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Hearing my dad yell at me like that made something deep inside of me, some part of me I didn’t fully comprehend, shrivel into a ball and retreat to the back of my consciousness like a wounded animal.
“O-okay,” I croaked, barely able to speak over the thick emotion in my throat. “I’ll tell Madoc.”
I was sure he would be happy to help babysit. Even though he barely spent any time with my brothers, Madoc loved them almost as much as Ace did.
“Thank you,” my dad breathed out.
“Yeah.” I swallowed. “I’ll talk to you later. I hope you have a fun weekend with Mom.”
I hung up before he could respond.
Is it just me or is this turning out to be the worst day ever?
There seemed to be a common theme occurring in my life: a lack of trust in me. Ace and Madoc didn’t trust me to know the truth or to be on my own, and Dad didn’t trust me to take care of my brothers.
Maybe I really was immature, just like my dad said.
I scanned the trees one more time for any sign of Madoc. He was still nowhere to be found. I looked back at the school. Maybe he had gone back inside while waiting for me to finish talking to Ace?
So much for my unwavering bodyguard.
I looked over the forest one last time before making my way back to school.
“My pizza tastes funny,” Thomas said to me through a mouthful of cheese and pepperoni.
My seven siblings and I were all sitting on the floor of my living room, blankets and pillows laid out beneath us, eating pizza in front of the TV.
Wes was sitting on my lap, chewing small bites from a plastic plate, while Felix used my thigh as his personal pillow, their eyes glued to Toy Story playing on the screen.
Despite the conversation I had with my dad over the phone earlier that day, I ended up babysitting my brothers on my own. Madoc never turned up after disappearing behind the school.
I still had his phone so I couldn’t text him to find out what happened. It was quite strange, really, and very out of character.
I might’ve been worried about him if it weren’t for some boy named Josh telling me Madoc had to leave due to an emergency and that he would give me a ride home at the end of the day instead.
This bothered me to no end, so I told Josh to beat it and asked Marta to give me a ride home instead.
Still, Ace had his other minions, and I felt eyes on me for the rest of the school day.
So, when I got home, it was nice to be alone with my brothers. Where no one was watching me. Where no one was trying to control me.
I was still mad at my dad for how he spoke to me earlier. I was so sick of people assuming what I could and could not handle without affording me even the smallest bit of trust.
Maybe going against his orders and watching my brothers on my own wasn’t the best way to prove my maturity, but I wanted everyone to see how they underestimated me. I was just as capable as anyone.
I looked at Thomas who was still glaring down at his slice of pizza. “What’s wrong with it?”
“It tastes like sour fish,” he replied. He scrunched his nose when he smelled the crust.
I frowned. Thomas was the furthest thing from a picky eater. Anything even remotely edible usually ended up in his mouth.
He once made himself violently ill because he wouldn’t stop eating worms from the garden every time he played outside.
Thomas wasn’t the only one either. All my brothers were growing like weeds and needed plenty of food to keep them going.
Thomas and Elliot were gaining on me in height and they were only eleven years old.
“Did you put veggies in the sauce?” Elliot accused. “I hate when mom puts veggies in the sauce. She thinks we can’t tell, but we can.”
Our mom sometimes blended carrots and broccoli and things of that nature into our pasta sauce or stew when she made dinner. A trick to get reluctant children to eat their vegetables.
“I ordered the pizza from Lucy’s, your favorite,” I replied. “Vegetables in the sauce aren’t even an option.” I took a big bite of my own slice and smiled to prove my point. It tasted fine to me.
Thomas made a face, dropped his slice on his plate, and shoved it away from him.
Elliot quickly followed suit.
This might’ve bothered me if it weren’t for the fact that both had already finished an entire pizza each.
“More for us, right, Wes?” I said as I grabbed another piece. I looked down at my youngest brother on my lap who continued to chew his food happily. “You like your pizza, huh?”
Wes absently nodded in response, keeping his eyes glued to the movie. He pointed at the TV and yelled “T-Rex!” when the toy dinosaur came on the screen. I smiled.
“Can we have popcorn, Dotty?” Easton asked.
“And candy!” Thomas added, getting on his knees to look at me with puppy eyes.
After they’d arrived home from school earlier, I’d taken them to the store and let them each pick out one candy and one soda to have during the movie.
They’d already drunk their sodas with their pizza.
“Maybe we should wait a little while,” I replied. “I don’t want you guys getting sick.”
The eight of us had already finished eight whole pizzas, and Felix and Griffin were still working on the ninth with no signs of slowing down.
I truly didn’t understand how they could eat so much. Just one of them could eat more in a single meal than I could in an entire day.
“Pleaaasseee, Dotty?” Easton said, clasping his hands together and jutting out his bottom lip. “I promise we won’t get sick.”
I laughed in disbelief, shaking my head. “I don’t understand how you guys can still be hungry. I feel like I’m about to burst.”
“Dad says we’re growing boys and that we should eat as much as we want so that we get big and strong,” Elliot told me, puffing out his little chest and showcasing a big grin.
“Shh! I can’t hear the movie!” Griffin complained, shoving his older brother.
Elliot shoved him back even harder while keeping his pleading gaze on me.
I rolled my eyes. “Dad only says that because he eats more than a starving mammoth at a feast.”
Wes giggled. “A mammoth at a feast.”
I finally gave in. “Fine. I’ll make some popcorn and grab our candy. But if any of you throw up in your beds tonight, you have to clean it up yourselves.” I sent them all warning glares.
Elliot and Thomas cheered and gave me a thumbs-up.
I lifted Wes off my lap and set off for the kitchen.
“I’m coming, Dotty!” Wes called out. He got up on his little legs and waddled after me. My heart nearly burst at how cute he looked.
Someday, I knew I was going to miss the days when he insisted on following me everywhere.
I scooped him up in my arms. “You want to help me make popcorn?”
He nodded and set his head against my shoulder.
“All right then, let’s go.”
I had to give my mom credit—it was hard to get things done when you had a squirming toddler in your arms. Even a task as simple as making popcorn took twice as long.