Simple Kind of Life

Jeff felt like he was finally making headway with Avery when her attention was grabbed by something in the house. He watched with amusement as the tiny brunette ripped open the screen door to the house and charged into the kitchen. Immediately, she stomped over to a young asian boy and grabbed a beer bottle out of his hand. Jeff recognized him from seeing him next door.

“Aaron! What do you think you’re doing?” She hissed. “And how many of these have you had?”

“Having a great time and six.” He slurred, trying to focus his eyes on the seething woman.

“Who are you? His mother?” The girl he had apparently been talking with sneered at Avery, crossing her arms over her chest. Her name was Natalie and she was a casual acquaintance of Jeff’s. They had slept together a few times in the past, but Jeff had broken it off with her after she bedded Richie. Despite his sleazy reputation, Jeff hated sharing girls with his friends so he kept his interactions with Natalie strictly platonic after that.

Avery’s razor sharp glare fell onto the redheaded woman. “I’m his sister and legal guardian, sweetheart. And he’s 16 years old, did he tell you that?”

Natalie shifted her angry eyes to Aaron. “You said you were 27, you little shit!” Without warning, she threw her drink in the teenager’s face and stormed off into the crowd.

Aaron smiled sheepishly, wiping at his eyes. “You gonna let her do that to me?”

Avery grabbed the boy by the arm and began to drag him toward the front door. “You’re lucky she didn’t kick the shit out of you.”

Partially out of concern but mostly because he wanted to see the kid get reamed, Jeff followed the two out the door and into the humid night.

“Why you gotta cockblock me like that?” Aaron's words seemed to run together incoherently as his body swayed and legs wobbled.

“Cockblock, really, Aar? Are you serious? You wanna go and get drunk and fuck a stranger? Does that make you cool? Do you know how dangerous that is? You don’t even know her!” Avery’s voice was beginning to rise at the teenager, who seemed to be increasingly unstable as he walked.

Jeff caught him under his arms just as he stumbled, stopping him from toppling over his sister. Aaron continued to ramble as Jeff picked the teen up and carried him like a new bride up the walkway. He was amazed how lightweight the boy was.

“You sir,” Aaron murmured, looking up at Jeff. “You are tall. Like a tree. Do people tell you that?”

Jeff snickered and shook his head. The kid definitely didn’t know how to handle his alcohol yet.

Avery apologized profusely while she worked the lock to the front door. “I can’t believe he did this.”

“It happens. We all do dumb shit when we’re young.” Avery’s face softened slightly before pushing open the door and stepping aside to let Jeff carry her brother in.

“Tell me about it.” She muttered, watching Jeff plop Aaron down on the couch. Instantly, he sprawled out on the cushions and buried his face in a throw pillow.

“I bet you were wild.” Jeff teased, crossing his arms over his chest. He pictured her younger, in a catholic school uniform, smoking in the girls’ room. The thought made him grin widely.

“Not like this,” she pointed to Aaron, who was breathing rhythmically as he slept. “I’m gonna grab him some water and aspirin. Can you keep an eye on him for a second?” Jeff nodded and watched her walk away. His night certainly did not go as planned. When he had invited Avery over, he assumed she’d be an easy lay like most of the Jersey skanks. At the very least, he figured he’d get a sloppy blowjob out of her. But no, his charm fell short and now he was babysitting her lightweight of a little brother. Fucking perfect.

Aaron’s muttering caught Jeff’s attention, but he couldn’t make out what he was saying. “What’s that, buddy?” He asked, kneeling down next to him.

“I’m gonna-” The boy covered his mouth as he convulsed. Brown liquid seeped between his fingers and dripped onto Jeff’s flip flop clad feet.

“Aw fuck!” He yelled, grabbing a nearby sandcastle bucket and held it under the teenager’s head. Aaron proceeded to empty his stomach into the pink toy. Despite puking on his foot, Jeff felt bad for the kid.

Between upchucks, Jeff grabbed a small wastebasket to replace the sandcastle mold and rubbed the teen’s back as he continued to vomit. “That’s it, kid. Let it out.”

“I shouldn’t have done this to my sister.” Aaron croaked out, tears running down his face.

“It’s OK, we all make mistakes.” Jeff frowned, staring down at his bile covered toes.

“She took me in, ya know. When our mom and dad died, she took me in. She could of sent me to Japan to live with our grandmother. But she didn’t.”

Jeff’s eyebrows knitted together. “Your parents died?”

Aaron nodded. “In a car accident when I was 10. She was 19 and dropped everything for me.” Jeff grimaced when the boy’s sentence was interrupted by more vomit.

“Shit.” Jeff turned his head at the sound of Avery’s voice as she reentered the room to find her brother heaving and crying. She hurried over, placed a glass of water and two oblong pills on the coffee table before kneeing in front of her brother. The woman pushed some hair out of his sweat soaked face and rubbed his cheek.

“You may want to rinse that out.” Jeff nodded toward the sandcastle bucket, making Avery frown.

“I am so sorry about this. I bet this isn’t how you pictured your night, huh?”

Jeff chuckled. “Not at all. But I’ve definitely had worse nights.”

The woman flashed him a shy grin. “Well, you don’t have to hang out here. Go back to your friends, I got this covered.”

Jeff was thankful she relieved him of any obligation to stay. He wasn’t exactly the nurturing type and he really didn’t know what else to do. Without hesitation, he stood. “OK, well if you need anything, I’m right next door.”

Avery walked him to the front door and leaned against the threshold. “Thanks for bringing him home for me.”

“No problem,” he shoved his hands in his jeans pockets. “Just take it easy on him. I think he’s learned his lesson.”

Avery nodded. “I’ll consider it. Thanks.”

The two said goodnight and Jeff headed back to his house.

*************************************************************************************

It was around 11 when Jeff finally rolled out of bed. Immediately, he had thought of Avery’s little brother. The poor kid probably felt like death warmed over. Jeff knew exactly what would help him feel better. After hopping in the shower and throwing on a t-shirt and gym shorts, he headed down to the boardwalk and picked up a greasy cheeseburger and a big milkshake.

“Hey! What are you doing here?” Avery asked as she opened the front door and let him in. She was still in her pajamas, wearing tiny Hello Kitty shorts and a white tank top that showed off her tanned skin. He grinned at her dark hair thrown in a sloppy bun on the top of her head. It flopped around as she moved.

“I’m hope I’m not interrupting anything.” He could tell by her attire that he wasn’t. Not that he was complaining; he certainly didn’t mind seeing her petite figure in next to nothing.

“No, no, not at all. We were just getting ready to head to the beach. You’re more than welcome to join us. Ya know, if you want.” He grinned widely at her invitation.

“Sure, I’d love to.” He followed the woman into the living room. “I brought over some comfort food for Aaron. It always makes me feel better after I’ve been drinking. Is he up yet?” He held up the grease stained bag and milkshake.

Avery grinned. “That’s really nice of you. He hasn’t surfaced yet. I was just gonna let him sleep it off. Let me go grab him. Have a seat.” He watched her tiny figure climb the stairs before he plopped down on the couch. Just as he settled in, a strange feeling came over him, like he was being watched. He looked behind him, but found no one. He shrugged and faced forward, trying to ignore the feeling. But it returned quickly, making Jeff uncomfortable.

He quickly craned his head around to find a pair of dark eyes studying him from the kitchen. As soon as their gazes met, the child disappeared behind the wall. Jeff’s eyebrows wrinkled together and he turned around. What the fuck?

Quietly, he gathered the food he brought, got up and tipped toed toward the kitchen. When she popped her head out this time, she yelped at his encroaching figure and scurried into the kitchen. He chuckled softly at the little girl and followed her.

She was standing behind a dining table so all he could see were the top of her head, her dark eyes, and button nose. The child couldn’t have been more than three or four years old. He had seen her with Avery a few times but didn’t know what their relationship was. After the conversation he had with Aaron, he assumed this was another one of Avery’s siblings.

Slowly, he placed the milkshake and cheeseburger on the table. “Hey, I’m not gonna hurt you. What’s your name?”

“I can’t tell you that.” Came her small voice.

Jeff grinned and knelt down so maybe his towering figure wouldn’t be so frightening. He balanced himself by gripping the table with his fingers. “Why not?”

Her eyes narrowed at him. “Because you’re a stranger. I’m not spose to talk to strangers.”

His grin grew into a full on smile. “OK, well, my name is Jeff. Now we’re not strangers.”

The child wasn’t buying it. “I don’t think so, Jeff.” He couldn’t help but laugh at her serious face.

“You guys OK out here?” Avery stood in the doorway, a look of amusement on her face. Jeff stood and shared Avery’s smirk.

“Yeah, I was just trying to talk to this little one, but she’s not having it.”

Avery sighed. “She’s a tough cookie. It takes awhile for her to warm up to new people.” She turned her soft gaze on the girl. “Come on out from behind there, hon.”

The child slinked out from behind the table, keeping her stern eyes on Jeff. She attached herself to Avery’s leg and hid behind her. “This is my friend Jeff. Can you introduce yourself?”

He liked the gentle way she spoke to the little girl as she coaxed her out from behind her leg. “My name is Lili.” The child said softly before burying her head in Avery’s thigh.

“Nice to meet you, Lili.” Jeff’s eyes shifted to Aaron, who finally made an appearance. His black hair stuck up wildly in some places and laid flat against his head in others. Dark bags hung under his eyes, contrasting with the sickly pallor of his face.

“He lives!” Avery pinched the teen’s face before he sat at the kitchen table and buried his head in his folded arms.

“How you feeling?” Jeff asked, already knowing the answer.

“I will never drink again.” Aaron grumbled, his voice muddled by his arms. Jeff patted him hard on the back.

“I got you some hangover food. It’s gonna make you feel better.” Wordlessly, Aaron grabbed the white paper bag containing the cheeseburger and ripped it open. He hummed his approval as he devoured the sandwich, taking sips of his milkshake in between.

“I’m gonna get Lil ready for the beach, will you two be OK down here?” With her eyes on Aaron, Jeff could tell Avery was mainly asking her brother, but they both nodded and the two girls disappeared upstairs.

“I’m sorry for crashing your party yesterday,” Aaron spoke up, his voice raspy and low. “Not cool.”

Jeff just chuckled. “Don’t apologize. I’m just sorry about Natalie throwing that drink in your face.”

The two shared a smirk before dissolving into laughter. “Me too. You think I could of hooked up with her?”

Jeff didn’t doubt it. She had slept with countless acquaintances of his and a 16 year didn’t seem below her nonexistent standards. “Probably.”

Aaron sighed and shook his head. “Damn. Leave it to Av to sabotage my game.”

They continued to laugh. “She seems pretty protective of you and her sister.”

The boy gave him a strange look, cocking his head to the side. “Sister?”

“Yeah, her name’s Lili, right?”

Aaron shook his head. “Lili’s not her sister. She’s her daughter.” Jeff suddenly felt very stupid. How did he not see this before?

“Oh.” Was all he could manage to say. He had severely misread the situation and now all he wanted to do was escape. “Listen, I forgot that I told one of my buddies that I’d help him out with something. Tell Avery I need a rain check, OK?”

Aaron’s eyebrows knitted together as he watched Jeff get up. “OK. See ya later, I guess.”

Jeff waved as he retreated into the living room and out the front door. He felt a pang of guilt for leaving so abruptly, but the circumstances freaked him out. Having Aaron to take care of was one thing; he probably didn’t require a lot of work and seemed like a cool kid. But a daughter? That meant endless amounts of baggage that Jeff simply didn’t want to deal with.