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CATHERINE
I watchin amazement as Adrienne changes into her third outfit since I’ve arrived. This time a bright orange tank top and stylish white pleated shorts. She taps on her phone before handing it to me.
“Hold it steady and keep me centered this time.” She pulls her hair back into a ponytail, which only highlights how young she is.
I extend my arm to steady the camera. “And Dad is okay with you doing this?” I ask, still dumbfounded that Mom and Dad not only support Adrienne being a social media influencer but have joined her on many of her posts.
Her smile brightens. “He didn’t get it at first, that is until the sponsors began sending free clothes and products to the house. When they sent a Diamondbacks Jersey in his size, he was all on board.”
“I can see that,” I laugh. Dad has always taught us the value of money management. As a teen, he’d challenge me whenever I went shopping. I didn’t understand what he was doing at the time and oftentimes pushed back, but he was teaching me life skills in between his lecture.
I’ll give you fifty cents for every dollar you save in the mall today. Find a coupon, join a loyalty club membership, defer your purchase until double points day, negotiate a cash discount, whatever you have to do. Always be saving.
ABS, always be saving. He drummed that into my head so often I heard it in my sleep. So, I understand when Adrienne says she won him over with a free jersey - there isn’t any bigger discount than free.
“I can’t believe you have over three hundred thousand followers. That is insane.” I shake my head and stand. At the event space I manage in Indiana, I’ve increased their social media footprint and am excited when we have a post reach a thousand views or receive one hundred likes. “You sure you want me to just press record? Don’t you need to rehearse or something?”
The tip of her tongue peeks out and she runs it across her pink lower lip, a short smile appearing. She lowers her chin a touch, her gaze locking on the phone, and I freeze. It’s a look of confidence and self-assurance that screams I got this. When did my little sister become a freaking star? I press record and transform into another fan, mesmerized by her charisma.
“Happy Thursday everyone, who else is enjoying this beautiful sunshine?” We are on the sun porch in the back of the house. Behind her a wall of glass filled with plants and flowers. She and Mom are both obsessed with gardening. I step to my right to keep her center framed as she spins and sticks her hands into the pockets of her shorts. “Today I’m just feeling like a delicious creamsicle on a summer day. You all know that orange is my favorite color and these shorts from Genneday are the perfect pairing. Cotton, comfortable, and stylish for everything from a backyard picnic to an afternoon stroll in town, hoping to catch the eye of that special someone.” She pulls her hands out from the pockets and place them on her hips like a modern-day wonder woman. “Click the link and use my special code for a discount. Happy Shopping.”
“Wow,” I utter as I stop the recording. “I’ve worked with PR and media companies that need ten takes and all day to get something that short and perfect. You are incredible.” I pull her into a hug and the sound of her giggle tells me she loves what she does. All of it. This isn’t some side hustle to score free merchandise. She is working it and if I know my sister, she has a plan.
“Thanks, sis. I still have some editing I must do, but I’ve come a long way. Dad is usually the first person to like my videos when I post.”
“He’s become a real cheerleader, I see.” I hope Adrienne hears the joy this brings me. When I was a teenager, Dad was always busy working ten-hour days attempting to conquer the world. “How is he doing?” I talk to my parents on a regular basis, and both say things have never been better. I’m curious to see if Adrienne shares this view.
She slips off the shorts and puts back on the baggy ones she wore when I first arrived. “Oh my god, he’s great. He pulls out these old songs from when he was a kid and forces me to use at least one of them on my TikTok every week.”
“Daddy’s Girl,” I squeak, familiar with the weekly daddy-daughter post. They are adorable.
“Our Daddy’s Girl bit is my highest post every week.” She slips back on her flats and strides to me, taking her phone. “I know the first month was tough, but him being laid off last year was the best thing to happen to him. For all of us.”
I recall the conversations with Mom. Dad, suddenly with time on his hands, taking her dancing, jumping in on Adrienne’s tik toks, becoming an all-around goofball. We were concerned with him being unemployed in his mid-fifties, but he took the opportunity to reinvent himself. He’s now a high school math teacher and loving every moment of it.
“I’m happy,” I return. “I have to run. Ava has a million things to take care of for the wedding and she’s asked me to stop down at the Legendary Hall to check on the reception preparation. She’s concerned. They’ve apparently messed up quite a few events lately.”
Adrienne swipes across her phone, an action that I no longer get insulted by. Everyone in her generation keeps their focus glued to their phones. “Yeah. Its days are numbered. I thought she didn’t want to have the reception there. I remember her posting on her IG story once - anywhere but Legendary.”
I bite my tongue, but then decide against it. Adrienne is an adult now. She can hear the truth. “According to Ava, Palmer convinced her fiancé to host the reception there. He got some massive discount from Frankie.”
“Not even Dad would host an important event there these days for free - and that’s saying something.” Her voice lacks any humor. She’s aware of not only what the Legendary has meant to this city but also my personal history. “The Legendary is not what you remember, sis. You may want to change into your dirty jeans and sneakers if you’re going down there.”
“That bad?”
“Frankie Junior parties more than the guests.”
“Mr. Franklin must be so disappointed.” I think back to the retired owner. The man who hired me to work at the Legendary part time when I was in high school. I loved every minute of it. The planning, the preparation, the execution, the joy on the faces of families for their special days – it was special times. Back then, it was the place everyone wanted to have their event hosted.
“He’s retired in Tucson and plays golf four days a week. Rumor has it he finally got the memo that his son is a screw-up. There’s even talk that he might sell it right from underneath him. I hope this rumor, unlike so many others, is true.” Adrienne speaks the line like a proud citizen of Mesa. Our town may be small and not nearly as famous as other cities in Arizona, but we are proud of our little slice of heaven. “And speaking of rumors…”
My shoulders clinch and I prepare.
“Palmer has been nosing around the flower shop, asking about your itinerary. I just wanted to give you a heads up.”
I roll my eyes. “Why the hell does he still care?”
She shrugs.
