Beyond the end

Chapter 18. Bad Habits.

The smoke rose high in the clear sky anticipating to the eye what the sense of smell had widely sensed: at Taylor's house there was wood on the fire. The acrid smell of twigs was accompanied by the noise of the crackling of air bubbles hidden in the bark, attacked by the heat of the flames. Kel had Brandon find two bags of chemical stuff that would facilitate the epirepic phenomenon but the old boyscout boy refused to use shortcuts. "But you'll do it much sooner," the hostess had ruled.

"But do you want to put the flavor of cooked burgers on olive wood coals? There's no comparison, it's another food; trust Kel, I've been barbecued since I was 8 years old. Rather, you think about giving up this garden, the others will be here in moments," Walsh said, with a sly smile, without losing sight of the tongues of fire he tamed with a trusty metal stick.

"Whatever you want," Kelly replied, happy to have a "comrade" who finally made decisions and proudly carried them out. Even if it was a simple barbecue. He returned home and took some tablecloths to cover the two large outdoor benches. The friends came to the petty. The first was obviously Steve, with an already cold Budweiser crate, who settled inside a basin with ice at the foot of a bench.

"Take Walsh, work must be rewarded" and threw a 500ml can at his friend, who grabbed her deftly, happy as he hadn't felt in a long time. Soon after it was David and Donna's turn, who arrived with little Ethan who strangely slept like an angel. The newborn's silence lasted a few minutes: Sammy rushed to the crib exclaiming "Boh!!!" And blowing little Silver into heartfelt crying. David was almost forced to appease Donna, who wanted to throw little McKay into space, while mortified Kelly scolded him and the award-winning pair of stokers Brandon-Steve sneered near the barbecue.

Then Valerie arrived on a Porche, which the gallery had made available to her as a benefit. He descended on comfortable sneakers, a ripped jeans on his knees, and a Yankes sweatshirt open on a black leotard. Time didn't seem to stop for her, but she seemed to have regressed. With a broad smile he introduced himself to the hostess carrying a bottle of Cheateux Margout from 96.

"Maybe it's a bit exaggerated, but such an occasion has to be celebrated with a great wine and then you know I'm exaggerated."

"Yeah," Kel replied, "How are you Val?"

"Happy to see you" they hugged each other; Brandon looked sly at this scene and David and Steve approached the cans in an improvised toast, while Donna had gone to the kitchen to breastfeed the little screamer. Valerie went to greet the trio and then took the bottle inside, where she saw Donna who had managed to fall asleep Ethan again "if that little monster approaches this time the strangle," she said in a low voice.

"How aggressive you are," Malone told her.

"Valerie! What a pleasure to see you!" And put his arms around her neck.

"How are you?"

"Apart from the fact that I haven't sleed in several weeks, I would say well."

"In fact, you look a little tired"

"A little?" Donna replied with an unarmed smile. The two joined the others outside.

"Do you want a beer?"

"Come on, I want to get drunk!" Donna replied.

"Please avoid, last time I had to organize a riot to allow you to graduate," Brandon laughed.

"I don't really think it's the last one," David replied; "Otherwise you don't explain that little whip in there," Steve said in return; and the company exploded in a thunderous laugh. Sammy didn't understand the reason for that hilarity and sank her head into the potato chip container.

"I'm fine with you, better than the other time," Valerie told David, approaching "Shut up please," David murmured. "Woman doesn't know I got you back at the airport."David, please....buy a leash do earlier," replied Valerie, smiling and getting even closer to the boy, who felt his She immediately woke up, looking in the direction of Donna, who was busy telling Kel about Ethan's last shopping the previous Saturday. The day spent between the memories of the university and Steve's new projects, who told Brandon in part and partly those who were shooting, about the idea of launching the new frontier of information into journalism on the web. Valerie had spent the afternoon sipping beer and wine, eating a single hamburger despite Brandon's raids, and not taking his eyes off David, who had not been able to ignore those insistent glances and was caught between the fear that his wife would also sense that understanding and a strange restlessness that testosterone, for too long left to lur, awakened, caused him. But the devil knows, he makes pots and sometimes even lids.

"David - he called him Donna - I'm tired, Ethan slept all day (miracle), so a long night awaits me; I go home, but you stay if you want, a tear fixes it".

And it was on that sentence that Valerie brings the glass of wine to her mouth smiling and looking at Silver. That even this time he couldn't avoid his gaze.