You Give Love a Bad Name
Mac and Cheese
It was two days since Friday, a.k.a. the day when my Aunt Roger and Auntie Carol came to town with their two kids and we had a small family-oriented dinner, and things were not getting any quieter. The whole weekend other relatives had been popping by, having tea with Mom and telling me, Mikey and Gerard how much we had grown.
But the fun would really begin when Uncle Todd, my mom's oldest brother, would roll in from Nevada and begin his tales of Vietnam War. I would have to endure endless hours of him prattling on and on about how he crawled through the jungle and rice paddies.
Even though most of the cleaning for the Rush reunion was done, today, November 21st, was going to be as eventful as ever. Two things were going to happen; one - Uncle Todd and his family would grace us with their presence, and two - I was finally going to get out of the house for the first time in almost a week, and go to the movies with Mikey, Melanie, Gerard, Jake, Cara, Logan, Bob, Ray, and Frank.
Currently I was carefully outlining my green eyes with kohl eyeliner - trying to give them that 'smokey' look. It was sometime around noon, and I was supposed to meet the gang at the movies at three.
I was almost done with my right eye when I heard a knock on my bedroom door.
"Come in!"
There was the sound of the door opening, followed by Mom's voice. "Hi, honey, you look nice. Are you going out?"
I put the eyeliner down on my dresser and turned to face her. She was standing in the middle of the room, all dolled up to go and pick up Uncle Todd and his family from the airport. "Thanks! I'm going to the movies with Mikey, Gerard, and some friends. You don't look so bad yourself, Mom."
She smiled at the compliment and then turned to go. "Oh, okay, have fun. I'm going to go, then, so you can finish getting ready."
I stared after her retreating back. "Did you want something?"
Mom turned around and sighed. "Well, Roger just called and he said that his babysitter can't make it tonight. Me, him, Carol and Grandma were going to go out somewhere with Todd and his family after we picked them up from the airport, but now Carol can't come because she has to stay with Jason and Emily. I was going to see if you could babysit them instead, but since you already have plans, I guess I'll go call them back and tell them you can't do it."
I looked at my mom with sympathy. She, Grandma, Uncle Roger and Auntie Carol have been planning the whole welcoming of the other Rush sibling thing this whole weekend. It wasn't fair to them that the stupid babysitter cancelled.
Then I made up my mind. "Mom, it's okay, I can watch them."
Mom started to shake her head in protest. "No, no, you go. You worked so hard and -"
"Mom," I grinned to assure her that I didn't mind. "I can go to the movies with my friends anytime I want, but I only get to see my cousins once every two or so years. I want to do this."
Relief started to spread on Mom's features with immense speed. "Oh, Lena, thank you! You're a doll!"
I smiled, happy to help out, but there was a significant drop of my stomach when I realized that it would be another week before I got to see all of my friends again.
"Emily! Put that crayon down!"
"No!"
I groaned and started to chase my youngest cousin away from the wall, trying my best to think of how to cover up the stick figure that Emily so kindly drew on the snowy-white surface in the process, so my mom wouldn't notice.
For the past ten minutes I was in the kitchen, cooking macaroni and cheese for Jason and Emily, so I had no idea that the budding, five-year-old artist was creating the Sistine Chapel in my livingroom. When I left them, Jason was watching Terminator with an old, toy gun, that I found in Gerard's, room by his side, and Emily was twirling around in her Sleeping Beauty getup.
"Emily!"
"Noooooooooo!"
After about three minutes of chasing after her, I finally cornered Emily in Mikey's room, and picked her up so I could bring her to the kitchen for some supper. After ten minutes of kicking and screaming, she finally quieted down and rested her head against my chest.
"Jason, supper!" I yelled over my shoulder, walking past him with brisk steps.
"No! I want to watch Terminator
I sighed and turned around, Emily still against my chest. "I'll read you a story if you come."
He looked at me with his wide, brown eyes before starting to jump up and down on the couch with excitement. "Okay!"
I grinned with relief and shut off the TV with my free hand, balancing Emily with the other. "This way."
Thirty minutes later, macaroni and cheese, the same macaroni and cheese that I slaved over to make it perfect, were all over Jason, Emily, my clothes, and the kitchen. It looked like Cheesasaurus Rex went prehistoric ape shit all over the place.
Everything was going fine and dandy until Jason decided that the story I was reading [The Three Little Pigs] was boring, and started a food fight with his little sister. I spent about five minutes on breaking the whole thing up, and another five on getting the sticky, yellow substance off Emily and Jason's clothing.
As much as I loved kids, I decided right there and then, while rubbing Jason's shirt with a disposable paper towel, that I wasn't going to have kids till I was at least thirty years old. I could only wonder how Auntie Carol put up with Jason and Emily day after day after day.
Right when I was about to start cleaning the kitchen, I heard the doorbell ring over the children's voices. Puzzled, I started to go towards the sound, telling Emily and Jason that I would only be a second.
As I was walking towards the front door, I was trying to figure out who was outside. I wasn’t expecting anyone, that's for certain. Everybody was doing something today.
My fingers touched the doorknob and I turned, automatically shivering as the gust of cold wind hit me from outside.
"Hi." Frank Iero was standing on my doorstep, dusk coating him like some sort of thick blanket. His face changed from friendly to surprised, then it turned amused as he took in my mac and cheese covered clothes and my hair that hung in two messy braids. "So, um, need some help?"
And then he bursted out laughing.
But the fun would really begin when Uncle Todd, my mom's oldest brother, would roll in from Nevada and begin his tales of Vietnam War. I would have to endure endless hours of him prattling on and on about how he crawled through the jungle and rice paddies.
Even though most of the cleaning for the Rush reunion was done, today, November 21st, was going to be as eventful as ever. Two things were going to happen; one - Uncle Todd and his family would grace us with their presence, and two - I was finally going to get out of the house for the first time in almost a week, and go to the movies with Mikey, Melanie, Gerard, Jake, Cara, Logan, Bob, Ray, and Frank.
Currently I was carefully outlining my green eyes with kohl eyeliner - trying to give them that 'smokey' look. It was sometime around noon, and I was supposed to meet the gang at the movies at three.
I was almost done with my right eye when I heard a knock on my bedroom door.
"Come in!"
There was the sound of the door opening, followed by Mom's voice. "Hi, honey, you look nice. Are you going out?"
I put the eyeliner down on my dresser and turned to face her. She was standing in the middle of the room, all dolled up to go and pick up Uncle Todd and his family from the airport. "Thanks! I'm going to the movies with Mikey, Gerard, and some friends. You don't look so bad yourself, Mom."
She smiled at the compliment and then turned to go. "Oh, okay, have fun. I'm going to go, then, so you can finish getting ready."
I stared after her retreating back. "Did you want something?"
Mom turned around and sighed. "Well, Roger just called and he said that his babysitter can't make it tonight. Me, him, Carol and Grandma were going to go out somewhere with Todd and his family after we picked them up from the airport, but now Carol can't come because she has to stay with Jason and Emily. I was going to see if you could babysit them instead, but since you already have plans, I guess I'll go call them back and tell them you can't do it."
I looked at my mom with sympathy. She, Grandma, Uncle Roger and Auntie Carol have been planning the whole welcoming of the other Rush sibling thing this whole weekend. It wasn't fair to them that the stupid babysitter cancelled.
Then I made up my mind. "Mom, it's okay, I can watch them."
Mom started to shake her head in protest. "No, no, you go. You worked so hard and -"
"Mom," I grinned to assure her that I didn't mind. "I can go to the movies with my friends anytime I want, but I only get to see my cousins once every two or so years. I want to do this."
Relief started to spread on Mom's features with immense speed. "Oh, Lena, thank you! You're a doll!"
I smiled, happy to help out, but there was a significant drop of my stomach when I realized that it would be another week before I got to see all of my friends again.
"Emily! Put that crayon down!"
"No!"
I groaned and started to chase my youngest cousin away from the wall, trying my best to think of how to cover up the stick figure that Emily so kindly drew on the snowy-white surface in the process, so my mom wouldn't notice.
For the past ten minutes I was in the kitchen, cooking macaroni and cheese for Jason and Emily, so I had no idea that the budding, five-year-old artist was creating the Sistine Chapel in my livingroom. When I left them, Jason was watching Terminator with an old, toy gun, that I found in Gerard's, room by his side, and Emily was twirling around in her Sleeping Beauty getup.
"Emily!"
"Noooooooooo!"
After about three minutes of chasing after her, I finally cornered Emily in Mikey's room, and picked her up so I could bring her to the kitchen for some supper. After ten minutes of kicking and screaming, she finally quieted down and rested her head against my chest.
"Jason, supper!" I yelled over my shoulder, walking past him with brisk steps.
"No! I want to watch Terminator
I sighed and turned around, Emily still against my chest. "I'll read you a story if you come."
He looked at me with his wide, brown eyes before starting to jump up and down on the couch with excitement. "Okay!"
I grinned with relief and shut off the TV with my free hand, balancing Emily with the other. "This way."
Thirty minutes later, macaroni and cheese, the same macaroni and cheese that I slaved over to make it perfect, were all over Jason, Emily, my clothes, and the kitchen. It looked like Cheesasaurus Rex went prehistoric ape shit all over the place.
Everything was going fine and dandy until Jason decided that the story I was reading [The Three Little Pigs] was boring, and started a food fight with his little sister. I spent about five minutes on breaking the whole thing up, and another five on getting the sticky, yellow substance off Emily and Jason's clothing.
As much as I loved kids, I decided right there and then, while rubbing Jason's shirt with a disposable paper towel, that I wasn't going to have kids till I was at least thirty years old. I could only wonder how Auntie Carol put up with Jason and Emily day after day after day.
Right when I was about to start cleaning the kitchen, I heard the doorbell ring over the children's voices. Puzzled, I started to go towards the sound, telling Emily and Jason that I would only be a second.
As I was walking towards the front door, I was trying to figure out who was outside. I wasn’t expecting anyone, that's for certain. Everybody was doing something today.
My fingers touched the doorknob and I turned, automatically shivering as the gust of cold wind hit me from outside.
"Hi." Frank Iero was standing on my doorstep, dusk coating him like some sort of thick blanket. His face changed from friendly to surprised, then it turned amused as he took in my mac and cheese covered clothes and my hair that hung in two messy braids. "So, um, need some help?"
And then he bursted out laughing.