CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
AUBREY
THE HARMONY that surrounded me when I visited them shouldn't have been anything I wanted to share with him. I shared that with Vick, Katie, and the kids.
Yet, the young girl I'd tried to leave behind, who was so scared of the reservation and embracing her own heritage after my mother died, still lived on here.
He knew that girl and knew my fears. I was conquering them; I’d found a way to love where I came from, even if my parents never exposed me to it, and I enjoyed being a part of it.
He, more than anyone, would understand the gravity of that.
I dressed in jeans and a black button-down. I left my makeup behind. I was going to the place where I was most myself, where happiness met fear and triumphed.
Katie, Vick, and I drove to pick up groceries for dinner. We argued over whether our meal should be healthy or delicious.
Vick, believer in all fairy tales, argued we could accomplish both. We ended up buying chicken, pasta, and broccoli with cabbage. Katie eyed the broccoli and I eyed the pasta.
As we walked into Margie’s, Katie insisted, “If we give them broccoli for their first cooking experience, they’ll quit on the whole idea.”
“Or, they’ll be thankful they have energy and aren’t feeling bloated,” I replied.
Margie swung open the door where Ollie, Rodney, Jasmine, and two kids we’d never seen before waited behind her. “You’re early.”
“Early’s a good thing,” Vick pointed out. She’d been back a few times without me, and I could see Margie was warming up to her from the little smirk she hid.
I lifted the grocery bags. “We brought dinner.”
Rodney, just shy of ten years old, stood tall. “I can take those bags and carry them into the kitchen.”
Katie gave him one bag to take.
Ollie danced from purple shoe to purple shoe. “What’s for dinner?”
We all moved toward the kitchen. “Well, let’s lay it all out on the counter.” I started to grab everything. “You can help us make it.”
Margie grabbed some more vegetables from the refrigerator. “Whip these up too.”
Katie looked offended along with the children. Ollie blurted, “I don’t really like vegetables.”
Another boy who seemed her age agreed with her.
“Simon and I were hoping for Chinese,” Ollie announced.
I moved to start washing veggies and ignored their pessimism. “Ollie, you and Jasmine will help me wash and cut the veggies. And maybe if we work really hard at it, they’ll taste good.”
Both Katie and Ollie rolled their eyes.
For the next half an hour, we all fluttered around the kitchen in complete chaos.
Ollie and Jasmine were frustrated I wouldn’t let them hold the knife to cut vegetables.
Rodney claimed he should be in charge of the stove because he was the oldest.
Vick had to talk with the newest member of the home about not crying when she had to share and Katie almost screamed at Jasmine for barreling into her while she held boiling pasta.
The chaos of cooking with five small children helping was probably close to experiencing a panic attack. I literally thought I was going to die more than once. Yet, when we finally wrangled them all in to sit at the table, the accomplishment was beyond worth it.
“Holy shit. This broccoli is good,” Rodney announced with his mouth full.