You've been cerved.

Claire

"Claire!" Inez shouted over the sound of gunfire.

"DAD! I SAID TURN IT DOWN!" Claire hollered for the umpteenth time.

Claire's father's obsession with World War II films and his refusal to wear a hearing aid meant that, while Mr. O'Malley was awake, guns blazed throughout the O'Malley house.

"Claire!" Inez called again, her voice barely audible above the din.

"HERE!" Claire picked up a big piece of shattered glass and smashed it against the sink before turning on the faucet and running the garbage disposal.

"QUIT THAT RACKET! I CAN'T HEAR!" Claire's father shouted from the sitting room. The sound of gunfire increased.

"DAD DON'T TURN IT UP! I SWEAR I WILL TURN OFF THE POWER AGAIN!" Claire yelled, opening and closing cupboards in search of a clean dishrag.

Anita, Claire's diminutive, dark-haired sister-in-law, stood up from the floor where she'd been sweeping up the rest of the broken glass. Despite a slight clenching of her jaw, Anita's smile was ever bright and resolute. "There, that's done! But do we have enough glasses for Monday now?!" She tipped the broken pieces into the trash.

"WE'LL GET PAPER CUPS! CATHOLICS DON'T CARE!" Claire gave up her search for a dish rag and grabbed a pink scarf from the back of a kitchen stool.

"Oh, Inez! You're here!" Anita shouted as Inez appeared in the kitchen doorway.

"WELCOME TO HELL!" Claire screamed. She sprayed the scarf with Lysol and began to scrub the counter.

"Anita, nice to see you!" Inez held her hand out.

Ignoring Inez's hand, Anita wrapped her arms around Inez's waist.

"Come on, Inez! You're family!" Anita protested.

"Mmf-mwmm!" Inez mumbled into Anita's mass of black hair.

"What was that, Inez?! Claire!" Anita gasped, releasing Inez, "What are you doing?! That's my pink scarf!"

"WHAT?" Claire shouted, using the scarf to scour the grimy stove-top.

Inez suppressed a sigh. "We'll get you another one, Anita," she promised, speaking directly into Anita's ear.

"It's wool..." Anita bit her lip.

"IT'S CHEAP!" Claire threw the ruined scarf into the trash can. "LET'S LOOK IN THE GARAGE! COME ON!"

The other two women followed Claire out of the kitchen and through the noisy den.

"HELLO, MR. O'MALLEY! I'M SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS!" Inez roared as she passed behind the old man in his armchair.

Mr. O'Malley did not acknowledge any of them. He sat hunched over in a faded yellow armchair, the remote clutched in his fist and his eyes trained on his big screen where American G.I.s stormed a beach or a forest or something - there was so much smoke from the artillery, it was hard to clarify the location.

When the women were all in the garage and Claire slammed the door to the house, the sounds of war finally dissipated to a muted background buzz.

Claire began rooting through a bunch of overstuffed shelves. "There must be a rag here somewhere..."

Inez and Anita gave each other awkward smiles.

"How are you, Anita?" Inez asked after a moment.

"I'm trying the third round tomorrow. Third time's the charm you know?" Anita explained eagerly.

"Third round...?" Inez was confused.

"IVF. JJ and Anita need medical help knocking her up," Claire clarified, dumping a pile of pogo balls, skip-its, and assorted balls onto the floor.