Sensations

I peeked out the window, hiding my face with the help of the curtains as Joshua and his older sister, who I believe is named Kat, drove away in the direction of their own home. The time that Joshua spent at my house was pretty amazing. We simply got to know each other and I learned some rather surprising information about him. I can’t help but admire his sister for taking in a teenage little brother at such a young age when he’s got the handicap of being blind. It’s a hard task for some families to manage, but she must be amazing since Joshua came out fine.

No, he’s not justfine, he’s perfect. He couldn’t be any more independent and inspiring. He’s the type of person that people should look up to instead of tear down.

When her little car was out of view, I leaned away from the window as a sigh forced its way past my lips. I tugged on the curtain gently, allowing it to slip in front of the window, giving it the appearance that it was virtually untouched instead of it looking like a teenager was using it to spy as if he was a toddler. Getting caught would have been so embarrassing.

I let my mind drift as I shuffled around the living room, re-tidying the couch since Joshua and I had carelessly thrown the pillows aside to be closer. The mere thought caused my cheeks to slowly heat up with an embarrassing blush, one that my grandmother won’t let me forget. Hell, I’m perfectly aware of the fact that she’s waiting for me in the kitchen, waiting to interrogate me about Joshua while my grandfather attempts to act all nonchalant, as if he doesn’t care, though it’s obvious that he’d want to know everything just as much as grandma. The only difference is that he hides his emotions better than she ever can. She wears her heart out on her sleeve and constantly lets her curiosity get the better of her, and I’m not going to lie, I love that about her.

My grandparents are truly one of a kind. It’s as if they’re my best friends trapped in the bodies of people who are that have life experience and wisdom that they’re waiting to shower me with.

With that thought in mind, I quickly stooped down to grab the used paper plates littered with crumbs and the empty water bottles containing only the last drops of water, bringing them into the kitchen and tossing them haphazardly into the trash located under the sink.

“Hey, Grandma,” I greeted, kissing her cheek softly on the way as I nodded towards my grandfather. “Hey, Grandpa.”

He looked up at me and grunted, signaling that he was aware of my additional presence in the kitchen as he went back to focusing on his crossword puzzle. His glasses were perched on the tip of his nose as a look of deep contemplation overtook his features. He always took those silly little things seriously, completing them religiously. What a quirky old man.

“Dayne,” Grandma greeted me with a warm smile, her eyes shining with deep curiosity as she finished washing out the glass she held in her hand in the kitchen sink. She grabbed a dish towel and dried it quickly before gently placing it in the drying rack, making sure not to bump anything else in fear of breaking the glass.

“What’s up?” I muttered, pulling out a chair at the kitchen table so that I could help Grandpa with his crossword puzzle while the inevitable interrogation began to proceed. I can only sit here and hope that it won’t be brutal. After all, I had basically given Grandma an invitation to begin. I’d rather just get it over with so I can continue doing my own thing until I decide that it’s time to hit the sack and allow sleep to overtake me, enveloping me in a cocoon of darkness.

“Nothing,” Grandma said in a bit of a sing-song tone. And here we go. “So… who was that boy in here earlier?” She questioned, quickly pulling out the chair next to me so I was trapped between her and Grandpa with no way to escape without bumping one of them. She leaned over the table, cradling her head in her hands as she waited for my answer, Grandpa lowering his newspaper slightly to show that he was expecting me to answer as well. Annoying old man.

“Joshua,” I said simply, trying to be as evasive as possible.

“And who is Joshua?” She inquired.

“A friend,” I answered simply. I know that giving her the most vague answers possible would annoy her. If I had to sit through this entire experience, she deserves to get some form of annoyance too.

“Obviously,” she muttered. “You brought him over to the house! But… he seems a bit odd,” she elaborated.

“Yeah,” Grandpa piped in, filling in a word on his crossword puzzle as he cleared his throat, his gruff voice ringing around our cozy kitchen seconds later. “He seemed like he stared off into space a lot,” he observed. “As if he were zoned out,” he murmured, using a term that I use quite more often than him.

The slight nodding of my grandmother’s head showed that she agreed with him before she decided to add in her two cents. “He’s got the most beautiful eyes, though!”

“I know!” I said around a smile. “I absolutely love them.”

She nodded her head before waving her hands around dramatically, just telling me to speak so that she can get some information.

“They’re the way they are because he’s blind,” I sated simply. “He wasn’t really zoning out on you guys, but paying extra attention to anything he could hear.”

“You’re kidding!” Grandma said bluntly, leaning back in her seat.

“I wouldn’t kid about that,” I muttered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. She knows that I am better than that.

“That’s surprising,” Grandpa cut in before he focused on his crossword puzzle, allowing us to continue our conversation.

“I know it is and I have so much respect for him just to be able to function the way he does when he has such a huge obstacle in his way,” I said to no one in particular. I was just trying to butter him up if we did, in fact, continue our friendship or more-than-friendship-type-thing in the future.

“It’s admirable. It takes guts,” Grandma said simply. “But he’s going to be a challenge to handle,” she warned me.

Her warning put a pout on my lips because I know she is just stating the truth and her honest opinion. She wants what’s best for me, but she doesn’t want me getting hurt.

“I have nothing against blind people,” she murmured, “but he’s going to be a lot to handle at times. Whether he lets on or not, he’s much more fragile than the average teenager,” she stated wisely, giving me something to think about.

Joshua puts up a front, allowing people to think that he doesn’t give a damn about what they think about him, but there’s so much more to him. He actually worries about his education and wants to do things in life. The way people treat him tears him apart inside, though he’d probably never voice it since he seems to have trouble expressing his emotions at times. He’s been through so many hardships on top of his disability and he sees the world for what it really is, all the greed and selfishness in it, but he plows on anyway. He’s like a diamond in the rough – something you have to treasure and hold dear because you’ll probably never have a chance to find him again.

“If you’re assuming that we are an item, you’re wrong,” I muttered.

“But you want to be,” she said knowingly, reaching out to take my hand in hers in a motherly way, assuring me that she was here for me.

“I don’t know what I want. One minute, I can’t help but think he’s the most gorgeous person I have ever seen and admire him so much, and then the next he’s backing away from me for unknown reasons, making me think he doesn’t want to continue our friendship,” I mumbled, staring at the wall in front of me as I threw around my most recent revelations in my mind. “He’s complex,” I concluded.

“You’re always attracted to the ones who need saving,” she observed.

“He doesn’t need saving. He just needs someone to be there for him. Someone whose not his older sister that he has to trust since she’s the only family he’s got.”

“He’s just distant because he’s seen too much negatives and not enough positives,” she declared. “He’s blind, so he already has strikes against him, and living a life in a public school district with a disability musn’t be easy.”

“He’s been good since we’ve starting hanging out though,” I said around a tiny smile. I’m helping him.

“Whatever you do, I support you,” she murmured, “but you need to give this situation extra thought because it’s different. He’s fragile and needs to be handled with the utmost of care, even if he tries to fight you about it. He seems like the self-righteous type. But if he’s what you want, go for it. You can make a difference in his life.” She said before getting up from the table, leaning over my grandfather and placing a tiny kiss to his forehead. “Now, if you excuse me, I am going to take a shower and then prepare for bed.”

With her greeting recited, she smiled kindly at me before exiting the room, her soft footsteps echoing up the carpeted staircase as she made her way to the bedroom she shared with Grandpa.

I sighed as I turned to him, knowing he would want to get his final opinion out there before dismissing me for bed. I truly do value their opinions. There have been several occasions where my stubbornness and my rebellious streak has gotten the best of me, making me disregard their well thought out advice, only for them to be correct in the end. Let’s just say that I have learned my lesson and I doubt I will ever take their honest opinions for granted again. As disarming and surprising as they can be at times, they’re trying to tell me what they think is best for me, and I truly appreciate it and love them for it. I know that I always have people to fall back on if need be.

Grandpa peeked at me over his glasses before shaking his head, a miniscule smile on his lips. He gently reached up and removed his glasses, folding them up and placing them on the edge of the table on top of his now folded up newspaper, complete with a completed crossword puzzle in his barely legible cursive handwriting.

“I think you’d be good for him. It’s already obvious that you enjoy his company and he brings out your protective side, Dayne,” Grandpa said sincerely before getting up and slowly pushing out his chair, pushing it back into its spot before padding upstairs.

Minutes later I followed him, making my way to my own room and stripping myself of my clothes, deciding to just sleep in my boxers tonight out of laziness. That conversation gave me a lot to think about, to sleep on, but I’m sure everything will eventually be alright.

I’m pretty sure that if need be, I just gained my grandparent’s approval of Joshua.