around Chris, making Chris his priority. David's wife had been the love of his life and Chris was all he had left of her, so he treasured Chris above everything.
Sometimes it was a little hard for Chris and he felt a little overwhelmed by David. Still, I knew he'd never change things because Chris loved his father dearly and he appreciated everything David did for him. They had a bond that was unbreakable.
Chris never needed to go to daycare because David owned his own company and he'd bring Chris to work with him instead. Chris would do his homework in his dad's office then go out in the shop, where he'd learn the tricks of the trade. David made sure that Chris would be prepared to inherit the garage one day, but more importantly, he made sure that Chris always felt welcomed and supported.
David loved to go camping and fishing. He always took Chris with him when he'd go “Up North” for an expedition, instilling that same love in Chris. They loved to go to The Boundary Waters together or fishing on Mille Lacs Lake.
Sometimes my family would accompany them on their fishing trips. Since dad was always on-call with the military, he had to stay within a two-hour radius from the base, so we only got to go with them when dad had leave available. When we could go, it was always a treat to witnessing the pleasure Chris and David received from fishing together.
“So,” my mother asked sweetly. “What have you two been up to this evening?”
I knew the look I gave mom resembled that of an alert deer surprised by the headlights from a car, but I couldn't help it. I wasn't sure what she suspected or where she'd go with her questioning. More so, I wasn't sure how to answer her if she did continue to inquire about Chris and me. Thankfully, Chris rescued me from my dilemma.
“Not much,” he replied. “We were hanging out at the shop while I was rotating my tires.”
“Hmmm,” my mother was nodding her head. Yeah, she definitely knew something was different.
“Where's Rae tonight?” Georgia asked. “Aren't the three of you attached at the hip?”
I rolled my eyes and Chris chuckled.
“We don't do everything together,” I complained mildly, turning my attention from my mom to my older sister.
“Yeah, right,” Georgia snorted.
“Travis went to a friend's graduation party tonight,” Chris informed everyone. “I think Rae went with him.”
“Why didn't you kids go?” my dad inquired.
“You know I don't like parties, dad,” I reminded him. “I have better things to do with my time.”
“Sure, you do,” Georgia commented.
“Do you have a hot date or something, Dakota?” Carolina joined Georgia in the teasing. “Let me guess, your spending your evening with your fictional boyfriend in your new book “plants are more than weeds!”'
As I gave my sisters a dirty look, Chris said, “We thought it would cool to chill with you guys tonight.”
“That's sweet,” my mom replied.
“Sweet isn't the word I'd use,” Georgia began. “I would've gone with boring.”
Georgia and Carolina laughed heartily at Georgia's joke.
“You two are like an old married couple,” Carolina added. “You're bigger fuddy-duddies than Roger and me!”
“Whatever,” I snapped, dismissing my sisters in irritation. My reaction only encouraged them more.
“So, have you two set a date yet or did you elope and not tell us?” Georgia teased.
“No, Georgia,” Carolina corrected her through giggles. “They got married at Dakota's 9th birthday, remember?”
Georgia burst into a new fit of laughter. “Oh, that's right! I forgot about that!”
Much to my embarrassment, my father joined in the banter by saying, “Ah! The infamous ring pop!”
“Oh, that was classic!” Georgia said gleefully.
I was getting more exasperated by the minute. I wasn't entertained at all, though Chris seemed to be enjoying the whole thing.
“Oh, yeah,” he said. “I gave Dakota that blue raspberry ring pop, declaring her as my wife.”
“Yeah, you said that Dakota was your best “girl” friend and that your dad told you that you were supposed to marry your best friend,” Carolina said. To her credit, she looked like she was remembering the event fondly instead of humorously. “You two were so cute.”
“We still are cute,” Chris objected.
“Yeah, yeah,” Georgia said mockingly. “Sure you are.”
“We are!”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Georgia chuckled.
The rest of the night passed amicably, like any other night Chris and I spent with my family. We joked easily, laughed openly, and we played a couple games of Taboo. As usual, Chris and I were partnered up while Georgia was Carolina's partner and mom was dad's. We were all perfectly matched, knowing one another as well as we did. After three fun games, one of which Chris and I won, we called it a night and Chris headed home.
Lying in bed, I felt exhausted. The day had been filled with surprises and emotions I never saw coming. I was happy that the tension between Chris and I had disappeared, but I worried the magic of our kiss had disappeared along with it. It still felt unreal to me and though it was a dream come true, I didn't really know where I stood with Chris now.
Everything was still too new for me to believe, especially since the night had seemed like any other once we'd arrived at my house. I wasn't sure what I was more frightened of; the possibility Chris might never kiss me again or that I'd do something erroneous and I drove Chris away? No, I knew the answer. I knew I couldn't survive losing Chris from my life; he was too important.
“Are you still awake?” Carolina asked softly from the threshold of my bedroom door.
“Yeah,” I said quietly, sitting up. “What's up?”
“Nothing really,” she said as she came to sit beside me on my bed. “I just wanted to be sure you were okay.”
“Why wouldn't I be?”
“Well, I guess I feel bad that Georgia and I teased you about Chris. I mean, I know how you feel about him and though we were just kidding, I can see how insensitive it was of us to joke that way… about him.”
Carolina was so thoughtful. I appreciated it, but she didn't have to worry. I knew everything they said was meant in good nature and not malicious or hurtful.
“Oh, yeah, I replied easily. “I didn't even consider that. Nawh, it's cool.”
“Good,” Carolina smiled.
When Carolina rose to leave, I stopped her by asking, “Carolina, how did you and Roger get together? I mean, was it hard to tell him you loved him?”
“No,” she answered, sitting back down. “Everything just sort of fell into place for us. I mean, I was scared, but I knew it was right. I knew our love was the real deal.”
“With Chris, I know my love is real,” I told her, too shy to look directly at her as I spoke. “I just don't know how he feels or what he wants. I'm terrified I'll do something wrong and lose him all together.”
Carolina placed her hand under my chin and gently lifted my face so I'd look at her. “Give it and it will work out exactly the way it's meant to. When it's right, there's nothing you can do that will stop it.”
I smiled sadly, “But what if it's right for me and not for him?”
Carolina shifted a bit on the bed and cleared her throat. Then she told me, “I had a huge crush on Roger when we were in elementary school together, but he still thought girls were gross. Then, in middle school, he liked me, but I was grieving over the loss of Grandpa Louis. It wasn't until high school, when Grand Ana took ill, that we actually came together. It was actually my need for him during her death that broke all the barriers and finally bound us to one another.”
“I don't want anyone to die, Carolina,” I said
flatly.
Carolina snickered at me a bit. “That's not what I'm saying, dork.”
“So what are you saying then?”
“I'm saying that even when Roger and I recognized our feelings for one another, we had to wait for it to be the right time for us to become a couple. We were too young in elementary school and too messed up in middle school, but we were ready when it finally happened in high school,” she explained.
“Yeah,” I said in acknowledgement.
A moment passed in silence while Carolina observed me patiently. I wasn't ready for her to leave me alone yet, but I didn't really want to talk about Chris and me anymore. I sighed deeply, cleansing my spirit.
“So is that why you're waiting to have kids?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Carolina replied. “We weren't ready to start our family yet. I wanted to finish college before we had a baby and Roger didn't like the idea of leaving me for such a long time alone. He wants to be with me through the pregnancy and present for the birth.”
“That makes sense,” I commented. “So do you think you will try for a baby when he returns home?”
“Yeah, I think we will,” Carolina smiled contentedly. “Now, speaking of Roger, I am off to go Skype with him. You try to get some sleep and just have faith, Dakota. God has a plan for you too.”
With that, Carolina leaned forward to kiss me on my cheek, and then she rose to leave. “Goodnight, little sister. I love you.”
“Goodnight. I love you too,” I replied. “And thanks.”
Chapter Three
“I swear, the news gets worse by the day,” Georgia complained as she turned off the television.
“That's why I don't watch it,” I told her. “It makes me too emotional. I either get mad or so depressed that I start crying.”
“You have to be aware of current events, Dakota,” Georgia told me in an authoritative voice.
“True, but there are other means of communication than the morning news,” I told her.
“That's true,” Georgia said thoughtfully.
“Besides, I don't want to start my day out that way,” I stated. “I don't want to begin my day by being enraged or depressed.”
“Good thinking,” our mom said as she came into the kitchen with a basket full of fresh vegetables from our garden. “You should always start your day with a positive attitude and a healthy breakfast.”
“I always pray in the morning,” Carolina commented. “It makes me happy and I begin the day feeling thankful for being alive.”
Carolina had helped mother collect the ripened vegetables. They were beginning to prepare our family breakfast, as they did most days. It was something they bonded over and something we all benefited from; they were amazing cooks. I liked to watch them from time to time, especially when they were cooking with plants that interested me. Sometimes I helped them, but I preferred the preparation step best. I enjoyed processing the fruits and vegetables more than I did the actual act of cooking them.
Today we were having a sort of omelet scramble. They were frying eggs with favas beans, fresh parsley, and tomatoes. It was a rendition of an ancient Persian dish. They were serving warm arrowroot biscuits with it, which I loved.
Though favas beans grew in a pod, the pod was not edible. I helped to separate the “peas” from their pods then shell them for sautéing. They were cooked in the skillet with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and parsley. Eventually, the tomatoes were added and then the eggs were fried amongst the mix.
Spring was a wonderful time for yummy garden foods. Though the arrowroot tubers were better grown in the tropics, my mom, Carolina, and I planted them anyway. They grew slower in our climate, but this was the perfect time to enjoy them. Every season had new delights, but spring seemed so much more satisfying after the long months of dried winter stores!
Our dad, John walked into the kitchen just as we finished cooking; perfect timing for our family breakfast. He always went for a morning run, accompanied by Georgia. Georgia would always shower and then sit at the kitchen table to watch the news before she headed off to work or class. Dad would always lift weights when he got home, then he'd shower and grab the paper to read through breakfast.
Dad loved to read the paper while he ate. He would share the news stories with us, which were embellished by details Georgia had received from the television. This was how I generally received my information about current events, via third party. I seemed to accept the news and process it easier when I felt a little more detached from it.
Our parents always stressed the importance of daily exercise and balanced meals. They lived by example and felt that their participation encouraged our involvement. This meant that we did a lot of things together, such as exercising and cooking. I really liked that about our family though I was sometimes irritated by it.
Sometimes I just wanted to do things with my friends. I was a normal teenage girl who enjoyed hanging out, going to movies, drinking Caribou Coffee or Starbucks, and roaming the Mall of America. I was less interested in shopping than I was the actual socializing and walking aspect of the outings though. I had never been a materialistic person, but with parents like mine, what else could a person expect?
Though most people thought my family was weird, my sisters and I were fairly popular. I sometimes thought people liked us because we were so different. Perhaps they just found us interesting; I don't know? I thought we were interesting. Still, I think there was more to it than that. I think people thought we had something they didn't; something they wanted. What that something was, I had no clue.
Georgia had always been a star athlete and was a valued member of the “jock” group, both in high school and college. She was in amazing shape and enjoyed rigorous activities. Georgia would run with our dad and they'd also practice kick-boxing with one another. She definitely shared a lot in common with our dad, though I couldn't see where the fun was in the crap they liked to do together.
Carolina was naturally mild-mannered and subdued, but her kindness and compassion endeared her to everyone. She was accepted, even protected by all the different social cliques. No one wanted to hurt Carolina and everybody lived to please her. If it wasn't enough to love Carolina on her own, having Roger for a boyfriend in high school, then marrying him after graduation, only added to her esteem.
Roger was the captain of both the football and baseball team. He was a respected jock, but he was also wicked smart. Both Carolina and Roger were academics and easily found a place amongst the “nerds”. Roger's dad was a surgeon at the Twin Cities Spine Center, so Roger's financial status allowed him to fit in with “the preps” too. Roger's ability to move between the various social groups helped Carolina to do the same.
I was well-known, but I think mainly by association to my siblings. I was never excluded from anything, but I never totally fit in either. I didn't really feel like I was able to move from clique to clique the way Roger and Carolina could because I felt more tolerated than accepted. I didn't mind though. I was blessed with the most amazing sisters, an incredible brother-in-law, caring parents, and the coolest friends, Chris and Rae!
Rae was an amazing athlete and all-star swimmer, like Georgia, though she never bothered to get caught up in classifications. Rae walked to the beat of her own drum and though not consciously, avoided all social groupings. People were drawn to her because of her charisma and intelligence so she didn't have to work at being included anywhere. Rae's easy acceptance, casual manner, and contagious laughter made her desirable to everybody; she was her own clique that everyone wanted to be a part of.
Chris was in the graduating class ahead of Rae and me. Though he got involved in various school activities, such as swimming, skiing, and shop, most of his extracurricular activities were community-based. His friends were of various backgrounds and ages.
Chris was a wonderful mechanic. His dad owned one of the local auto body shops and was well-known in our area of town. Chris often worked at his dad's shop or for his uncle's const
ruction company. This gave him visibility to a multitude of people from all walks of life and age groups, so Chris never really settled on any particular social constraint either. Like Rae, he was welcomed everywhere and often, he just stood where he wanted and people came to him.
Chris was often found working on various construction projects in the neighborhood. He'd always been an avid outdoorsman and he often hunted or camped with his dad and their friends. His maturity and flexible personality gave him access to worlds beyond high school.
I don't think I ever had that sort of draw or natural charisma. I was just a plain girl who loved literature and history. I was fit because my parents insisted that I partake in physical activity, but I wasn't an athlete. I enjoyed theatre and dancing. I enjoyed aerobics, yoga, hiking, and foraging. I had no idea why Rae or Chris liked me, let alone why my sisters and Roger seemed to enjoy hanging out with me. It was a conundrum to me.
I knew a lot of people, but I figured that was by default; these people liked the company I kept, not me per say. I walked on the outside of society in a way, and honestly, I was okay with that. I was such a busy person and my life was so full of interesting and funny people that I didn't feel a need for more than I had. I was happy.
Well, I was happy as long as I stayed away from the news. Lately, there just seemed to be an increase in horrible events and crazy behaviors. I often found myself wondering if the world was going to hell in a handbag. The social unrest in our country alone was enough to make my anxiety rise!
Being a history buff who was particularly intrigued by ancient near eastern civilizations, I knew and accepted the struggles of the Middle East region. It had always been a turbulent place in the world so I wasn't too concerned about the war in Iraq or the fact that my brother-in-law, Roger had been sent on a temporary tour of duty (or TDY as the military calls it) in Afghanistan. I didn't like America's involvement there, but I knew the whole “Big Brother” ideal for foreign diplomacy had been a staple of our government since President Roosevelt introduced the concept.
A Ripple of Fear (Fear of Dakota #1) Page 4
