Neighbor Wars

November Part 2

"Are you coming with us to pick up Yaiya, Aunt Rita, Uncle Steeve, and your cousins from the airport?" Mom asks Alexander. I am already getting my jacket on and shoes. Alexander and Natasha are just sitting on the couch watching TV. Touching her growing stomach. She is only around 3 months along (I think), but I am not really sure how those things are supposed to be. Alexander looks over at Natasha asking her silently, wanna come or what do you want to do, All up to you. She gets up, using both her hands to push herself up from the couch.

"Sure Mom. We are coming." He says it like it might take them an hour just to get out the front door. "Wait which airport. South Bend or Chicago?"

"Chicago. We have to leave soon. Natasha sweety, if you aren't feeling up to an hour long car ride, then you don't have to. Greg will be home soon." Mom says watching Alexander wrap both his arms around her shoulders. He looks down at her, asking her the same question silently.

"I can go with you all. I would love to meet your family. The doctor said I could take motion sickness medicine if I needed to while in a car or stuff like that. I'll just grab some." She says walking into the kitchen to the medicine cabinet. Alexander follows her like she will get injured while going to the kitchen. It is kind of getting annoying watching him follow her around.

"Alright, we will just wait for you in the car." Mom says, grabs my shoulder and leads me out the front door. On my way out, I look over to the Martin's driveway, (like a habit lately) again the garage doors are closed. He hasn't been out of the house since Halloween. I mean of course he goes to school, but he sits at the stop and just nods his head when Ryan tries to talk to him about stuff, goes through the school day with minimal communication, gets on the bus and has his own seat with headphones in, then gets off, and goes inside his house till the next day. I am starting to worry about him, not because I like him, but because he and I have known each other for so long. Try knowing someone for years, hate their guts, but still not care about them when they act depressed day after day. It is hard, believe me.

In the car I just sit there in the back seat, but then Mom wants me forward and pats the front seat. "Won't she want to sit in the front so she can see out the front, it might help her?" I ask, I try to sound interested in that all, but particularly I just don't want to move.

"But don't you think they will want to sit together? And I never see you anymore, I would like to see you. Talk to you." When she guilts me like this it makes it very difficult to turn her down.

"Alright maybe we could ask her when she gets out here." And as if on cue Alexander and Natasha sit down in the back without saying anything. I see Mom's eyes in the mirror, and climb to the front.

About halfway there I see Natasha and Alexander talk in some whispered tones, and she squeezes his knee. He rests his hand on her stomach like he does a lot of the times he does these things. He rummaged through their backpack/purse/man purse/satchel whatever they like to call it. It is their shared thing that they use to hold all their crap, I am assuming that is where the medicine stuff is. He pulls out the little white bottle, looks at the label, and puts one pull in his hand. He pulls a water bottle out of the side pocket, and hands both items to her. She puts them in her mouth, takes a sip of water and swallows. Alexander kisses her forehead, and rubs her back. I see Mom smile at the sight of those two so being so perfect for each other.

"So, are we going to strap our cousins and Yaiya to the roof of the SUV." Alexander says joking, Natasha laughs. I laugh too.

"No, Yaiya is driving with us. We will take all the luggage. Aunt Rita is renting a car. She figures since they might have a need for them to get some things done this trip." Mom says looking from the road, to the mirror, then to me as she talks.