In The Sun

Chapter Six

“Wow,” Max says, “pretty view.” We’re sitting on the beach, taking some relaxation time before I have to go into Caroline’s.

“You know,” Wyatt starts in, “everything is so much prettier in the sun.” He runs his hand along the sand. “But at the same time, it’s fake. Real beauty resides in the dark because the sun isn’t there to make everything pretty.”

Max laughs. “You’re such a girl, dude.”

“Hey Katelyn?” I look up at Wyatt. “Want to hang out after work?”

I sigh. “Can’t. I’m supposed to go to my dad’s place and have dinner with him and the family. It’s terrible.”

“Tomorrow then?”

I nod. “Tomorrow. I’ll take you down to Rick’s for lunch and get you a burger. We can stop at Wheelbite, too—make a day of it.”

“I’d like that. Wait.” Wyatt’s eyebrows pull together. “Isn’t your dad renting a place from Pier Realty?”

“You got it.”

“What are the chances of his place being by ours?”

“Slim,” Max says, lying down on the sand. “Real slim.”

“Sorry,” Dad says, pulling the door open, “the place is a little messy.”

For renting it out, the family surely didn’t take any care when it came to keeping the house at least somewhat nice. The boys—and maybe even Aubrey—have trashed it.

I immediately hear wailing from a back bedroom. Parker. And then, following it, “Mathew, is that you? Is Katelyn here?”

Dad looks at me. I say, “Hi, Aubrey.”

“Oh, Kate! Hey.” She immerges from the bedroom now, Parker in her arms. He’s red-faced, real tears streaming.

“Sorry about him,” Dad says over the noise.

I nod, acknowledging this. Suddenly, Jeremiah, with Zachery in tow, comes barreling down the hall, full-speed, towards me until he has his arms wrapped around me in a hug. “Katelyn!” he says. “Hi!”

I do my best to wrap my arms around him, too. “Hey, kiddo.”

Jeremiah narrows his eyes at Parker, who is still howling. “Give him to Katelyn, Mom,” he says.

Aubrey looks at me. I catch the faintest glimmer of anger in her eyes before she sighs and says, “Jere, honey, Katelyn is a guest, not a babysitter.”

“It’s okay,” I tell her. “I’ll take him.” Reluctantly, she hands him over. Like normal, his crying stops. He’s calm.

“You really need to be our babysitter,” Dad says. “He doesn’t even like the one he has. He cries for her, too.”

“Too bad.”

He looks at me. “I’m going to go finish dinner. If he fusses for you, put him in his bouncer. He loves that thing.”

I smile. “Gotcha.”

Aubrey, who now looks lost, says, “Matt, need help, sweetie?”

“I got it, Aubrey. Thank you.”

She gives a quiet, “Humph,” and then settles down on the couch, turning up the TV so the 6 o’ clock news is almost too loud.

“Katelyn, can you take us to do something fun?” Jeremiah asks, all the awhile playing with some Transformers toy.

“Fun, huh?”

He nods. Zachery adds, “Yeah, fun. I just want ice cream.”

“You always want sweets,” Aubrey says tiredly.