Geek on the Side!

Vanessa is good at cooking

After staying at my Bio-Dad's house for a good while, it was time for me to head back home. When I arrived home, I was surprised to find everything in order. My house was clean, my fridge was full of fresh food, and there was a nice smell in the air! I found a note on my dining room table.

Dear Van:

Your sister and me cleaned up your house for you and stocked you up with food! We'll be visiting now and then to check up on you, OK? Please take good care of yourself, honey.

With lots of love:

Paige and Daisy.

Those two really worried about me. Jesus, I screwed up by scaring them like that; going all catatonic and stuff. I gotta get my act together...

A knock on my door! I wonder who it could be? I looked out the peephole; Kevin! I opened the door and let him in.

"Wassup?" I asked.

"Well," he began, looking around the living room. "Woah, nice house. Anyway, I have the afternoon off, so I figured I'd check up on ya."

"Aww, thanks, honey," I said as I playfully bop him on the shoulder. "Did you have lunch yet?"

"Nah," he said. "I was thinking-"

"I'll cook you something!" I immediately said as I grabbed Kevin and dragged him to my kitchen. I sat him down and began making something quick for him: egg salad sandwiches. With no crust, cuz I roll like that for my baby brother.

Heh, that's actually nice to think about. I have a baby brother!

He took a bite out of his sandwich. "Hey, not bad!"

"I know, right?" I grinned. "The secret's in the mayonnaise. I use a special mayo that's basically American mayonnaise mixed with kosher salt, sugar, lemon juice, and a teaspoon of mustard. Sometimes I add some drops of hot sauce for extra kick, but I didn't know if you liked spicy or not."

"Not really, nah," he said. "I like sweet food, though. And savory."

"I like all flavors, really," I said as I bit into my sandwich. "What else do you like?"

"I dunno," he said, shrugging. "I like the pancakes Mom makes."

"Oh yeah, those are boss," I said, smiling as I reminisced about Sarah's pancakes.

"Hey, tell me about you," he said. "When did you learn to cook?"

"I've been cooking for myself ever since I was a kid," I said. "I had to; my mother never really cooked for me, and the house cook was banned from cooking after certain hours."

"Damn..." he said as he stared at his sandwich, a forlorn look on his face.

"Yeah," I replied, sighing. Then I perked right up. "Wanna see some stuff from when I was a kid?"

"OK!"

And so I rushed up to my room to pick up my special box. I hurried back downstairs and opened it for Kevin to see. The first thing I took out was a picture of myself graduating Grade School.

"I graduated from sixth grade back in 2003," I said. "Top of my class!"

"I graduated at around 2014," he said as he looked at my photo. "I was born the year you graduated!"

"Wow," I said. I took out a letter in a pink envelope. "This is the first love letter I ever got. He never signed it, so I never knew who sent it to me."

"Why keep it?" He asked curiously.

"Because sometimes I wonder," I said, feeling nostalgic. "How different my life would be if he did sign it. I hope he's happy in life."

"How do you know it was a boy who wrote it?" Asked Kevin as he looked over the letter. "A girl could have written it, too."

"I know, but when I was five, I didn't know girls could be into girls, too," I said, sighing wistfully. "Ahh, the innocence of youth."

"Thinking it over, this letter was definitely written by a boy," said Kevin as he handed me back the letter. I looked it over...

I luv u, Banesa. U r verrry prettiful.

No glitter, no hearts; yeah, a boy wrote this.

"I remember my first crush," Kevin said, grinning. "She was this totally cute girl who I met in Kindergarten. I thought she was the prettiest girl ever, but I never had the courage to talk to her. One day she had to move away, and I never saw her again..."

"Oh, honey," I said, rubbing his arm.

"It's cool," he said, shrugging. "It was just Kindergarten, right?"

"Right," I said. I took out my High School diploma. "High school graduation, 2008. Top of my class, again. AND I even skipped Grade 9!"

"Woah," he said. "You're, like, as smart as Paige."

"Awwww," I said, grinning and blushing like an idiot. My little bro looks up to me! But then...

"I met Paige, before I met Daisy," I began to confess, looking down at my table. "I... kinda wanted her to myself, you know?"

"Uhuh..."

"A-a-a-and when she hooked up with Daisy, I... kinda tried to steal her," I confessed, all the shame in the world swirling around me. "And I deeply regret it."

"Oh," Kevin said, looking away.

"I'm a bad person, Kevin," I said. "But I AM trying to be better."

"Do you still-"

"No, I'd never," I said. "I love how happy Paige makes Daisy, and I love how Daisy makes Paige so happy, too. I'd rather die than do ANYTHING to hurt them."

"Good," he said. "Why tell me, though?"

"Cuz," I gulped. "Ever since we met, I wanted you to like me. I wanted you to have a positive opinion of me, so I tried my hardest to keep the nasty side of me hidden. But I now know that's not the right way to go at it. I can't be liked for real if I hide what I am. I want you to like me for ME, if that makes sense. I... I want to earn your love."

"But we're family," he said. "Family love isn't earned, you know? It's just given."

"I've never had that before," I said, tears in my eyes but a smile on my lips. "So... I'm still trying to get used to it."

We spent the whole afternoon together, just talking and hanging out. In the evening after work, Paige and Daisy came by to check on me, and I invited them over for dinner. It was fun to cook for them. It's fun to have family around.