Two Doors Down

Yaniyah

I wonder how long my uncle will be out. Anya sent him almost two hours ago to "male friends" with the girl who moved in two houses over. I counted on my fingers to two. No, I have five fingers up on my hand. He's five houses over?

"Yani, what are you counting?"

"How many houses Bra is."

My older sister laughed and picked me up. "That's five fingers."     "But isn't he that many houses over?" she sighed and muttered something about me going to kindergarten next year. I wonder what that is. Oh, maybe it's a cool fun park!

"Telea, will mommy take me to kindergarten?"

"Yes, mommy will take you to kindergarten." I giggled and squirmed out of her grasp and ran giggling to my mommy, Raniyah. "Telea says you're going to take me to kindergarten!" I said, and my mom picked me up and said, "Yes, Yani, I am. And by then, my brother will finally go to college. That's of he applies though, but you should when you get old enough." I sighed. College sounds boring. I want to do what Bra does!

"Why can't Bra come back?"

My mommy burst into laughter and said, "What did you call Brandon?"

"Bra?"

She laughed harder and muttered something about never forgetting. I don't see what's so funny. "Why is Bra over there, anyway?" my mom sighed and said, "Look, don't tell him I said this, but me and Anya don't think he's all that well. he hasn't made any friends, he sits around all the time. Me and your aunts have all known our mom and dad, but he hasn't. Shinia is the only one who can relate, she's the youngest aside from...Bra...but older by two years. When we found out there was a family moving in with someone his age, we jumped at the chance. And we haven't heard any screams, so I think he's been being good. Unless he...nah, I don't think he would."

"Can I go too?"

"I don't know..."

I started wailing and threw my hands everywhere and kicked and screamed. No! I want to go see Bra! Not fair, not fair, not fair! "Okay! Okay! I will! Shush!" I grinned and wriggled out of her arms and ran out of the house, her running behind me. She finally picked me up and said, "You run fast for a toddler. Probably get it from your father, I don't have speed."

"Who's daddy? When do I get to meet him?"

My mommy flinched and looked sad. She said, "You won't see Daddy for awhile. He's gone."

"When is he coming back?"

"Never. He's coming back never. He found someone else that he can fu--" she cut herself off, and shook her head. What had she been about to say? Oh well. She knocked on the door to a house that looked old with moss all over. At least they liked bugs, I saw a cockroach resting happily inside on the window sill.

The door opened, and a girl with hair as short as Bra's  and big sunglasses in a grey hoodie and jeans opened the door. Bra was standing behind her, and he said, "Raniyah. You are here why?"

I squealed and threw myself out of my mommy's arms and ran around and hugged my uncle's leg. "Bra! Uncle Bra! Hello!" The girl started laughing with my mommy, and Bra looked really mad. He took me off his leg and told me, "My name is not...Bra...okay Yani?"

"Got it Uncle Bra."

He slapped his forehead and slid it down his face. The girl beside him started talking to my mommy, and Bra looked and acted a lot nicer than he normally does. Normally after I tackle his leg, he rips me off and slaps my hand telling me no. He doesn't like bugs, either. I once put some spiders in his pillow case for his birthday present. He wore a lot of shirts with spiders, so I thought he liked them. But he screamed really, really loud. I thought it was mommy, but he went chasing after me, but them mommy went chasing after him. I don't think he likes bugs. I shouldn't tell him about the ant crawling up his pants, then.

Mommy left and bra took the girl's hand and led her slowly into another room. Slowly because I had re-attached myself to his leg. the one without ants, they were red and I don't like red things. Except the girl's hair. That was a pretty red.

"Bra, why are you holding her hand? Is she your girlfriend?"

His face went very pink, and his free hand clenched. He glanced a the girl, who wasn't looking in his direction, and she shrugged. Bra said, "No. She is not."

"So why are you holding her hand? Are you going to be a Daddy like Mommy is, only a dude?"

He opened his mouth with an angry face, but then he closed it, thinking. The girl with red hair started laughing and said, "No. No. No, he is not. I just need a little help." He the rolled his eyes and continued to a room that was empty except for a few boxes. And a chess game. The red ants were crawling into his pants now. Should I tell him? Nah, he'd get mad. Maybe he won't care if he doesn't know. He doesn't care much about anything anyway.

He sat down after sitting the girl down and they continued. I noticed how Bra kept taking her hand on her turn and putting it on the pieces. "Why can't you just take the piece yourself?" I asked. I am very observant. And smart, yes, I can play chess too. My cousin Killeen showed me how, and she's a few months old and can talk! She said my name first, of course.

The girl said, "First my name--"

"Whoa, cool! You have a moon on your cheek! I want one!" she had turned my way and I had finally saw her other half. She shook her head and said, "You don't want a moon. Not the way I got it. But first, my name is Luna, so please stop calling me girl or you. Second, I told you. I need help."

"With what? And why are wearing sunglasses? Do you have laser eyes that will keep shooting lasers so only those glasses keep it from messing everything up? Or are your eyes to pretty and they'd seduce anyone you glance at? Or--"

She silently asked Bra, "How old is she?" he whispered back, surprised and confused, "Four. Don't ask me how she knows that." She sighed as if I couldn't just hear the conversation I just heard and said, "Because my eyes can creep people out. A lot. So I wear these."

"I want to be creeped out. Let me see!"

"No, I'm so--" I wailed and said, "No! No! I! Want! To! Seeeeeee!" and I stomped my foot and clenched my fists. Then someone took mine and sat me down saying, "Shut up!" I slapped Bra's hand, and pouted. Then Luna sighed, exasperated. Whatever that word meant. Or maybe she did it happily. She took the sunglasses off, and I could see her eyes. Around her eyes were burn marks that went down the side of her face and down her neck and hidden beneath the hoodie. I should have noticed it before, I'm observant! And there were lines around her eyes, and the black part of her eye had been stretched slightly and looked like a dragon eye, but only in her left eye, the yellow one. It was gold yellow, the one the sun is at sunset. Her left eyelid was cut, and she had long eyelashes on both eyes. The other eye had a line along it, left to right, and the pupil was a foggy grey on the upper half it was cut. The colored part of the eye was a stunning emerald green, like grass at its best point. When she took them off, I heard Bra suck in a breath and look away. He must be seeing the ugly and not the pretty.

That's my uncle for ya.