Page 51 of Mark Us Little Bear
Out of excitement, I squeal, clapping my hands together as I sit down quickly and grab a cookie.
“Holy shit!” my sister’s voice pops behind me. “This is awesome.”
“Come join us. We got a Coke for you and you can eat the snacks. No beer.” Bradley points his finger in warning like a protective big brother.
“No beer got it.” She puts her hands up as if surrendering. “Ugh, I love Sour Patch Kids.” Taking a bunch, she pops one in her mouth.
“Mmm,” I moan around one myself. “So freaking good.”
“I had a great day today. I’m glad we came here.” Ronnie says around the spoon of ice cream he licks slowly.
Bradley hums next to him while sipping beer from a Corona bottle. “Me too.”
“Can we visit your family tomorrow?” I ask.
“That’s the plan.”
“Sweet,” I comment, grabbing everything I can and tossing it in my mouth.
“Not like you,” Ronnie studies my features thoroughly, giving me all the warmest, fuzziest feelings in the world.
They both do so easily.
My gaze drops, and my cheeks flush. Kat is fighting a fake cough beside me. I look over at her, finding her subtle smirk and the wiggle of her eyebrow when her eyes slide to meet mine.
“Let’s take some pictures,” Ronnie says and Kat immediately jumps.
This is our first day here and I can’t wait to see what the rest would be like.
Amber
“Are you ready to see me in my natural habitat?” Bradley says as he pushes the door open and pulls me through it. “I come baring gifts!” He announces loudly.
“Like you’re going to be any different, you are yourself no matter what,” I remark as I’m dragged to the wide foyer that views the curved staircase, beige living room, and massive modern wood kitchen.
A wave of booming voices echoes from the door leading to the backyard and bodies file in one after the other.
“There are three more of him?” My legs are rooted to the floor as they round us and hug Bradley in turns.
Bradley veers his gaze to me and whispers, “Hey, I’m one of a kind but they look like me.”
I take a step back, “Their resemblance is uncanny,” I say to Ronnie and weave our hands. They’re all tall with those silver-gray eyes Bradley has and have a similar facial structure.
“It’s okay, Bear, are you nervous?” He squeezes my hand lightly. “They’re going to love you.”
I pivot my head to the side and look up at him with concerned eyes but it quickly fades when he gazes down at me with a soft, reassuring smile.
“We always say we faded with each birth,” Bradley steals our attention, “We look like mom except for Ryan who looks like dad with his blonde hair.”
He catches Ryan’s head between the crook of my arm and raffles his shaggy hair. “He is seventeen, the youngest. Mom says he was a happy surprise but we all think she’s just trying to be nice.” He jokes, being an annoying big brother for a few minutes.
Their mom shows up—with an apron and her black hair tied back—smacking him upside the head. But their goofy expressions turn into a loud laughter, including Ryan who tries to lick Bradley’s arm and get out of his hold.
“Love you, Ryan.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll see you on the field later.” He jerks out of his hold and inches closer to me. “We were waiting to meet the famous Ronnie and the new girl, Amber.”
My cheeks heat even more.
