“They’re so pretty!” Autumn says when I squeeze through the doorway with a dozen balloons.
“You’re lucky I love you so much,” I tell her, “because no one ever mentions how hard it is to drive with a bunch of balloons inside a car. A couple of them tried to escape before I could even close the door, and when I got on the road, they kept bobbing around, blocking my rear view.”
“Well, thank you for going to all the trouble,” she says, stretching up to kiss my cheek as she grabs hold of the ribbons. “And I love you too.”
Such simple little words that we say so easily now. It’s hard to believe that it was only a few months ago that the four of us were saying them to Autumn for the first time.
“Did they have everything on the list?” she asks.
“Yep. Banner, crepe paper, plates, napkins … I also picked up a couple of these.” I pull one of the sparkly blue weighted centerpiece things out of the bag. “We can put them on the table,” I tell her.
“Those are perfect. What’s in there?” She gestures to a small bag I’m still holding.
I grimace. “My mail. Apparently, it’s been about two weeks since I stopped in to pick it up.”
“Why are you still keeping your place?” Autumn asks.
“I said you could move in here,” Duke says, taking the balloons from Autumn’s hand, creating an amusing visual contrast — giant, tattooed strong man holding a cheery blue and white balloon bouquet.
“Maybe I will soon, but let’s see how things go once all five of us are here. It might be too crowded.”
“Then we’ll move,” Duke says, “like we’ve talked about.”
We have discussed the possibility of buying a bigger house together, but nothing concrete has been decided. “We can worry about it later. There’s still a lot to do, isn’t there?”
“We just need to decorate,” Autumn says with a smile.
While she and I hang the “Welcome Home” banner and the crepe paper, Duke mixes up a marinade for the chicken.
The three of us worked together last night to make macaroni salad, potato salad, and bake a cake. We’ll also be having baked beans, chips and salsa, and there’s ice cream to go with the cake.
As much as I’m excited about all of the food, I’m even more looking forward to seeing the guys in whose honor the party is being held. Even though I haven’t seen them for more than a week at a time this past year, we have had a lot of weekend visits, and when we can all drag ourselves away from the bedroom for an hour or so, we’ve gone fishing, played basketball, watched movies together, and done other stuff I’d imagined doing with brothers, if I had any.
I have honorary brothers now, and it’s an unexpected bonus that I’m very thankful for. I’d have never thought I’d be as close to Trevor, Adrian, and Duke as I am. Maybe it’s inevitable in this sort of relationship, or at least, it should be if things are going to go well.
The four of us are bonded in our love for Autumn, and the bond is strong.
We’re tying balloons onto the dining chairs when Autumn’s phone buzzes.
“It’s Trevor,” she says. “They’re almost here!”
It’s hard to say how much of my excitement over Trevor and Adrian’s return has to do with how much I like spending time with them, or how happy it’s going to make Autumn for us all to be together.
The two firefighters have been hired by Whitman’s fire department; they’re coming home for good. The ironic thing is that Autumn will be the one still traveling to Raleigh once in a while. She got in with two bars there, and they want her to continue playing, at least every few months. She’s also still playing regularly at Rusty’s, as well as at a bar in Whitman and another in Hayden County.
All of us thought Autumn would give up her IT work, but even though she’s performed a few original songs at her gigs, she says she’s realized that she isn’t interested in putting all of her focus into music. She likes the balance between the two parts of her career and seems to find both very satisfying. She also appreciates the flexibility she has to be with all of us whenever the opportunity arises. There’ll be plenty of opportunities starting today.
“Should we dim the lights, hide, jump out and yell ‘surprise’?” she asks.
“You can,” Duke says, chuckling.
“Either way, they’ll be surprised about the party,” I tell her.
While we’re talking about it, the sound of a key in the front door tells us the question is now moot. Autumn and I do yell, “Surprise,” when the door is opened and Adrian comes in, followed closely by Trevor.
“What’s all this?” Adrian asks.
The men’s eyes dart around the room, taking in the party decorations, but they quickly return their focus to Autumn, and they keep their eyes locked on her as they head directly to her and take her in their arms.