Thankful

I was thinking it might not be a bad idea to step back around to the bathroom before Kelly came in to rejoin me when, of course, she did.

And almost made a trip to the restroom unnecessary.

Where she'd been wearing a loose t-shirt and some sort of sweatpants or thick pajama bottoms earlier, now she was wearing a sports bra and shorts such as I'd seen her lifting in, only in different colors. Her hair was wet and slicked back from her face. Only those few inches covered by the tight, brief shorts and even tighter and briefer sports bra were curtained from my eyes.

God! If she sat down next to me and brushed up against me again, it was questionable which head would explode first!

I wasn't sure I was exactly glad when she sat on the couch next to me, but with plenty of room between us, or not. But, it was probably for the best.

Conscious of all that had gone on in the past when I'd been unable to disguise my interest, I tried not to look. I was largely unsuccessful as Kelly seemed to have some problem with muscle soreness or something and was constantly shifting and moving and arching to stretch her delightful body.

"So, what do you do?" Kelly asked.

"Huh?" I blinked and ripped my eyes from her taut muscular, star-spangled torso and uplifted breasts as she stretched her arms over her head.

"Well, you know," Kelly said with a small smile playing around the corner of her mouth. "What is a day in the life of Nick like?"

"Oh. I don't know what you would like to know. I work a lot in the lab, but I'm not really supposed to talk about that. I take a lot of classes and do a lot of research, but I doubt you'd be interested in much of that. What do you do? Do you work?"

"No," Kelly said. "I don't work. I still live with my parents. Pretty much all I do is train and compete and train some more for the next competition. But, you understand how it is."

"Er, no," I half chuckled. "Actually, I wouldn't have a clue."

I flexed my pitiful bicep to demonstrate what I meant, making her smile.

"No, not lifting," Kelly said. "The strain to be the best at something. Why else do you study as much as you do, work as hard as you do, if not to be the best?"

"Because I love it," I replied. "Because I want to know. Because I want to see if it can be done. No, I know I'll never be in Dr. Geer's league. He was one of the three who created 'New Math' in answer to JFK's call for the race to space. A certifiable genius. I just want to be the best at what I do that I can be. To get a little better at it each day. Is that the only reason you do what you do? To be better than other people?"

"Wow. Ask a tough one," Kelly said as she paused to think. "Well, yes. I do want to be better than the other people who do what I do. I mean, I don't know that I would have even started except for a coach said I could be good. I was already pretty big, which would have been enough of a stigma without my spots. But, if I was going to be bigger than other people anyway, why not be the best at it?"

"I admit, I still don't understand exactly what it is you do," I said. "So, are you one of those people who gets up in front of other people in a swimsuit and flexes your muscles."

"Oh, God, no! That's bodybuilding. It's a completely different sport. No. No way could I get up there and have people staring at me. And in a swimsuit no less. To have judges subjectively decide which of us looks better? I would just die. No. I do powerlifting. Basically, we get up in front of judges who watch our technique to make sure we aren't cheating and try to lift more than anyone else can."

"But, you still wear a swimsuit? Or, well, this?"

"Oh, no. I wear a... well, call it a body suit and Unitard. I couldn't wear this where anyone would see me."

"But, you're wearing it now. I can see you."

"Yes," Kelly said softly. "Yes, I am. And, yes you can. And I still can't believe I'm wearing it in front of you. Would you rather I went and changed?"

Rather than Olivia, it was Aunt Regina who came in just then. Unlike Olivia, Aunt Regina wasn't ruining a moment or interrupting anything I didn't want to be interrupted as I was not sure how to answer that question without appearing to be a lecher. To wit, if she was going to change, I'd prefer even less.

"Well, good morning, Kelly!" Aunt Regina announced her presence. "And Nick. Did you two sleep?"

"As much as I ever do," Kelly and I answered at the exact same time and burst out laughing as we looked at each other.

"Have you two showered and eaten?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good. Then, I'll go get the next pair up and in the shower. We've only got about two hours before we have to leave."

I waited until Aunt Regina had disappeared back to the far hall before turning to Kelly.

"So, am I the only one not looking forward to standing around outside a mall entrance in the cold and getting trampled when the doors open?"

"You think we could get her to let us stay behind?" Kelly asked.

"We could try," I shrugged. "It's never worked for me so far. Maybe you'll have better luck."

"Not a chance," Uncle Billy yawned a short time later when we asked him as he scratched his kettle belly while settling into his chair. "If I have to suffer through this, I'm going to need friendly faces around to help me get through it. Hey! Who's got my remote?"

Kelly handed it over to him. When she came back to the couch, she sat just a little closer to me. Still not close enough we were touching. But, if I concentrated, I could feel the heat of her against the exposed skin of my arm.

Mom came in with yet another change of clothes she wanted me to wear. I didn't see what was wrong with my jeans and t-shirt and said so. We finally compromised an hour later when I put the shirt on over my t-shirt, but steadfastly refused to change from my jeans to the slacks.

Kelly had gone back, when Olivia came and found her, to change into something a little less revealing. The pair of them came back in what seemed to be their uniform; loose pants and bulky sweaters. They'd taken seats on the fold out with me, Kelly between Olivia and I. For some reason, Olivia seemed to have taken her blarney pills and could not seem to shut up, peppering Kelly with questions and observations that kept her turned mostly turned towards Olivia.

I'm not sure just why, but Kelly had shifted just a little further my direction when she sat back down so that her arm was touching mine.

Pris and Michelle had made an appearance to fill in their spots on the Cheer Couch decked out in clothes that made me wonder why we were going shopping. Or at least where. I almost asked Mom if she'd packed a tie for me, except she probably had despite the fact I thought ties were nooses willingly strung around one's own neck. The two of them were speaking quietly, which was enough to make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

All we were waiting on was Laurell who'd been hard to wake up and was still moving slow.

Mom and Aunt Regina were on their couch with Uncle Billy on his throne glued to the sportscaster running down the game they'd inflicted on me the day before.

I caught every single person in that room glancing at Kelly or I or both of us every few seconds. I wasn't completely sure just what was happening between us, but I was sure I didn't want an audience for whatever it was.

Finally, Laurell joined us and General Aunt Regina led the charge out the door.

Without thinking, I took up my usual post in the back corner of the van as we filled in around the table back there. Once again, I found myself sandwiched between Pris and Kelly. Once again, Pris was turned with her back mostly to me, speaking to Laurell. Olivia still hadn't shut up, forcing Kelly to look that way. Michelle floated back and forth between the conversations, mostly listening.

I eyed the empty cabin chair next to Mom, behind Uncle Billy. But, I didn't really want to go sit in it this time. Being squeezed in next to Kelly was pretty nice.

For some reason, Michelle smiled and winked at me as our eyes crossed. Now, what the hell was that about?

I had a feeling I knew and felt myself blush.

It wasn't until we arrived at the first in our long line of destinations to conquer that I remembered Kelly's problem being around people from the day before. When I glanced at her, her eyes were flitting around from person to person standing out in the cold with us, but she didn't seem to be on the verge of another panic attack.

Kelly's eyes met mine and I felt my lips curl in a smile which she answered in kind.

Then the doors were opened and all hell broke loose.

The next few minutes would have sparked a veritable rain of flags on the field the day before.

Kelly's strong arm swept me in close in front of her as the crowd surged and threatened to carry me away. Or trample me. Whichever came first.

Somehow, and I couldn't really see just how, our family washed up into the lee of an information booth as the stampede parted around it and us. Aunt Regina gave terse orders to return there in twenty minutes if we got separated.

And proceeded to lead the assault team to the charge.

Ordinarily, I would manage to get myself separated as quickly as possible. Depending on how much time General Aunt Regina had given us, I might find a bookstore or electronics shop to hole up in until time to return.

Not that time.

Kelly and Olivia between them, somehow kept me moving with them.

Of course, we charged right into a clothing store.

I glanced around to see Uncle Billy, the rat bastard, had somehow gotten himself separated.

Twenty-three minutes later, Aunt Regina marshaled our group back out to the information booth to find Uncle Billy sitting there with a cup of coffee in hand, chatting with two other men.

Twenty-seven minutes after we'd arrived, we were back in the van, headed to the next attack site.

And so the morning went.

Some of our stops, I really wasn't quite sure why we made them. We'd hit one store, maybe two. One person might come back to the van carrying a bag. Quite a few, no one actually bought anything.

Others, it was obvious why we went as each person carried at least one bag back out, with some carrying two.

I lost track of how many indoor shopping malls and strip malls and stand-alone stores we hit that morning. I think it was less than a dozen but wouldn't swear to it.

Each time, Kelly and Olivia managed to keep me with the group. And each time, as we left, I was squeezed back into "my" corner, between Kelly and Pris. That part was nice. Nice enough I was half hoping we might aim for something a little further away, so we could have a nice long ride. Preferably without a mall or store at the end packed with people willing to commit assault.

Finally, sometime after noon, we made a longer stop at one of the bigger malls. That one, we were not only allowed but encouraged to divide and conquer. The time limit given was a full hour.

It took every trick in my arsenal of bully avoidance techniques, but I managed to give everyone the slip long enough to slide inside a bookstore. I was enjoying being around Kelly, but Olivia trying to be a fourth family cheer squad member was wearing on my nerves.

Naturally, it was Pris who led them to me.

"See? I told you he would be in here."

Having found me, and delivered her "I told you so," Pris turned around a disappeared back into the mass of people moving around the halls.

Olivia looked a bit put out they'd found me. I suppose in fairness she might have had gas from the tremendous breakfast she'd shoveled in.

Kelly looked, oddly, relieved.

"You disappeared," Kelly said. "I couldn't find you."

"I told you, Kell," Olivia chimed in. "He does that. Let's go get something to eat. I'm starving."

Kelly wouldn't be budged, insisting they wait for me. When her stomach growled audibly, I reluctantly put the book I was reading back on the shelf and walked out with them to head for the food court, only one of two places I detested more than the clothing stores. On the way, we, of course, passed the place I loathed above all others; the arcade.

What should have been a haven for nerds and geeks like myself, and may have been when they first came to be, had been taken over by obnoxious bullies. Some of them were jocks. Others might as well have been.

No thanks.

The food court was bad enough. I couldn't eat the food anyway. And if the mix of various smells wasn't nauseating enough, watching the people eat there while they talked and laughed and sprayed particles of food all over each other would finish the job.

What I hadn't realized when we passed the arcade was we'd been spotted by someone who felt he had a reason to follow.

"Hey! Douche!"

A fist was flying at my face. The whole right side of my head came off and did a couple of laps around the solar system.

The next thing I was aware, Kelly was standing over me holding the punk from the bathroom at the ball game in the air with one hand palming his head like a basketball and the other cupping his groin as he screamed in a high falsetto.

I glanced over at another ruckus to find Olivia with two more, one under each arm. I knew, none better, what was coming next and winced in anticipation. Sure enough, Olivia let go of each of their necks, her arms wind-milling behind her as she dropped to one knee, only to whip back up between their legs with enough force to lift them bodily off the ground.

"All of you! Freeze!"

I rolled my head the other way to find a Security Guard with one hand on his tonfa and the other on the radio microphone on his shoulder.

While not the most damaged by a long shot, I was the one with an obvious bruise forming on my face. That, and several witnesses who stepped up and said they saw the leader sucker punch me, kept us from being arrested. But, we were asked to leave and not come back.

I pointed out we were there with someone, had no idea where they were, but were scheduled to meet them. One of the officers escorted us around the outside to our meeting spot. Uncle Billy came wandering up in response to a page over the system. When he saw my face, he immediately turned his glare on Olivia.

Strangely, I wasn't tempted to keep my mouth shut and let Olivia take the blame. God knew she'd done enough to me over the years she hadn't gotten a full measure of retribution for. But, the way she'd taken down two of the guys reminded me so strongly of Pris standing up for me all those years, I was feeling magnanimous.

"It wasn't Ollie this time, Uncle Billy," I said quickly. "The guy from the game yesterday came looking for payback and sucker punched me. Kelly and Ollie took out the trash."

"But, they are all banned from the mall for the day on penalty of being charged with criminal trespass," our escort chimed in.

If anyone noticed I'd used Olivia's nickname for the first time in our lives, they didn't have time to show it just then as we were hustled back out the door.

Uncle Billy got us all in the van and situated, then hung around to hear the story again, before going back in to round up the rest of our hunting party.

"Thank you," I said after he was gone.

"Hey, you're my cousin," Olivia said. "I can kick your ass anytime I want. No one else is allowed."

Kelly, though, seemed almost frightened.

"Hey, Kelly," I said, taking her hand in mine. "Really. Thank you. Very much. They could have really messed me up if you hadn't been there."

Kelly didn't pull her hand away from mine, but her body was still stiff. I wasn't sure what was wrong, but I felt that to pull my hand away from hers would be the wrong move.

After an eternity spent in silence, everyone else came bouncing out to the van. The shopping safari was, of course, ruined. Everyone seemed concerned about my face which was turning colors and swelling.

And everybody agreed that it was a good thing Kelly and Olivia were there. Not that Olivia couldn't have taken them all herself, of course. And whatever army they might've brought with them.

Far from encouraged, Kelly just stiffened further. Even going so far as to pull her hand away from mine.

Back at "the ranch," Kelly fled to the back of the house with Olivia trailing along behind. Once I had a sixteen-ounce ribeye plastered to my face, Laurell drifted away for a nap, with Michelle and Pris trailing behind.

Mom and Aunt Regina fussed a little longer but eventually turned their attention to reforming the battle plans for the aborted shopping expedition. Uncle Billy was glued to ESPN until his head drooped onto his chest and he started to snore.

"Mom? I think we need you," Olivia was quieter than normal. Quiet enough I peeled the steak off my face and turned to see what was wrong.

"Why?" Aunt Regina asked. "What's going on?"

"Um, just come," Olivia said, glancing at me. "You too, Aunt Beka."

It wasn't just too much longer before I got bored with sitting there listening to Uncle Billy snore while holding a chunk of raw meat to my face. I wandered to the kitchen to set the meat aside and wash the blood off my face just in time to see Michelle and Pris and a groggy Laurell trailing after Aunt Regina in the "forbidden" hall.

None of them so much as looked my direction and they were walking with a purpose. I'd long ago learned not to be too curious when my female relatives walked with that particular step.

On my way back, I dipped into my bag to get a book and my Walkman.

I'd flipped my cassette twice when I bounced with the force of Olivia flopping on the far end. When I glanced over at her, her face was set in her habitual scowl and her mouth moved.

"Huh?" I asked as I slipped off my earphones.

"I said, 'I really hate you sometimes.'"

"Okay."

"I should have let them pound you," Olivia said. She turned her face away, but not before I saw a tear slip from the corner of her eye.

Anytime before that day, I would have watched that tear fall and dusted my hands with a grin, and considered my work accomplished. But, not that day.

"What is it, Ollie?" I asked.

"I swear to fucking God, Nick. You'd better make her happy or I will absolutely end you."

With that pronouncement, Olivia fled back the way she'd come. I had no more idea what was happening than before she'd spoken. Less.

Fortunately, Pris and Michelle flounced in to clue me in.

"Bro, you know how you always wanted to be the knight riding in to rescue a damsel in distress?" Pris asked.

"Er, not really," I said. "No."

"Oh, right," Pris said, and mockingly held her finger to her lips. "Anyhoo, just like every little boy wants to be the knight in shining armor, every little girl wants to be the damsel being rescued."

"Don't forget true love's first kiss," Michelle said sagely. "Very important, that kiss."

"Have you two been huffing hairspray again?" I asked suspiciously.

"Hey, that was one time when I was thirteen and didn't know to open the door or window when I was going for the teased look," Pris said.

"All right, look Nick, this is important," Michelle said. "Like, seriously life and death important. Did you know Kelly attempted suicide a couple of years ago?"

"Um, yes," I said slowly. "Aunt Regina mentioned it. What's this about?"

"Bro, you need to brace yourself," Pris said. "Kelly is head over heels in love with you."

"What?!" I glanced around as Uncle Billy snorted in his sleep and lowered my voice. "What? But, she hardly knows me at all. We just met, what? Two days ago now? And we've hardly spent much time at all just the two of us talking. Did she say she's in love with me?"

"Oh, please," Pris snorted. "Of course she didn't. But, she's got all the earmarks. But, here's the thing, Bro. We need to know where you stand with her."

"Uh," I blinked and looked from one to the other. "Well, I don't really know her, but I find her fascinating."