Page 29 of My Return to the Walter Boys
Nathan nodded. “Broken finger, but he’ll be fine.”
“That’s surprising, then.”
“What do you mean?” he asked, his forehead creasing into a frown. “Jordan’s tough. His finger was sideways, and he didn’t even cry.”
“I was referring to your mother, not Jordan. I figured the situation must be serious if she panicked enough to putIsaacin charge.”
Isaac drew himself up to his full height. “I’m the oldest here.”
“And yet…” I said, tilting my head to the side.
“He’s the least responsible,” Nathan finished with a smirk.
“Says who? Not only am I feeding everyone, but I’m making sure they have a blast while doing it.”
I side-eyed Jack, who was eating out of a mixing bowl filled to the brim with ice cream. It was covered in chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and, strangely, jalapeños. “Yeah, I’m sure this is exactly what Katherine had in mind,” I deadpanned. “What’s with the cheese grater?”
“This is mymicrophone,” Isaac said, feigning offense. “I’m an auctioneer.”
“Don’t you think you could’ve chosen something a bit more, I don’t know…cylindrical?” I glanced over at the ceramic utensil holder next to the stove; it held a plethora of better options, including a whisk and a wooden mixing spoon.
Isaac’s lips curved into a wicked smile. “I can give you something cylindrical.”
“Gross,” I said, wrinkling my nose. “Forget I said anything.”
The auction continued after that. Nathan spent the rest of his money on a ham and cheese Hot Pocket, which he split with me,while Parker made the mistake of buying a mystery item. It turned out to be a container of leftovers Isaac found at the back of the fridge. Normally Parker was a black hole that would suck down anything edible within range, but even she gagged when the moldy baked beans were revealed. Only Zack and Benny had yet to purchase something as they were too afraid to spend their money and kept getting outbid.
“Next up,” Isaac announced as he pulled a familiar can out from behind his back, “we have a strawberry lemonade Kickstart!”
“Hey!” Alex looked up from his pizza. “You can’t auction that off. It’s mine!”
I held up a finger. “Yeah, I second that.”
Isaac sneered at me. “You don’t need to take his side, Jackie. You’re not dating anymore.”
“I’m not taking anyone’s side,” I replied. “I don’t think it’s healthy to give six-year-olds that much caffeine.” I’d read the back of a Kickstart before; it was basically poison in a can, and everyone would suffer if one of the terror twins turned into the Tasmanian Devil. Besides, I didn’t think Katherine would consider a sixteen-ounce energy drink a proper meal.
“I doubt it’s healthy for anyone to have that much caffeine,” Nathan added.
“Don’t worry so much,” Alex told us. “I drink one of those a day, and I’m perfectly fine.”
“Well, that explains why he’s such a moron,” Lee mumble. “Allthose energy drinks must have melted his brain.”
Alex bristled and directed a dirty look at his cousin. “You know I can hear you, right?”
After bickering back and forth for a minute, we convinced Isaac to nix the Kickstart, which he replaced with another mystery item. Benny, who was elated to finally win something, burst into tears when Isaac revealed half an onion and a bottle of soy sauce.
Chaos quickly ensued: Alex’s chair toppled over when he jumped up in outrage, Jack and Parker started booing, and Lee chucked his uneaten granola bar at his brother’s face. I attempted to soothe Benny, but no matter what I said, he remained convinced that he wouldn’t get to eat anything for lunch.
“I don’t know how to calm him down,” I said, turning to Nathan for help. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Cole. He was standing at the threshold of the kitchen, feet bare and hair damp from a shower. He surveyed the scene with shrewd eyes before crossing the room and squatting down in front of his little brother.
“Hey, bud.” He rubbed his hands up and down Benny’s arms. “What’s wrong?”
“I-Isaac is running an auction,” he answered, his chest hitching, “but everyone keeps winning all the good food!”
“Sounds like your cousin is being a punk,” Cole said.
Isaac scoffed, but Cole didn’t pay him any attention.
