Fulfillment by Golland, M. (best large ebook reader .txt) 📕

her body-hugging squeeze. Thebeautiful bitch brought a tear to my eye.

“Don’t youdare start singing,” I warned, as I choked back more tears.

I heard hersniffle next to my ear. “I won’t...I’m just...so sorry, Lex.”

I whisperedback. “I know, Hun.” I patted her back to let her know I wasgrateful for her thoughts, but that I was alright.

She pulledaway and wiped a tear. “If you need anything, you know where Iam.”

I nodded. “Iknow, Tashy.”

“You knowwhere we all are,” Lil reaffirmed.

“Yes, I do”. Ismiled then quickly changed the subject. “And as soon as this bootis off and my foot is dance ready, we are going out.”

Tash playfullyrolled her eyes. “You can still dance with crutches, Lex. You’dpull of a decent zombie in ‘Thriller’.” She proceeded to slump herarms and twitch her shoulder and neck.

“You idiot,” Igiggled. “No, I’m not going out in public and dancing withcrutches, forget it.”

***

Bryce askedTash how the job was going while I talked to the girls about thesurgery and when I was expected to be walking properly again. Ialso reminded Lil and Steph that Charli’s birthday was next monthand that she wanted to have a sleepover with her friends, whichincluded Lil’s daughter, Jasmine, and Steph’s daughter, Katie. BothLil and Steph sounded over the moon at the prospect ofrelinquishing their daughters over to my care for the evening.Me...not so keen. I remembered all too well how loud, fun...andloud, a sleepover could be for a young girl.

The bellsounded and children began finding their waiting parents. Natespotted us first and excitedly jogged our way.

“Bryce!” heshouted, right before he kicked the football in his direction.Bryce was quick and took off, marking it before it hit anycars.

“Nate, notnear the cars,” I rebuked.

“Sorry,” hecalled back.

I noticedCharli skipping happily toward us when a girl I did not recognisewalked up beside her and said something Charli did not like,causing her to stop and turn toward the girl. I noticed Charli’sfists ball at her sides, and I knew that was not a good sign.

“You’re justmean,” she yelled at the girl.

The littlegirl shoved Charli nearly causing her to fall backward.

“Hey,” Icalled out ready to hop my way over there when Nate saw thecommotion and went to Charli’s aid in my stead. The little girl sawhim coming and ran off.

“What did shesay?” Nate asked Charli as they walked closer.

“Nothing, sheis just a bully. I hate her,” she answered.

“What was thatall about?” I asked, as Charli pressed her head into my stomach andwrapped her arms around me.

“Nothing, Mum,she just sucks and she smells like cheese.” How does a childsmell like cheese? I wasn’t sure.

“Charli, whydid you yell at her?”

“Because shesaid babies are dumb. They are not dumb. My sister wasn’t dumb,”she said angrily, with her head still pressed against myabdomen.

Tash put herhand to her mouth, Bryce looked in the direction the little girltook off in and I just held Charli tightly.

“Little girlsthat smell like cheese are dumb, Charli. Not babies.”

“I hatecheese,” she said as Bryce opened the car door for her.

“No you don’t,silly rabbit.”

***

We sat aroundthe breakfast bar watching Bryce make dinner after we got back tothe apartment. It had taken a while to douse Charli’s raging angertoward the cheese-girl—who Charli refused to identify by real name.I decided to let it go because, like me, she was incrediblystubborn, and I knew from my own experience that constant probingwould only make her clam up more.

Switching myattention from an uncooperative Charli, I offered to help Brycewith the dinner preparation instead. He refused, so I turned myoffering into demanding and was rewarded with dicing the onions. Imade a point never to offer or demand again, as the onion fumessinged my eyeballs, forcing tears to spill out onto my cheeks.

“So,Charli-Bear...God damn it! My eyes...” I wiped my sleeve across myface. “Urgh! Have you thought of a name for...who invented onionsanyway? Stupid smelly things.”

Bryce waslaughing as he the chopped carrots.

“Laugh all youwant. I’m never offering to help you again.”

“Good,” hearrogantly replied.

I glared athim, but it must’ve resembled a winced, screwed up, ugly lookingglare, as I could not yet open my eyes without them burning likefuck.

“Sorry,Charli. Have you thought of a name for your sister yet?”

“Yes,” shesaid happily.

“Well? Let’shear it, Sweetheart.”

“Bianca,” shesaid confidently.

As soon as shesaid it I loved it. “That’s a beautiful choice. Why did you chooseBianca?”

“Because it’spretty, and I like it, and it has all our initials in it.”

Bryce stoppedchopping and just stared at Charli. I was speechless, too. She hadput so much thought into it, much more thought than a six-year-oldshould have. It was so endearing.

She noticedour pause and continued. “And any way, I didn’t like Blanche orCinba.”

I looked atBryce and smiled, trying not to laugh and also thankful she had notchosen Cinba—it reminded me too much of the Lion King. He put hisknife down, picked up Charli and sat her on the bench so that shewas his height.

“Bianca isperfect, Charlotte, thank you.” He leaned in, kissed her on thehead then went back to the chopping carrots.

I noticed atear in his eye as I wiped my own. “I’m chopping onions, what’s youexcuse?” I said to him, lovingly.

“I don’t haveone,” he replied.

CHAPTERTWENTY-FOUR

I’ve neverliked cemeteries, even as a young teenager when it had been ‘cool’to sneak into the local one at night and pretend to call upon thedead. I’d hated that game, and at the time I’d hated my brother forblackmailing me and my sister Jen to go along with him and hisidiot friend. I can’t say as an adult that my dislike forcemeteries had decreased over the years, because it hadn’t, and asI hobbled along the gravel path in between row upon of row ofheadstones, that became hugely apparent. It wasn’t that cemeteriesgave me the creeps—unless I was at one during the night with saidstupid brother and idiot friend. No, it was more that they heldsuch sadness and loss of people dearly missed.

As reluctantas I was about being at Melbourne Cemetery, I wouldn’t have wantedto be anywhere else other than with Bryce at that very moment. Ihad promised him I would be there to support him on the anniversaryof the accident that claimed the