Professional Disaster

Chapter 6

The four Mitchells sat together on a Sunday afternoon watching television. Neither Robert nor Kimberly had any work to do and both kids were home and quiet for once. But the quiet was soon disturbed by the front door opening and slamming shut, a familiar pair of footsteps bounding down the hall with a squeal. "My brother's coming! He's coming home from London!"

"Jackson?" Jenkin was the first to react, looking over the back of the couch with a look of excitement.

Savannah nodded in glee. She couldn't even sit she was so full of joy. She stood in the doorway, her hands tightly gripping the wooden frame. "Cole is at the strip now waiting for him to be cleared."

"I was beginning to believe he didn't really exist." Arabella kept her eyes on the television as she spoke.

"You've met Jack before." Savannah finally took a seat on the couch, but her knee bounced over and over with anticipation.

"I have not."

Kimberly butted in. "You used to play with Jackson and Zoe all the time when you were a baby. You just don't remember him."

"Is Zoe coming too?" Jenkin asked.

Savannah's mouth fell agape. "Way to get me down Jenkz. No, she wants to stay in London, but I'm not letting that ruin my mood. I'm getting my brother back!"

"God, it's been what, eight years?" Robert thought aloud.

"I was four? No wonder I can't remember. I'm happy for you though Sav." Ari got up from her seat, her phone and television no longer entertaining her. She scoured the junk drawer for a nail polish she remembered leaving downstairs a few days prior.

"You used to really like him," Savannah responded. "If I remember correctly Jackson was even your first little crush. You always used to get so shy around him."

Kimberly shot, a look of remembering on her face. "You did!" She pointed at her daughter. "He was the only person you'd get shy around, you were always a loud little bitch otherwise."

"You used to always try and hide behind me." Jenkin laughed.

"Oh shut up all of you. I was four." She froze. "Was that before-"

"Yes. Anyway, when should he get here?" Robert answered quickly, changing the topic.

"Naiomi!" And as if on cue, a man's voice sounded from down the hallway.

Savannah jumped from her seat, rushing to meet the man at the entrance to the living room. "Dominic!" She shouted as she threw herself at him.

Arabella shot a confused look at her mother.

"Their middle names." She whispered.

"Oh, fuck I missed you." Jackson wrapped his arms around his older sister and lifted her from the ground, squeezing her like a child would squeeze a stuffed animal. Cole stood idly beside his Brother-in-law with a smile on his face.

"I missed you too." Savannah and Jackson had only seen each other once since he moved away. She was allowed to visit for her brother's university graduation, but that was it. Savannah had given her Father and Grandmother a few chosen words after the kids had been shipped off, something she would soon come to regret after the elder woman stopped her from ever visiting. Of course, she had thought of visiting them somewhere in the city where her grandmother would never know, but she didn't want to get her siblings into trouble when she could instead stick to video chatting with them.

Jackson put his big sister back down on her feet and walked around to greet everyone else. "Kimberly, gosh I haven't seen you in a while." Jackson wrapped his arms around Kimberly and squeezed. He was definitely a hugger.