Tuct Side - 22. Chapter 17

Monday, September 3^rd, 2012

Just at the edge of town was a large expanse of land owned by an old farmer couple. The Jarrison’s were pretty much nomads, drifted into town from an unknown family most likely of similar agriculturalist roots, but during their time here, they have made friends with some of the eastern families. Which was why it was a regular thing for the Labor Day tailgate party to occur at their twenty to thirty acres of property.

West suspected it had to do with the recent incident involving their house, but it seemed as if everyone stepped up their game this year. There were picnic baskets for passersby, whole baked cakes just waiting to be taken a piece of, and barely any street left to cross because of the sheer amount of tables. Of course, the Kuttners and Dedekinds couldn’t let anyone outdo them, showing off German-originated fare along with cabinets of alcoholic beverages.

While all mingled, kids went off in one direction while adults congregated in the other. West, Kaspar, Justin, Finn, and several other of their friends sat in camp chairs in front of a couple of folding tables full of food and refreshments, gorging themselves, talking, and laughing together amidst the jovial festivities. West made sure to keep an eye out on Ophelia, who was having a little reunion with Justin’s little twin sisters. He grinned, happy that their friendship lived on through months of radio silence courtesy of the Shoemaker parents. Somehow, the brunette was able to convince them. Either that, or he snuck them out as he said. Vanessa and Isaak, back home from college for the weekend, were somewhere close by.

A good thing since the topic of discussion was the intricacies of the latter’s birthday party.

“Are you sure the ‘rents have to be there?” Henry asked aloud. “I feel like they’re gonna ruin our style.”

Scott’s head bounced in agreement. “Yeah! How’re we gonna get it on with our girls if their daddies are hovering over them? Just a bunch of walking cock-blockers.”

Justin snorted as he opened up a bottle of beer some of the football players had snuck in. “Hopefully, they’ll be too preoccupied with Double Clutch’s old man and his friends. Otherwise, we’ll figure something out.”

“Man, this is gonna be better than the graduation party!” Nathan exclaimed excitedly.

“It is an alumni’s party we’re talking about,” Kaspar chimed in. “A bunch of college students is showing up, too.”

Ever since Isaak stopped playing basketball, West figured he didn’t want anything to do with the sport. However, it seemed that his older brother’s reputation proceeded him, and carried the popularity his name held over into Anninberg college.

“This is gonna be one huge-ass party,” Vinny commented. “Where is it again?”

West answered. “My dad’s secured a place at some college not too far from here. Humberston College. The football field and the gym are ginormous.”

The more talkative twin whistled, impressed. “Jesus, your dad can do anything.”

As the conversation switched to other topics, West chose that moment to take his camera and take some pictures. It had nothing to do with the mystery project he had going, having decided that a break was very much needed after having his house vandalized. He captured the boisterous men, the tittering women, the array of food, and his rowdy teammates. He scored every inch of the area before landing on Ophelia, Josephine, and Jocelyn giggling with another girl West have never seen before.

She was just as young as his sister, but her jet-black hair and pale skin made her stand out. From the looks of it, she was of Latino descent. Which could mean…

“Hey, Finn, man,” he tapped his ebony-haired friend’s shoulder.

“What’s up, dude?”

“You see where Phee and Justin’s girls are at, right?” he pointed to the mingling young girls.

“Yeah.”

“Who’s the girl with the black hair? It’s as dark as yours.”

Finn leaned into the side of his camp chair for a closer look. “That’s…” his eyes squinted for a couple of seconds before widening in shock. “Oh my God.”

Reaction unexpected, West blinked. “What? What?”

“Gia?” the small forward gaped. “I think that’s Gia!”

“Gia? Sounds familiar. You know her parents or something? You babysit?”

Finn was still in his own world. “He actually did it,” he muttered.

The blond reached over and snapped his fingers in the boy’s face. “Finn?”

Finn inhaled sharply, shaking his head out of his daze. “Sorry, I’m just…” His eyes found the girl again. “The girl’s Gia. She’s, um… Maybe I should have said something when I heard the recording, but I figured it wasn’t my business to air out.”

“Who is she?” West asked patiently, hiding the anticipation bubbling inside his stomach.

“She’s Neil’s… sister,” he whispered, checking anyways to see if Kaspar or the other boys heard. “And I use that term loosely.”

West gawked, darting his sight from Finn to Neil’s supposed sister. “Sister? Wow, I… didn’t know he had a sister. And you did?”

His friend was looking more anxious by the second. “I… may have gone to his house once or twice. With other friends, of course. They’re not blood-related, I don’t think. Neil just takes care of her like a father would his daughter. It’s sweet.”

“Him and Bran?”

“I don’t think so. I was pretty close with Neil. Jorge popped in from time to time, but Bran was practically nonexistent. Now that I think about it, Neil never liked to talk about his brother. I’m not sure they even like each other.”

That wasn’t too hard to imagine. Neil was a hothead and Bran was capable of it, too. Maybe the younger Morterero was protecting Gia from the elder sibling. The latter definitely had that creep vibe.

“But if she’s here, then that means…” West searched for that certain someone, butterflies in his stomach.

Finn sighed. “Wasn’t gonna mention it but fuck it. Ten o’clock.”

The blond had to lean back in his seat to spot his lightning-eyed rival past the bulk of his teammates. He was there, inclined on a shiny, black car that surely would not be found within western territory, parked just on the edge of the small patch of woods. Even from a distance, West felt intimidated, his ex-Wildwood adversary’s muscular arms and legs crossed. His strikingly blue stare was locked onto Gia, watching through eyes that could be either confusion or suspicion. The bigger male was wearing a leather jacket, ripped jeans, classic converse shoes, and a trucker hat that shoved some of his black hair over those azure orbs. It was a miracle that he hadn’t been spotted and recognized.

Finn chuckled, finding amusement in West’s growing agitation. He knew his team captain was very eager to have another moment with their rival. “Good luck. Don’t draw too much attention. Neil’s the one with the rep.”

“Yeah. Got it.” No need to drag Gia into things. West saw why Finn never explained who she was. At least, not in front of the other guys.

The blond got up as discreetly as he could, slowly stepping away from the group. Luckily, Kaspar was engrossed in whatever he was chatting about with Scott. He was convinced his cousin had some kind of innate tracker system that locked on to his whereabouts, and it’s only become more refined lately.

Fortunately, West was successful, sauntering in between a couple of rows of cars. He was close enough to see the larger boy’s eyes roll.

“’Course you’re here,” he muttered, his usual scowl present.

West shoved his hands into the pockets of his letterman jacket and smirked. “I didn’t expect to see you here either.”

He couldn’t keep his gaze from perusing his rival’s form. Even through the material of his leather jacket, the temperamental teen’s biceps popped out, almost straining the sleeves. Hell, his jeans seemed painted on his thick thighs. West was no slouch himself, but his adversary could really give even the most of the sports coaches body insecurities.

Neil shook his head. “I’ve got nothin’ to say to you, Flower Boy. Beat it.”

“Then you wouldn’t have shown up here. Unless…” He turned and searched for his sister and her friends. Spotting them a yard away, he rested his gaze on Neil’s sister.

She, along with the twins, smiled and ran after Ophelia, laughing at whatever she said or did. His sister had was already in the middle of developing the Kuttner’s propensity to lead the pack. The other three hung off every word she weaved.

“Watch it, pendejo,” a menacing hiss snatched his attention away from the girls. “You keep your fuckin’ eyes off her, got it?”

There it was again. That fluttering in his gut. What came alongside the slight fear from that imposing glare was the daredevilish thrill of just having it directed at him. Was he sick or something?

West lifted a placating hand. “I wasn’t going to do anything, man. Chill out. It’s just that the blond girl she’s playing with is my sister.”

Neil glanced behind him and snorted, his glower darkening. “Yeah, so? You got a problem with that? We ain’t good enough for you no more?”

“Not at all. The twins are Justin’s. Just wanted to let you know. I don’t want whatever beef we’re having to leak into their friendship. Which, by the looks of it, seemed to have already kicked off.”

Another peek was taken before Neil nodded stiffly. “Don’t worry about it. As long as they treat her right. Gia could use more friends.”

West spun around and watched the little quad. “Phee, too. Being the daughter of someone famous can bring a lot of attention. Like social climbers and fake friends who use others to get famous themselves. She’s too young to be dealing with that, and I… I get worried sometimes.”

It was why he usually kept to three other people – his cousin, his best friend since first grade, and the first person they let in since then. He liked others, such as Nathan, Vinny, Scott, and Henry, but he just couldn’t find that spark that would make the companionship deepen. Isaak definitely had to deal with it, his dropping of the sport after a serious leg injury caused rifts in many so-called friendships. It was hard and frightening to watch.

“Can’t protect her from it all the time,” Neil said lowly.

“But I want to. I know she’ll grow up, and that’s the scary part, but I can try.”

A beat of silence went by before hearing a deep, “Yeah.”

Then, the quiet stretched out. Not even the socializing and entertainment could puncture the bubble of peace surrounding them.

Comfortable.

It was comfortable for the first time between the two rivals. West and Neil stood side by side, gazing into the crowd of townspeople and vehicles as if they were on the outside of life. There truly was a first time for everything.

West wasn’t in any hurry to leave, but he didn’t want to ruin whatever relaxed mood they had settled into for a minute there. “Anyway, I’m gonna-”

“Wezzie! Come meet my new friend!”

Ophelia and her group ran toward the duo, the little blond pulling her newest companion along.

West crouched and beamed at them. “Hey, Phee! Jose. Joc. How’re you two cuties doing?”

The twins giggled and waved. “Hi, West.”

“And who might you be, lovely little lady?” he addressed Gia despite already knowing.

His sister spoke up for her. “Wezzie, meet Gia. She’s in my class. She’s shy at school, so I asked her to be our friend.”

“Really? Which means we’ll be expecting her over for dolly time?” Feeling a bit more confident than normal, he glanced back at Neil and winked, who gaped in disbelief.

“You wanna play with us some more?” Ophelia turned to Gia. “Please?”

The inky-haired girl brought small fingers to her bottom lip, her brown eyes zigzagging nervously between West’s sister and Neil. “Yeah, but…”

She was silently asking for permission.

“Oh, please! You’re so fun!” Josephine exclaimed, gently grabbing Gia’s arm.

“We’ll even play at school together. We’ll all be friends forever!” Jocelyn cheered happily.

West looked back at his rival. How could anybody resist these rays of sunshine? He wouldn’t have hesitated with all of them coming at him like this. Ophelia stepped toward Neil, latching onto one of the rips below his right knee, and voiced her older brother’s internal pleas.

“Please! Can she!? Aren’t you and my brother friends? So, she can come over and play whenever, right?”

West froze at the sight, pursing his lips to keep from laughing. Neil, the big, bad, and dark beast of a boy, was reduced to a rigid, sputtering mess at the begging of a five-year-old girl going on six.

“I-I…”

In the end, he sighed in defeat and nodded, no match for the puppy dog eyes of Ophelia Kuttner. It should have been expected. Kaspar never won against it either.

“Y-Yeah. Okay!” Gia agreed after being given the okay.

As her brand new friend group celebrated their victory, Gia’s smile shined up at Neil, looking at him as if he had hung the moon. Shocking West further, Neil’s frown evaporated into a soft smile, one that had been missing from his face for a long time. He got on one knee, kissed his sister on the cheek, and brought their foreheads together.

“Te amo bebé,” he whispered.

“Te amo también, hermano,” Gia responded, reciprocating the peck on Neil’s stubbly cheek.

She was dragged away not a moment later after that. And with her gone went the tender expression Neil had, directing a fierce glower West’s way. Regardless, the blond couldn’t even find it in him to be disappointed.

“You-”

“I didn’t plan it if that’s what you’re thinking. Let me give you my number.”

“What!? Th’ fu-” he cut himself off, spinning around to see if the girls were nearby before continuing. “What for!? I don’t need-”

“For whenever your sister comes over,” West explained as he dug out his cellphone. “When Phee makes friends, she’s very dedicated to the cause. Trust me, they’ll be seeing a lot of each other.”

“Why the hell do you need my number for?”

“We have a lot in common when it comes to them. You don’t want her out of your sight any more than I want Phee out of mines. The incident with my house made me realize how I should have been doing a better job of watching over my little sister. And I’m going to do better. I’m not going to let anyone or anything hurt her. I can tell you’re the same way, man.”

West hoped he didn’t come off as manipulative. It was the truth, but the western side dweller might take it that way. However, it appeared that good fortune was on the blond’s side, for Neil let out a harsh breath before reaching inside his jeans pocket, cursing gruffly.

“Shit, Flo.”