AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Dubs releases a second round of giggles on a shrug. “Good point.”
My attention momentarily falls to the ground where Lo has parked himself next to the bucket to yet again attempt the trick he’s been working tirelessly on. “How far deep do your roots run to this place?”
“Pretty deep.” A hot breeze randomly passes between us. “Not one of the founding families but pretty close. Unlike my cousins who all wandered off to different parts of Texas – you know, to minimize that whole accidentally hooking up with someone you’re related to shit – me and Wick stuck around. Stayed close to our parents and aunts and uncles and grandparents who were always fueling the fire on feuds around town.”
“Really?”
“Oh yeah. Claimed they were doing the town some good.”
Being fascinated by the statement has me leaning in, eager to hear more.Discover more.
Become more inspired. “How so?”
“For instance, the Bradshaws and the Beaumonts have shared a property line for…well, practically forever. They were always great neighbors and even greater friends until their sons turned ten and each wanted a treehouse.”
Curiosity has me cocking my head.
“No big deal except they were both eyeing the same tree to build it in. The one that technically had roots that ran onboth sidesof the property line. Now, still. This shouldn’t have been a big deal. They’re best friends. Their sons are best friends. They could probably just build one and everyone would be happy, right?”
“Right…”
“Except Madea – my grandmother – tells Mrs. Beaumont after church one Sunday that JB – her son – wants the treehouse to impressme,to winmeover while Pa – my grandfather – tells Mr. Bradshaw that LB – his son – wants it for the exact same reason.”
“That’s definitely pouring gas on the fire.” Holding in my chuckles is a struggle. “Was it true? At all?”
“Not exactly.” Her smirk suddenly stretches from ear to ear. “Theydideach want a treehouse. And they did each want it to impress someone, I just wasn’t that someone.”
“Who was the someone?”
“Each other.”
Perplexity pops into my expression.
“JB wanted it to impress LB and LB wanted it to impress JB and like some sort of sweet tea making soothsayer sheknewthis without having to be told. Swore up and down those boys would be together but that the timing wasn’t right. That their parents’mindsetwasn’t right. And that they’d have an easier time accepting that their sons had a crush on the same girl versus each other.”
Captivated now more than before is what leads me to staring onward in silence, anxious to hear how it all ends.
“They fought so, so hard over who got to build on that damn tree.For. Years.In and out of the court. And the more they fought each other, the more the town paid attention to their feud andnotthe budding romance between their boys.”
“Huh,” an amused grunt is unconsciously expelled, “like the distraction portion of a magic trick.”
“Precisely. Madea knew that if the parents could focus on something else that the boys would be free to fall in love and explore whatever it was that was there.”
I can’t help the soft smile that slips into place. “Does this tale have a happy ending?”
“The happiest, actually. Not only did JB and LB end up together, but my mother was also the judge who married them under that damn tree.”
Urges to see as much as paint the tree shoot to my fingertips.
Cause them to twitch.
Wiggle.
“And by the time their parents found out that they were together…enough time had passed for them to engage in more open-minded thinking about who it’s ‘okay’ to love. More…acceptance. They had seen what can happen to a family when you push your child away based on who they loved, and it was somethingneitherfamily wanted.”
“Fatealways gives us the journey we need. We just have to be willing to take it.”
“Madea used to say something similar. She was…” Dubs pauses in wistful nature. “An amazing woman.”
