Page 4 of All I Feel

Not even ten seconds later, my mom’s voice grew stern as she said, “Tessa Stone.”

I filled the last three nooks of my waffle and finally set the syrup down. I made eye contact with my mom afterward, and she simply shook her head at me before returning her attention to the adults at the table.

“There’s no way I could ever eat that like you do, but if I were you, I wouldn’t have stopped until it was just the way I wanted it.”

I grinned at my best friend, happy for her approval. “Thanks, Lark. I know you don’t like them like this, but I think they’re so delicious this way.”

With a quick look at my mom, I noticed she was occupied in a conversation with Lark’s mom. So, I thought it was safe to get the final topping for my waffle. The powdered sugar.

As I reached for it, my dad’s head fell slightly forward as he looked right at me. I’d been caught, but I knew I could easily get out of this. Lifting one finger to my lips, I indicated my desire for him to keep quiet as I shook the powdered sugar onto my waffle. He laughed quietly and winked at me.

I returned to making my waffle just right before I would dig in. And that’s when my brother Phoenix, who was sitting on the opposite side of the table from me, leaned toward Lark’s brother Ace and said, “If that was me, my dad would’ve given me a stern look, and I would’ve had to drop the sugar. But not Tessa.”

Ace laughed. “My dad is the same way with Lark. She can get away with anything, and I feel like I’m always getting in trouble.”

“That’s because you do things to be in trouble for,” Lark said. “Like when you constantly take things apart in the house.”

“How else am I supposed to know how things work if I don’t take them apart and inspect them?” he countered.

“Oh my gosh, Tessa, you’ve gone overboard now. Put the sugar down,” my mom ordered.

I shook the dispenser three more times to get the last bit of my waffle covered and set the sugar down. My dad sent a sympathetic look my way. He’d let me get away with things that my mom wouldn’t by not saying anything to drawattention in a situation like this, but once my mom put her foot down, he stood behind whatever she said.

With my waffle finally perfected, I picked up my fork and butter knife to dive in.

My brother wasn’t done complaining. “It’s the same in my house. Harper and Tessa get away with everything, but Archer and me are always in trouble.”

“I have the same problem,” Kingston said. “Chloe and Mia have so many stupid arguments about dumb stuff, and I’m the one that everyone seems to think is too wild.”

Around a mouthful of deliciously sweet waffle, I said, “I don’t know what’s happening in your house, Kingston, but Phoenix and Archer get themselves into trouble because they’re always so rowdy.”

“And gross,” Lark added. “Why do boys always have to be so dirty?”

“I’m not gross,” Ace argued with her. “I’m doing manly things.”

Lark and I looked at each other and rolled our eyes before Lark said, “You’re thirteen, Ace. You just became a teenager. Not a man.”

“It doesn’t mean we can’t do manly things,” Kingston argued.

“Yeah, and we shouldn’t get into trouble for it, either,” Phoenix added.

I put another bite of my waffle on my fork, lifted it, and watched as some of the syrup dripped onto my plate before I said, “We get into trouble, too. Mom just got angry about me making my waffle the way I like it.”

“Because it’s too much sugar, Tessa. Nobody needs that much sugar.”

“I like it.” Keeping my eyes narrowed on him, I put another bite in my mouth.

My brother looked grossed out, but ignored that feeling to make another point. “Well, Dad saw you and didn’t say a word.”

“My dad would do the same with Lark, so don’t feel bad,” Ace told him.

Unbothered, Lark said, “I can’t help that I’m a daddy’s girl. It’s the same for Tessa with her dad.”

“At least there’s one area where we have them beat,” Phoenix declared.

“Where?” Kingston wondered.

“Snowboarding.”