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As I look over to Maria, I see her engrossed in a conversation with Monica about a particular incident from one of our combined family trips with Jared's family, so I decide not to interrupt.
Inside the house, my mom searches for the local pizzeria's contact number while I head to the kitchen to retrieve the pitcher of lemonade.
“I really like her, Tyler,” my mom gushes, prompting a grin from me as I grab the lemonade.
“I'm glad to hear that. I really like her too,” I reply, my face growing warmer as my mom lets out a huff of approval.
“So, this is the girl who had you pacing around my yard in worry?” my mom continues, dialing the restaurant’s number.
“Yes, she's the one. Clearly, things have turned out just fine,” I assure her, listening as she places an order for a cheese and a pepperoni pizza.
“Maria and Monica seem to be hitting it off,” my mom remarks as she concludes her phone call.
“I'm not entirely convinced that's a good thing,” I respond, already anticipating Monica's strategic plotting to recruit Maria in her endeavors to gang up on me.
My mom appears to ponder this for a moment before commenting, “You have Jared, so don’t worry too much. I think this connection will be quite nice for Monica.”
She's right. Though she doesn't express it outright, I'm aware that my little sister has at times harbored resentment over not being included in the activities Jared and I shared, even though she understood that our substantial age gap played a role.
Despite that age difference, Jared and I used to find amusement in teasing Monica, and now that she's navigating her angsty teenage years, she's determined to demonstrate she can hold her own.
My mom grabs some wine and leads us back to the porch.
Once there, I pour a glass of lemonade for Maria and me.
“Want to pour me a glass?” Monica asks, giving me the first real smile the entire time I’ve been here.
I make a show of thinking about my answer before ultimately telling her, “No, I think I’m good.”
And the smile is completely gone.
“I was just telling Maria about that time you passed out in front of the hotel room on the family trip,” Monica says smugly, my face immediately going red at her words.
So, that’s what they had been talking about. I shouldn’t have left the table.
“One day, when you’re old enough to drink, you’ll understand,” I bite back, but it does nothing to reclaim my dignity.
“Oh, I promise I’ll make sure I never go there,” Monica replies confidently.
If only Jared was here. She’d be too distracted fighting with him to waste anytime drudging up embarrassing stories from my past.
“We didn’t even realize he was missing until we were getting ready to venture out in the morning and found him curled up on the doorstep,” my mom joins in, and I shoot her a glare.
“Mother,” I warn, though the threat echoes empty.
“What? It’s funny. Even Maria finds it funny,” my mom points out, her face holding the same smug expression as Monica’s.
And sure enough, Maria is trying and failing to hold in uproarious laughter during what has become a “Let’s embarrass Tyler” session.
I should have been worried about this before we came here. In the end, I’m not even surprised that this is happening. Of course Monica would take the opportunity to tease me. And mom? Well, since I always had Jared, she’s tried her best to back Monica up when it comes to giving me a taste of my own medicine.
The sound of a car rolling up the driveway trickles around to the back of the house.
“That must be the pizza,” my mom says, beginning to stand up.
“I’ll get it, honey,” my dad says good naturedly, placing a kiss on my mother’s head as he gets up to collect the food.
I’ve always wanted to have a relationship like the one my parents have. It’s always seemed so impossible.
