Granny stood there for a while, realizing the gravity of the situation while contemplating the finality of my words. Not knowing how to effectively respond to anything I just threw at her, she quietly left.
Chapter 8
The next morning, after being busy on the guy’s laptop for the entire night, Uncle John knocked on my door.
“Ready to go, Tim?”
“What?” I said perplexed, rubbing my tired eyes.
“I called Bill, but he wants to meet up in his office. I figured we could just go together.”
His voice sounded hopeful, making me believe he wanted to spring something on me during the drive. I did have stuff to do in the office, but I didn’t like driving when tired. My insurance was already costing me an obscene amount each month simply for being young. If I actually had an accident because my reflexes were dulled by the lack of sleep, my premiums would go through the roof. But with John driving, that wasn’t a problem.
“Sure. But I’ll need a shower first.”
I stood up too fast, though, and immediately regretted it when I felt dizzy as the pain shot through my torso. I caught myself, refused his offer of support, and made my way to the bathroom. I was just out of the shower and back in my shorts, when someone knocked at the door.
“Honey? Are you Okay? John told me you didn’t look too well when you went in here.” I heard Claire’s concerned voice.
“Yeah. Thanks. Everything’s fine.” I replied.
Then I remembered how exhausting it was to rewrap my chest after my last shower, and how beat I was after that. I was already tired from the all-nighter, so there was no way I’d get anything done if the rewrapping went the same way as the evening before. A little help couldn’t hurt. But did I want to admit that I actually needed help? And more importantly, did I want to admit that to one of them?
I sighed as I realized that the negative effects, if I tried to just fight through this, would be far worse than showing a little weakness.
“Uh ... actually ... you still there?” I asked in a defeated tone, half hoping not to get an answer.
“Yes!” came her immediate response. Despite me thinking about this for quite a while before deciding to call out to her, she didn’t sound like she had moved even a single step away from the door. Interesting.
“Could you come in and ... help me with the Rib Brace?”
The door opened and she stepped inside.
“Sure!” She said, as she took note of the room. I removed the wet bandaids, dabbed the areas dry with a clean towel and inspected the wounds, but Claire suddenly told me to wait before rushing out of the bathroom. She came back a minute later with big adhesive gauze pads that were also waterproof.
“Huh. I didn’t even think of something like that when I was at the pharmacy.” I remarked. “Thank you!”
She leaned down, placed the pads on the wounds and made sure they sat tight. Then she took the Rib Brace from the cabinet and wrapped me back up. Instead of leaving, however, she let her hand roam over my abs, leaned further down, and placed a kiss on them.
“My pleasure, Baby.” she said with a big smile, before turning and leaving the bathroom.
I just stared at her back. That kiss on my abs, and her calling me ‘Baby’ just like Tess had always done, rocked something in my memories, bringing me back to the supposed dream I had a few days earlier. My mind was racing like on that fateful day I discovered the family orgies.
When I finally came downstairs and looked for Uncle John, I saw Claire standing in the kitchen, and used the opportunity to take a critical look at her.
Her breasts were bigger, but shaped like a teardrop, like Tess’ were. The rest of her body was remarkably similar to Tess’ as well. Same height, similar proportions. Tess had that mature voluptuousness going for her, since she knew perfectly well what she had to offer and how to use those assets, while Claire had an admittedly hot Mom-bod. Claire’s hair was blond, while Tess’ was black, but it was almost the same length as it reached just a little below their shoulders, and she often wore it in the same Ponytail Tess had preferred, especially when she did housework. Claire’s eyes were blue-green, while Tess’ were brown, but the rest of her face also showed remarkable similarities. Thinking about it, with Mom working in a law firm, and Tess being ... having been an accountant, they even utilized a similar dress code.
Tess, the only woman I had ever loved, was a lot older than me, like my mother, looked a lot like my mother, and even had the very same body type as my mother.
While I was sure Aunt Danielle would have a field day with that realization, I was occupied with a more pressing matter. Did my mother blow me while I was half asleep and doped up? Just as I was asking myself that question, Uncle John joined my side and asked if I was ready to go. Looking past him, I noticed Aunt Danielle sitting in the living room trying not to look at me.
“Sure. Let’s get moving.” I said.
After we had been on the road for a few minutes, Uncle John started talking.
“You know, Tim ... Danny is seriously hurt since yesterday.” he said before waiting for a response. When I didn’t give him any, he pushed ahead. “She thinks she screwed up with you.”
“Yes.” I just said.
“‘Yes’? That’s it?” he asked, a little upset.
“Well, she’s right. And to say it in the words of my favorite Spider Man: ‘I missed the part where that’s my problem’.” I dismissed his attempt at making me feel responsible for his wife’s wellbeing.
“I can’t believe you really mean that!” he almost shouted.
“What the fuck do you want from me, John? You think I’m happy with my life!? You think I’m glad my own family excluded and ignored me for years, to the point I just wanted out of it? Or that I enjoyed watching all of you have a merry time while I work up to forty hours a week in addition to school, just so I could pay rent and buy food!? And your wife watched it all happen and willingly ignored the signs she, of all people, should’ve noticed. I’m not gonna make shit up or put myself down even further just to make her feel better about herself.” I explained exasperatedly.
“But, Tim, she’s trying to make amends for that! She’s been showing up in your office every week for the last year, trying to explain and apologize, but you just keep blowing her off! You need to give her a chance!”
“Why do I need to?” God, that man pissed me off! At least the rising anger counteracted my fatigue. “She doesn’t need to apologize, her words mean nothing to me! It’s actions I’m hoping for. Like, instead of trying to explain her bullshit reasons to ME, she should be working on YOU to finally realize how YOU all broke this. But even if she does, what’s her sudden motivation? Because after she learned I’m fuckable when seeing me at the gym, I’m suddenly worth being part of your family, and somehow supposed to be thankful for it!? Did it ever occur to you, that that’s not what I want from my ‘family’? And don’t buy into her shit of me just being filled with anger, like she claimed in the hospital. Yes, I’m angry, but that’s not why you can all go fuck yourselves. You can all go fuck yourselves, because the last four years have proven to me who you are as a person.”
“It’s that bad between us, huh?” he asked ruefully.
“I had that conversation with your sister just yesterday. I’m not trying to hurt any of you or get back at you. It’s just ... Yes! It’s that bad between us! And it took you four damn years to notice. I really don’t know why I should even try and work on this. Whatever ‘this’ even is anymore, since I had enough time to learn how to care for myself, so I no longer feel any need or desire to have any of you in my life.”