Love Hurdles

9. Natalie

I woke up Sunday with a new found confidence. The rest of Saturday was a blast! After Luke and I finished breakfast and cleaned up, we went next door to my house. My mom was about to leave for work and I had to watch the twerps I love oh-so dearly. Luke had suggested we bring them to his backyard (his yard is bigger than mine and he's an only child so he adores my siblings) and they can play with his new chocolate lab puppy, that probably weighs as much as Caitlyn. Surprisingly, Luke drags out a few hurdles from his garage and offers to help me practice. Turns out, Luke is a fabulous hurdle coach. We did some stretches and then more jumping exercises, before Jack started crying because he wanted to go home and take a nap.

Luke is really patient with my brother Jack, and Jack really looks up to Luke. My younger brother Jack was diagnosed with autism when he was three and always throws a tantrum when he doesn't get his way. Luckily, Luke was patient with him and calmed Jack down by giving him a piggy back ride to my house, then read him a story in bed. After that, Luke went home so I could work on homework.

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Now, Sunday morning, everything is peaceful. My dad took Caitlyn and Jack to the park and my mom is going to the spa with her friend. Home alone, I make myself a bowl of cereal and plop down in front of the computer to finish my essay for English.

"Ugh!" I grunt. This essay is so frustrating! I decided to take a break because I've been working for an hour and a half now, and bake some cupcakes for tonight. I decided to start by making Kris's favorite cupcakes, the chocolate chip cookie ones. Before I start the cupcakes, I turn on Pandora to jam out to my favorite tunes. I mix together the ingredients for chocolate chip cookie dough and press it down in the cupcake liners. Next, I create the vanilla cake batter a scoop it into the liners that already have cookie batter in it, and the add a sprinkle of chocolate chips to the top. Singing to a Taylor Swift's song, I pop the pans of raw cupcakes into the oven.

Needing a new cupcake to photograph before I turn in the project new week, I brainstorm some beach themed cupcakes. I come up with a strawberry cupcake, filled with a mango compote, and topped of with a light, fluffy whipped cream and cupcake crumbs. By the time the strawberry cupcakes are ready to go in the oven, the chocolate chip cookie cupcakes are ready to come out. I top off the cookie cupcakes with a chocolate ganache and then whip up the whipped cream for the beach cupcakes.

"I should be wiser and realize that I've got," My loud, off-key, singing fills the kitchen. "One less problem without ya, one less problem without uya," I continue the song. I sing as loud as possible as I fill the strawberry cupcakes with mango compote and the finish them up with whipped cream frosting and cupcake crumbs as sand. Finally all my cupcakes are done!

I take one of the beach cupcakes out to the backyard to take a picture of. I place a purple orchid on the cupcake for decoration, then place the treat on a napkin that is set on my blue patio table.

Click. Click. Click.

I take a few shots if the cupcake there because it looks very casual and tropical, perfect for the project. After finishing my shoot, I eat the cupcake then go back to finish my essay. I barely finish my essay when my mom, dad, Jack, and Caitlyn get back. Soon, the quiet house is full of ruckus and noise.

"Nat," Jack tugs on my shirt. "Will you play hide-n-seek with Caitlyn and me?"

"Pwease!" Caitlyn begs.

"Well how can I say no to that!" I exclaim and then start to count to forty.

"Natalie, dinner will be ready in twenty minutes," my dad informs me. He is making grilling salmon, while my mom makes mashed sweet potatoes.

"Ready or not, here I come!" I find Jack first hiding under a chair and then find Caitlyn in a cupboard. "Come on, it's time for dinner!" I lead the two munchkins to the sink to wash up and then we troop downstairs to eat.

Of course dinner is delicious, but it ends early for me because Laila arrives for our girls-only Sunday. Quickly we race downstairs to my basement where we always watch Amazing Race every Sunday.

"I'm here," Kris calls in her sing-songy voice. She comes downstairs baring the cupcakes I made earlier.

"Oh my gosh, Natty," Laila says using the nickname I hate. "These look AHmazing!" She uses emphasize and dramatic motions like usual.

We all sit down in our usual seats. Laila and I share the red couch and Kris takes the black fuzzy chair. During the show we root for the team we chose and eat the cupcakes. When the next commercial comes on, I mute the television.

"So, Laila," I say, gently poking her in the stomach with my big toe. "How was your date?"

"It was so fabulous," she exclaims! "First, we went to lunch at the fancy sandwich shop downtown. Then we went ice skating at the outdoor rink right near where we had lunch; Sam fell a few times!" Laila and I giggle at her date, but I notice Kris is more focused on the soundless commercial than Laila's exciting date, she does look a bit sleepy. Laila tells me about when he dropped her back off at home he didn't know what to do, so she gave him a big hug and thanked him for the wonderful afternoon.

"Aw, Laila! That is so cute!" I squeal. Kris still hasn't said much to Laila at all this evening. I never get the chance to talk to Kris because once the show ends, Kris claims to be exhausted so she heads home. I send Laila home with a few cupcakes for her parents and then head to the shower.

I put on my coziest pajamas, fuzzy ducky pants and an baggie track shirt. When I crawl into bed I immediately feel my eyelids get heavy and I my body gets heavy. I have no idea why I'm so wiped out, but I fall sound asleep.

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a/n: sorry if there are mistakes or it's not that great, I didn't get to proof read. more to chapters to come soon :)

xox clo