The Cockney Canuck - 171. Chapter 171 Heatwave

Summer came early that year with a mini heat wave that coincided with the Victoria Day holiday, colloquially known as May-two-four. This long weekend traditionally marked the start of the summer season—when the town made its money—and it looked like a bumper year as crowds flocked to the waterfront to take advantage of the warm weather.

After surviving a brutal and protracted winter, and with no more health issues to hold me back, I was determined to make the most of my second summer in the Great White North. The extreme heat, however, brought a new set of problems just as debilitating as the cold. It was the humidity that made it unbearable, and while our house was well-equipped to deal with the rigours of a Canadian winter, it lacked air-conditioning and offered little protection from the sun.

In the slightly cooler basement, Sue had replaced our thick winter duvets with thin cotton sheets that Daniel and I slept on top of in our underwear. But showing too much skin left me dangerously exposed to the deadliest creature on the planet. I read somewhere that by spreading diseases, mosquitoes were responsible for more human deaths than any other living creature, and they seemed to like the taste of me.

It was Saturday night, and several of them circled my bed, attracted by the blood of an Englishman. I sat up and lashed out with a plastic fly swatter as Daniel stumbled past on his way to the bathroom. He had been tossing and turning for the past hour, trying to sleep while I fought a losing battle against an invisible enemy. When he returned, I was scratching a new bump on the top of my foot—a fresh bite to add to a growing collection. There was one on my calf and another on my elbow.

“They like you, don’t they?” Daniel stood next to my bed in a pair of boxers, his sweaty skin glistening in the soft moonlight. He wasn’t immune, but for reasons I couldn’t explain, they were mostly drawn to me.

“Well, I don’t like them. I wish they would leave me alone.”

I blamed Nicola for their invasion. Earlier, she left the screen door open while she loaded her personal belongings into her car and headed to Stephanie’s house for an extended stay. Her heavily pregnant friend needed company, and Nicola needed air-conditioning, so my sister became the second family member after Don to leave home in the space of a week.

Nicola told her friend she would stay until the baby was born and was now totally invested in the pregnancy, playing the role of a surrogate dad. I wasn’t sure how it would work, but if Stephanie had any plans for the future, she wasn’t willing to share them with me.

I needed to forget about her and be more laid back like my brother. Nothing seemed to bother him, not even the mosquitos. As I scanned the immediate vicinity, ready to pounce with my swatter, he sat on the end of my bed, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

“What are you smiling about, and why are you over this side of the room? Your bed is over there.”

“It’s too hot to sleep, so I thought you might want some company. We can talk if you want.”

‘Talk?’

I cocked my head and stared at him suspiciously. Despite sharing a room, we rarely engaged in meaningful conversation, and I wasn’t in the mood to break that habit.

“No, thanks. Now, get lost. You’re invading my space and scaring the mosquitos away.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

“No, I want to kill them so I can get some sleep.”

“But you don’t need to kill them if I’ve scared them away.”

He was right. While he was there, they seemed to leave me alone. There was something about my brother that they didn’t like. He shook his head at me and stood up to go back to bed, so I grabbed his arm and forced him to sit down again.

“Wait! Don’t go. I thought you wanted to talk.”

“Make up your mind? You just told me to get lost.”

“That was before you became useful.” I lifted his arm and sniffed his armpit to see if he was using some kind of weird deodorant, but all I could smell was his foul, pungent sweat.

He pushed me away. “What are you doing, you freak?”

“You smell disgusting; maybe that’s what they don’t like.”

“Thanks, you don’t smell that great yourself.”

He was probably right about that, too, so it had to be something else. Something only mosquitos could detect and obviously didn’t like because they were nowhere to be seen. The solution to my problem was sitting right beside me, so I smiled at my brother and demanded his compliance.

“You’re gonna have to sleep with me tonight.”

“No way! That’s not gonna happen, pervert.”

“Don’t be so selfish. I’m not after your body, just your mosquito-repelling powers. You can sleep on the floor next to my bed. That should be close enough.”

“Forget it. Why should I do that? I’m not your slave.”

“Fine!” I fluffed my pillow and stretched my legs to kick him off the bed. “I guess I was right about you all along. You never wanted me in this family, and this is proof. Some brother you turned out to be. Maybe I should have stayed in England to be abused by evil foster parents.”

Daniel laughed. “You are so full of shit. I’m not falling for that crap or feeling sorry for you. You’re a millionaire.”

‘Fuck!’

It was bound to happen sooner or later. My well-rehearsed victim routine was beginning to wear thin. I blamed Don for making me rich and denying me the sympathy I deserved.

“Go ahead, laugh all you want. You won’t be laughing when you find me dead of mosquito bites.”

“I wouldn’t bank on it.”

“Fine, just for that, I’m cutting you out of my will; when I’m brown bread, you won’t get a penny.”

“Have you even made out a will?”

“No!”

“Well, maybe you should. You never know what might happen.”

I narrowed my eyes at my brother. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing. I’m just saying if you don’t have a will and something happens to you, Dad will probably get all your money.”

I hadn’t given it much thought and didn’t know how it worked, but Don was the last person I would have wanted to benefit if I happened to die prematurely.

“Nothing’s gonna happen to me.”

“You never know. You nearly died last year, remember?” Daniel looked smug as he kicked off his boxers and grabbed a towel to loosely shield his dong from me. “I’m jumping in the shower; I hope you’ll be okay without my special powers to protect you from the mosquitos.”

“I can protect myself, thanks.” I grabbed the fly swatter and waited for him to walk past my bed. It was too good an opportunity to pass up. Those pale white buns of his were begging to be smacked, so I hit him as hard as I could with my plastic tool, breaking it in half and nearly popping his cherry. “I got one!”

“Ah, you jerk!” He rubbed his backside and swivelled his hips to look in the mirror. There was a big red mark with the criss-cross pattern of the swatter visible against his white cheek. “Look what you did.”

“That’s what you get for shoving your arse in my face. You know I can’t resist a bare bottom. Now you’re branded; you belong to me!”

“That’s sexual abuse! I should report you for that.” He took a swing at me with his towel, but I managed to grab it from him and run across the room, where he cornered me between the wall and his bed. I glanced at his dick and smiled.

“What are you going to do now, big boy?” I knew he wouldn’t want to get into a physical altercation in his birthday suit, so there was a brief standoff while he looked around for an even bigger weapon. I followed his eyes as they scanned the floor and locked onto his hockey stick propped against his dresser. “Don’t even think about it.”

“You started it.” Daniel had an evil grin. “Now it’s time for revenge.”

When he reached for the stick, I scrambled over his bed and ran to the door, throwing it open and sprinting into the family room. It was dark in there, and I narrowly avoided colliding with the couch as I headed for the stairs, guided by a chink of moonlight from the upstairs windows.

Then the lights came on.

Nicola screamed as I ran past her with my naked brother in close pursuit. She stood at the bottom of the stairs with Stephanie and another girl I recognised from school. They stared open-mouthed at Daniel as he froze like the proverbial deer caught in the headlights. Then, in an unfortunate twist of fate, he dropped his hockey stick and covered his junk with a framed photograph of Nicola in her prom dress. It was the closest thing he could find, but it was too little and too late to spare his blushes.

“What are you doing?” asked Nicola, “and why are you naked?” She looked hot and flustered as she watched her brother crab-walk back to the bedroom with her smiley face between his legs. It was funny, but no one laughed or said a word until he slammed the door shut, leaving me panting and stranded in my underwear. Had Nicola been alone, it wouldn’t have been a problem, but Stephanie made me nervous, and I hardly knew the other girl, so I took refuge behind the armchair and berated my sister.

“Why are you here? I thought you were staying at Stephanie’s house.”

“Obviously!” she sneered. “Mom needs to use my car tomorrow. This is Miranda; she came to drive us home.” The buxom blonde tried not to laugh as she raised her hand and waved.

“Hi, Robbie. How are you?”

“Good, thanks, and you?”

Nicola rolled her eyes. “She’s fine, okay. Now go and put some clothes on. I’m sorry about my brothers, Miranda. They’re usually better dressed than this.”

“No, they’re not,” said Stephanie. “Take my word for it.”

“I don’t mind,” smiled Miranda. “It’s educational. I’ve never seen one in real life before.”

I suppose there had to be some innocent teenagers in Cobourg, but I never expected my sister to know any.

“It’s gone midnight,” I said. “We were in bed. You don’t need to come down here to drop off your car.”

“I forgot my laptop,” said Nicola. “But I don’t have to explain to you. This is the family room; if you want to play naked hockey or whatever you were doing in the dark, you should do it in your room.”

Miranda chuckled. “Naked hockey in the dark. That sounds dangerous.”

“This is why I had to move out,” said Nicola. “They’re like this all the time.”

“Whatever turns you on,” mumbled Miranda. She smiled at me while my sister rushed to help Stephanie, who was fanning her face and complaining of dizziness.

“What’s wrong with her?”

“She’s pregnant,” said Nicola. “Or have you forgotten?”

It wasn’t possible to forget. Her stomach was enormous, and she still had three months to go. It made me wonder how big this baby was going to be. Thoughts of Alien filled my head as Nicola told her friend to lie down.

I wasn’t sure if it was the pregnancy that made Stephanie dizzy or the sight of Daniel’s meaty todger slapping against his thigh as he chased me around the room, but it didn’t affect her sense of humour.

“It looks like I went after the wrong brother,” she said, and Miranda laughed before Nicola shut them down with a hard stare. It was still a sore subject for my sister, who claimed to have forgiven her friend for her indiscretions but would never trust her again, not even with Daniel. Stephanie looked indignant. “Don’t worry; I was joking. He’s way too young.”

“He looks fully grown to me,” said Miranda, “but what do I know.”

This time, even Nicola couldn’t resist a little chuckle. “Well, I definitely won’t be able to call him my little brother anymore.”

Despite being only a pair of boxer briefs better off than Daniel, I failed to register anywhere near the same level of interest, and they seemed to forget I was even there. So, when Miranda went upstairs to get Stephanie a glass of water, I dashed for the bedroom only to find myself locked out. The door opened just enough for me to see my desk being used as a barricade, but no further. My brother got his revenge, and I was forced to be nice to him.

“Daniel, can you open the door, please.” He didn’t respond, so I tried to force my way in, grunting and straining until I was red in the face before resorting to threats of violence. “If you don’t open this fucking door, I swear I’m gonna fucking hurt you!”

“You’re definitely not coming in now,” he replied, so I sighed in frustration and then jumped when Nicola prodded me in the back.

“You’re gonna wake up Mom.”

As far as I was concerned, it was better than having to sit around in my underwear until they decided to leave, but Nicola took pity on me. In a rare moment of compassion, she went to the laundry room and returned a minute later with some clothes—a familiar, well-worn T-shirt with a faded teddy bear on the front and a pair of black jogging pants.

“Put these on; I’ve seen enough bare skin for one day.”

“Did you just get these from the dirty laundry?”

Nicola rolled her eyes. “Take it or leave it. I don’t have anything else. My clothes are at Stephanie's house.”

They didn’t smell too good, and Stephanie laughed when I pulled a face after sniffing the T-shirt. It was too big for Nicola, so she generally used it as a nightdress and the pants were torn at the knees, but as my mom used to say, beggars can’t be choosers.

Nicola didn’t need to come to my rescue, and I couldn’t figure out what motivated her. She wasn’t usually offended by my bare skin, so maybe she was just being nice and didn’t want to see me embarrassed in front of her friends. It seemed too far-fetched to believe, and I wasn’t sure if I would have done the same for her, but I needed to show some gratitude, or she would never help me again.

“Thanks, Nicola. They’re quite comfy, actually, and they smell of you, which is a bonus.”

“You’re a dick,” she said, so maybe I was a little too gracious, but I preferred it when she was insulting me.

At least I was semi-decent when Miranda returned with a tray and four glasses of chilled water. She placed it on the coffee table and carried one of them over to me.

“You look like you need to cool off.” She handed me the glass and giggled at my borrowed attire. “I like the teddy bear, by the way.”

“Thanks. It’s one of my favourites, too.” I downed the glass of water in one and then wiped my mouth and sweaty face on Nicola’s T-shirt before trying the door again.

“Daniel, will you let me in, please?”

“No!”

“If Mom finds out about this, you’ll be grounded.”

“I don’t care,” he said. “I’ll tell her you hit me on the ass with a fly swatter!”

“That would hurt,” said Miranda.

“It was only a tap. He’s exaggerating.”

“No, I’m not. You broke it in half!”

“It was from the dollar store; they always break.”

“It sounds kinky to me,” said Stephanie.

“Everything sounds kinky to you, Steph,” said Nicola.

At least the girls were enjoying themselves, but it didn’t look like Daniel was going to let me in while they were there, so I sat in the armchair and waited for them to leave.

“See you in school,” said Miranda. “Don’t worry; I won’t tell anyone about tonight.”

I wasn’t worried, not even a little bit. My reputation in high school was already unsalvageable. I doubted there was anything she could say that could possibly damage it any further.

“It doesn’t matter; I don’t care what people think about me.”

“I guess not, or you wouldn’t be with Nathan. You guys are together, right, like boyfriends?”

I nodded. “On and off for over a year now.”

“But you don’t act like boyfriends. You don’t even sit together at lunch. You’re a weird couple.”

“There’s not much choice in this town for gay people. It was either him or some homeless guy who lives on the beach, and he’s seventy.”

“That’s disgusting.”

“I know. I chose Nathan because he’s still got his own teeth.”

“Whatever he’s telling you is bullshit,” said Nicola. She interrupted our conversation to tell us Stephanie was having another dizzy spell.

‘Great!’

I never realised having a baby could be so problematic, but regardless of any bad feeling that existed between us, it was impossible for me not to feel sorry for her.

She was lying on the sofa bed—the scene of the crime—but looked nothing like the vivacious young vixen who seduced me that night. My mind was invaded with images of Stephanie bouncing on top of me with her butt slapping against my thighs and her humungous breasts flying around like wrecking balls. It was probably more fun for her than for me, but I didn’t need much convincing at the time, and it would be wrong for me to claim I didn’t enjoy it. The results speak for themselves, and even though I was adamant I would never have sex with a girl again, it did nothing to ease my conscience.

While Nicola fussed over her friend, I followed Miranda into the backyard to take advantage of a slight breeze.

“She’s so dramatic,” said Miranda. “Everyone has to change their lives because she’s having a kid. The dizzy spells are just an act to get attention by the way. There’s nothing wrong with her.” It sounded like Miranda had an axe to grind with her friend, but she was distracted when the motion sensor switched the lights on around the pool. “Wow, I didn’t know that was there.”

“That’s why the lights came on. It’s a safety thing.”

“Do you use it much?”

“Sometimes.” I followed her across the brightly lit patio to stand at the edge and gaze at the bright blue water. It always looked so inviting at night, especially when it was hot.

“Nicola told me you were pretty good. It must run in the family. Wasn’t it your aunt who won a load of medals at the Olympics?”

“No, that was my mom, but she didn’t win a load.”

“I’m sure Nicola said it was her aunt.”

“It was her aunt, but she was also my mom. I’m adopted.”

Miranda had a plump face with glowing red cheeks and diamond studs in her nose and ears that glittered under the bright patio lights, but at times, she looked distant and distracted.

“You have a weird family. Doesn’t it bother you that Stephanie’s gonna have your baby?”

I slapped my arm, making her jump. She was also very nervous. “Not as much as these fucking mosquitos, but there’s not much I can do about either of them.”

Miranda looked disgusted as I clapped my hands in front of me for a kill and then wiped them down the front of Nicola’s T-shirt. It was proving invaluable and already soaked in sweat.

“Can I ask you a personal question?” she whispered.

“Is it about Stephanie?”

“Yes.”

“Then no. I don’t answer those questions. Nicola will tell you what happened. I’m surprised she hasn’t already.”

“I know what happened. Stephanie told me everything. I just wondered why. Are you bi-sexual?”

“You hardly know me, and you’re asking me why I had sex with someone. Sorry to be blunt, but it’s really none of your business.” I smiled politely and pointed at a mosquito that was feeding on her shoulder. “They’re little fuckers, aren’t they?”

Miranda was showing a lot more skin than me with mostly bare legs and a top that just about covered her essentials. She brushed it off and smiled timidly.

“I sprayed myself before I came out tonight, but it doesn’t stop all of them. I’m sorry if I offended you. I can be a little forward at times.”

“That’s okay, I wasn’t offended. I just get fed up with people asking that question. For the record, I’m not bi-sexual.”

Miranda sighed like it wasn’t what she wanted to hear, then mumbled. “Maybe she spiked your drink.”

“What?”

“Well, she must have had some help. Did she hypnotise you?”

“No! It just happened. I don’t know how, but it was a mistake.”

“It wasn’t a mistake. Stephanie knew exactly what she was doing. I guess she never told you.”

I wanted to laugh, but the last few words got me.

“What do you mean she never told me?”

“It didn’t just happen. She used you. She does it all the time, or at least she used to.”

“That’s nonsense. No one could have planned that night.”

“I’m not saying she planned to do it that night, but she knows how to take advantage of a situation. She’s clever. I didn’t think she had a chance with you. Nicola told me you were gay.”

She was starting to confuse me. “What are you talking about? Stephanie doesn’t even like me. You see the way she ignored me tonight.”

“You don’t get it. She doesn’t have to like you. It’s just a game to her only this time it backfired. She’s done this kind of thing before. She tried to hook up with my older brother last summer, even though he’d been going steady with the same girl for two years. He would have slept with her, too, if I hadn’t knocked some sense into him. Guys are easy to manipulate, even gay ones like you, apparently.”

Stephanie’s pregnancy made her a natural target for malicious and often outrageous gossip, but it sounded like this one was true. It was an interesting insight that seemed more in line with Stephanie’s personality than the principled image that Nicola tried to portray, but it would have been hypocritical of me to judge her.

“I could tell it wasn’t her first time, but she didn’t manipulate me. I could have said no.”

Miranda laughed. “I wish you had; you would have saved me a lot of money.”

I’m unsure if it was a genuine mistake or a Freudian slip, but she must have known from my reaction that she had opened a can of worms.

“How?”

She bit her lip and glanced nervously at the house, which, other than the basement, was still in darkness. Then I heard the screen door open and saw Nicola standing in the doorway.

“What are you doing out here? Stephanie’s feeling better now, we have to go. It’s late.”

I ignored my sister and repeated my question a little more forcefully. “How?”

Miranda looked at me and put her finger to her lips. “It was nice meeting you.” She offered to shake my hand, then thought better of it. “We can talk again in school if you want; I’m usually in the commons at lunchtime.” She smiled at me like she was sorry and returned to the house, leaving me alone with Nicola.

“What were you talking about?”

“I have no idea. She’s kinda strange, isn’t she?” I slapped my arm to kill another mosquito and wiped it on her T-shirt. “Don’t worry. It’ll come out in the wash.”

“I hope so,” she said. “Or there’ll be some of your blood on it too.” The fact that she said some of my blood and not all of it gave me hope. I took it as another indication that she cared about me, but she didn’t like me conversing with her friends. “Why does Miranda want to talk to you in school?”

“How do I know? Maybe she finds me interesting.”

“Not a chance. You’re not popular enough. And don’t even think about trying your luck with her because you’re not her type.”

Trying my luck with her virgin friend was possibly the last thing in the world that I wanted to do, but I was curious to hear what she had to say and why she wouldn’t talk in front of my sister.

When I followed Nicola into the basement, Stephanie had already left and was waiting for her friends in Miranda’s air-conditioned car.

“It’s the heat,” said Nicola. “She gets dehydrated, and it makes her dizzy.” It was nice of my sister to explain, but I didn’t need to know, and Stephanie made that abundantly clear. Other than laughing at me when I was locked out of the bedroom, there was no interaction between us that night, and she didn’t even say goodbye.

Nicola tried to make amends by pinching my cheek and laughing. “You look cute in that T-shirt. But I want it back, and it better be clean.”

“Don’t worry, it won’t be.”

Then she knocked on the bedroom door. “We’re going now, Daniel. Can you put my picture back on the shelf when you’re finished with it?”

“Fuck off!”

Nicola giggled and lowered her voice. “He’s still embarrassed; I’m sorry you had to see that, Miranda.”

“So am I,” she whispered. “I’ll probably have nightmares now.” Miranda was quite funny in a dry way and different from their other friends. “I’m glad I’m not a guy. I wouldn’t want one of those things between my legs.”

“I wouldn’t mind,” said Nicola.

‘Neither would I.’

*     *     *

After a restless night, I was woken way too early by Amy, who climbed over my back and sat beside me to watch SpongeBob and SquarePants. I was sweaty, smelly, and lying across the sofa bed in my underwear with the sheet on the floor, but it didn’t bother my little sister.

“Why are you sleeping out here?”

“Because I couldn’t get in my ….” I lifted my head to see the bedroom door wide open and groaned. “It doesn’t matter.”

Amy laughed. “You’ve got a spot on your back.”

“Thanks. You won’t tell anyone though, will you?”

As I scratched my head, she was peering under my arm. “And you have hairs under your arms; why don’t you shave them like Nicola?”

“Because guys don’t usually do that.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know why, Amy.”

My little sister was growing up fast and starting to ask awkward questions that I didn’t know how to answer. When she wasn’t looking, I dragged myself off the bed and sprinted to the bathroom, grateful that she found me sleeping on my front and I didn’t have to explain the complexities of a penis.

Daniel and I spent the morning ignoring each other, but any animosity from the previous night’s shenanigans was washed away when the heat forced me into the pool. It was only the second time I had used it in as many weeks, and I was rusty and out of shape when Daniel beat me in a race for the first time. It was no surprise. The writing had been on the wall for a while. He was in the pool every day and working out at school, while the only exercise I got was the occasional romp with my boyfriend when he could fit me into his busy schedule.

Nathan was in Toronto for the weekend, learning about the movie business and watching them film a television drama. He called me in the evening and baulked at my suggestion that he was having fun.

“It’s not fun at all,” he insisted. “It’s hard work and long hours. People have no idea what’s involved, even in a low-budget production. I wish you could be here to see for yourself. I met so many people but can’t remember their names.”

It was quite late, but he still sounded excited by the experience, even if he was only there as an observer.

“Did you learn anything?”

“Yes, not to sit in the director’s chair.”

“You dumbass.”

“I know. Oh, and yesterday I met the girl who plays the witch in that show you like. She’s really funny and totally different without the makeup. We talked for ages, and her boyfriend is …. Oh my God, her boyfriend is gorgeous. He’s such a cutie! Not as cute as you, though.”

“Of course not. Not many people are. So where are you now?”

“I’m in the hotel. I have to share a room with my sister. What a bore, eh.”

I could hear Karen in the background and smiled. “Good, I’m glad she’s there to keep you in line and away from all those dashing young actors looking for fresh meat.”

“I should be so lucky; she won’t let me out of her sight. Not that I’d have time for anything like that. We have to be on location at seven, and they don’t stop until it gets dark. I’m cream shattered!”

I laughed. “You mean crackered,” I said. “Cream crackered, knackered, get it?”

“No, it’s a stupid way of talking anyway.” Then he lowered his voice. “I wish you were here to look after me instead of my sister. There’s only so much she can do for me.”

“It’s only three days. How will you manage if I can’t go to Vancouver?”

“You will, even if I have to smuggle you in my suitcase. I can’t go that long without my teddy bear.”

He didn’t sound very convincing, and I got the impression that he was only trying to make me feel better. Nathan was good at getting what he wanted, but he wasn’t in a position to start demanding concessions from his new employers, and he probably wouldn’t want to rock the boat.

“You might have to wait until I’m eighteen and responsible.”

“But I don’t want you to be responsible; that’s the whole point,” he laughed. “Except when I’m not there, then you have to be super responsible. What have you been up to this weekend? Seen anything of blondie?”

“If you mean Rory, then no, he’s away for the weekend visiting family.”

“I don’t believe you. I bet he’s there with you now, isn’t he?”

“Okay, you got me. He’s under my bed. I use him for sex whenever I get fed up with poking Daniel.” My brother gave me a dirty look from across the room, so I gave him the finger while Nathan moaned on the phone.

“Now you’re getting me all worked up. Maybe I should ask that sexy bellboy to come up here and give me a rub down.”

“I don’t think bellboys do that.”

“They’ll do anything if you give them a big enough tip.” Then he squealed. “Oh my God, my sister just threw a hairdryer at me. They won’t be happy if I get injured, you know. You’re here to look after me, not put me in the hospital!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he behaves himself,” shouted Karen, and she was more than capable, but it wasn’t that weekend that worried me.

*     *     *

There was no school on Monday, but I was uncharacteristically up early to beat Daniel into the pool. I wanted some time on my own to do a few leisurely laps and rediscover my love of swimming.

Losing a race to my brother bothered me more than I cared to admit. Swimming was probably the only thing I was good at, and even though I rarely used our backyard pool, I still considered it my domain. I grew up surrounded by professional swimmers and coaches, including ex-Olympians like my mom, who pushed me hard from a very young age, so technically, I was far superior. The problem was my fitness, and I had to admit that Daniel was probably stronger and in better shape. I was determined to stop the decline and put him in his place. Maybe I inherited some of my mom’s competitive spirit after all, or perhaps it was a brother thing. I still wasn’t sure how it worked, but I needed to beat him, and this was a good start.

Splashing around on my own helped me relax and brought back some of the good vibes I had as a child, but my mom was everywhere I looked, and I found it difficult to concentrate. Earlier that year, Jo spent an entire session explaining how to use those memories positively rather than dwell on the past, and as usual, she was right. I just needed to persevere.

I was ready to get out when I noticed Sue watching and smiling at me from the balcony. She hadn’t had much to smile about lately, so it felt good to know I made her happy. For that reason alone, it was worth the effort, and I had a spring in my step when I joined Daniel at the breakfast table.

He gave me a strange look as he chewed on his cereal. I guess he wasn’t used to seeing me shirtless outside of our bedroom, but because of the humidity and to save on laundry, Sue had relaxed the rules. Before then, I was going through three shirts a day.

“Did you enjoy your swim this morning, dear?”

I nodded and smiled as Sue put a bowl in front of me and ruffled my damp hair.

“It was relaxing,” I said, but to my brother, it was a declaration of war. He stared across the table at me before Sue ruined his day by handing us a list of chores.

“Now there’s only four of us; you two will have to step up and be more responsible. I can’t do everything on my own.”

With Nathan and Rory out of town for the weekend, I was at a loose end, so it didn’t bother me as much as Daniel. He wanted to meet his friend Doug at the beach, and although he didn’t say anything, I suspected he wanted to show him Don’s new apartment.

I studied the list and smiled confidently. “Consider it done. We’re always happy to do stuff, aren’t we, Daniel?” I had to kick him under the table to get him to agree, but I genuinely wanted to help, and my loyalty was rewarded with an unexpected promotion.

“I have to go out for a while. You’re the eldest now that Nicola isn’t around, so whenever I’m not here, you’re in charge of the house. I think you’re old enough to be trusted with this responsibility.”

Daniel smirked, so I kicked him again and made him yell.

“He just kicked me.”

“No violence,” said Sue.

“How else am I supposed to keep him in line?”

“Try being nice to each other.”

It was a long shot and nowhere near as much fun, but I wanted to be fair. So, when Sue left with Amy, I organised our work schedule.

Most jobs on the list were easy, like cleaning the basement and collecting the laundry, with one exception. Cutting the grass was a gruelling job and perfect payback for beating me in the swimming pool.

“Why do I have to do it?”

“Because I said so, and I’m in charge, remember. That means you have to do whatever I tell you, no matter how disgusting or degrading, and if you disobey me, I’m entitled to punish you however I see fit.”

Daniel replied with his middle finger. This wasn’t going to be easy, so I made my brother an offer he couldn’t refuse.

“Okay, if you cut the grass, I’ll do the rest.”

Daniel reluctantly agreed to the deal. It was hard work, but it usually took only a couple of hours. He probably figured he would be finished before midday, and he would have if he hadn’t run out of gasoline halfway through.

I could hear the engine cutting out from the basement, followed by a string of profanity that would have cost him five dollars if Sue had been there. I had just finished mopping the basement floor when Daniel marched in the back door to complain.

“You knew, didn’t you? You were the last one to use ....”

“Be careful ….” I tried to warn him and then winced as my brother slipped arse over tit on the wet floor. His legs flew in the air as if attempting an elaborate bicycle kick before he came crashing down on his backside. “The floor’s wet.”

He lay motionless on the wooden surface as I stood over him, looking for signs of life.

“Are you okay?”

“No! I fucking hate you.”

I was pretty sure he didn’t mean that.

“You’re having a bad day,” I said as I helped him to his feet. He was holding his wrist and yelled when I tried to examine it. He used it to break his fall, and it looked like he may have broken a bone in the process. I told him to lie down and brought him some ice to stop the swelling while we waited for Sue to return.

Later that day, she took my brother to the hospital for an x-ray while I prepared dinner and ensured Amy had a bath and was ready for bed. They were jobs previously handled by Nicola, and I was beginning to regret her leaving. This new responsibility wasn’t much fun.

Daniel came home with his wrist bandaged but with no broken bones. A sprain meant he still had to rest it, and while I didn’t want to see him injured, I couldn’t help a wry smile when he told me he wasn’t allowed to swim for a couple of weeks. I needed all the help I could get.

It wasn’t Daniel’s only injury, and as we got ready for bed that night, he insisted on showing me his butt. He had a new and much more prominent bruise to add to the one from Saturday night, but contrary to popular belief, I was no expert on this part of the anatomy.

“It doesn’t look that bad to me. I mean, it kinda matches the other cheek.”

I had to laugh. My brother was the only straight boy I knew who wanted me to look at his bare ass, and it was the only bare ass that I didn’t want to look at.

On any other boy, that backside would have looked delicious, but on him, it was a definite turn-off and borderline gross. I still wasn’t sure how it worked, and to my eternal shame, it wasn’t always that way, but he wasn’t always my brother either, so I guess it goes with the territory.