'Come on, Es. If you want to learn chess that bad, you can always come visit me.’
She looked at me, eyes wide and full of magic. ‘I can't fly anymore,' she said in a low tone.
‘But I can do this now, right?’
‘What, Bumble-Bee?’
‘This.’
I reached forward and, using both my hands and the limber fingers attached to them, tickled her belly until she was rolling on the floor with laughter – literally.
I found tears floating in my stupid, leaky eyes.
‘Last chance – '
‘No, Mar.’ I looked at him. ‘No.’
Last week Mr. Om had offered Momma a high-paid job right there in {Undisclosed}, in his company. Marra had convinced him to do so. I could almost picture Mr. Om shaking with glee as he “quoted” his favorite movie: ‘I’ll make you [him] an offer you [he] can’t refuse.' Obviously the genius uncle and nephew hadn’t thought of what a botanist's need would be in a mining corporation. And Momma had been chasing this position in {Undis-2-closed} for years, she wouldn’t just let it go.
‘Sure?’ he asked.
‘As ever.’ I shifted my head towards Aar. ‘And you. Get in here.’
He did. During the last stages of our embrace, he whispered into my ear: 'Is this the point where you stab me?’
I smacked him on the head. I won’t deny that Marra helped, too.
'You know,’ Aar told me, ‘Arbo's got a cousin at the {Undis-2-closed} School of {Undis-2-closed}. I don’t think life's going to be easy for you there.’
‘You had to spoil it, didn’t you?’ I reprimanded him.
‘Just giving a fair warnin – '
I pulled him into another hug. I gestured to Marra and Es, so that they could join in as well. They did.
‘A – human – needs – to – breathe,' Marra choked.
‘To – stay – alive,' Aar finished dramatically.
‘Hehe,' hissed Es.
Then Niffy came along. She’d just been gone to the loo. ‘Come on!’ Aar waved at her.
'No, nope, that’s it,' I said, breaking
the clutch. ‘Enough hugging for the day.’
What? It was getting pesky!
‘Be there in the morning when I leave, okay?’ I told them, pointing a firm forefinger in their general direction.
Es: 'Of course, Bee-wee.’
Marra: ‘Seriously, ma’am? You thought we’d forget?’
Aar: nothing.
I frowned as he looked at Niffy drawing unseen shapes in the air with the expression of one in euphoria, then giggled like the adorable dinky he once used to be. Used to. Without turning to me, he muttered: '. . . right. Send him our regards.’
‘Send who your regards?’ I rebuked.
Niffy smiled her annoyingly charming smile. Aar said, 'Toby, of course.’
YOU ARE READING
Sort of Deadly
Humor*Sequel to 'Sort Of Dead'* *Kindly read the previous installment beforehand* ~ "You know the feeling when you see a glass jar filled with perfectly round, colorful marbles, and you just want to put one - or two, or three - in your mouth, even though...
