Page 93 of My Life with the Walter Boys
I giggled and pushed the window all the way up so I could sit on the sill and watch. As I made myself comfortable, Zack ducked out of the way of the stream of water from Parker’s gun. His flimsy headband made of construction paper and neon craft feathers flew off his head.
“Time-out!” Benny yelled so his partner could collect his headgear. Parker didn’t listen.
“Hey, no fair!” Zack shouted at his sister who blasted him in the face anyway. “He told you time-out!”
“I don’t listen to savages!” Parker announced. A moment later a water balloon exploded on her arm.
“Kids!” George demanded, emerging onto the deck. He wasn’t facing me, but from the tone of his voice, I could tell he was frowning. “When I told you to stop using the dog as a horse, I didn’t mean for you to bother Isaac. He’s supposed to be helping me fix the kitchen sink!”
Isaac’s shoulders slumped, his fun ruined, and he let Parker slip off his back.
“Aw, man!” Parker complained, crossing her arms. “Now the teams are unfair.”
“Hey, Jackie!” Zack shouted when he spotted me in the window. “Do you want to play Wild West?”
“Of course she does,” Parker said, and before I could respond, she blasted me with a spray of cold water from her squirt gun.
“Hey!” I shrieked. She giggled and pumped up her gun for another attack. “Don’t you dare!”
She pulled the trigger again, spraying my shirt. Trying to get out of the way, I tumbled to the floor with a loud thump.
“You guys,” Nathan shouted from behind me. “We’re trying to study.”
As I picked myself up off the floor, the bedroom door banged open.
“What’s wrong? I heard a crash!” Katherine was panting in the doorway, with a worried look on her normally gentle features. Her eyes searched for Nathan, and when she saw him sitting perfectly fine at my desk, she let out a breath of relief. “Thank God,” I heard her whisper.
“I’m fine, Mom,” Nathan said angrily.
“I’m sorry. I just thought something bad had—”
“That was my fault, Katherine,” I said, cutting in. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I was just being clumsy.”
She watched us for a moment. “Are you sure?” she asked, still sounding unsure.
“Everything is fine,” Nathan said slowly. I could tell he was trying not to yell.
Just then a water balloon came sailing through the window. It exploded at my feet and sprayed everywhere. A stream of laughter followed the attack.
“Kids!” Katherine shouted. The giggling cut off. “What did I tell you about water balloons in the house? Get inside right now!”
Then she stormed out of the room, leaving us slightly stunned and silent. I couldn’t tell if her anger was caused by the little kids or by stress from what she thought was Nathan having another seizure. I stayed still until Nathan finally let out the air he was holding in.
“Do you want me to leave?” I asked, even though we were in my room. He looked like he needed to be alone.
“No!” he answered and angrily shuffled through his flash cards. Then he sighed and added, “Sorry, Jackie. I didn’t mean to yell at you. I’d just like to go back to studying.”
“It’s okay,” I told him and opened my book again. But as the minutes passed, I couldn’t concentrate on the words in front of me. “Do you want to talk about it?” I finally asked.
“I’m fine,” he told me. “It’s just really frustrating when I can’t have any privacy. My mom is constantly checking on me. I’m surprised she hasn’t started sleeping on my floor at night.”
“She’s just worried about you,” I said, not sure how to respond. I hadn’t the slightest idea of what he was going through. It must be hard to always have someone with you, never alone.
“I know.” He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “But I just want my old life back.”
“Yeah,” I mumbled, looking down. Then we were both still, lost in our own problems.
The door banged open again. “Hey, Jackie?” Alex asked, beaming like an excited child.
