Dawn of Us [18+] | WATTYS 2019 ENTRY

Chapter Forty-Nine

"Hey, good morning." Aunt Mary greeted as I went in to the kitchen.

"Hm." I replied briefly. I have a feeling that something is up.

Her expression changed, her eyebrows crossed. "What?" She looked at me as if I was the one hiding something.

I shook my head as I smiled. I went to the fridge to get a bowl of grapes. I also picked up some nutella. "Nothing. You just seem pretty happy or something." I said.

He giggled. "Maybe because I am?" She said.

I smiled. "Is it because of..." I hinted, sitting down by the island countertop, across her.

She smiled again, this time her face turned pinkinsh red. "I don't know. I just---I've never felt like this for someone before and I don't know what to do." She said. "I've always been alone since your mom married. I've gotten used to life without anyone bugging around me and I liked it that way. But now, I realized that it's not as bad as I think it's going to be." She added.

"Wait, are you saying that you guys are together?" I asked, unsure.

Her eyes went big. "Uhm... I think so?" She replied, unsure as well.

"What?!" I exclaimed.

"A-are you mad?" She asked like a 13-year old girl whose mom just found out about her boyfriend.

I snapped out. "Huh? What? Why would I be mad?" I said, completely honest. I smiled happily, "I'm just a bit upset because you did not tell me. I thought you two just liked each other. I wasn't expecting you two to be together-together." I said, popping another nutella-covered grape into my mouth.

Aunt Mary sighed in relief. "Well, when he picked me up after school the other night, he invited me to dinner. I agreed of course because I thought it would be just the two of us." She said, tucking a stray hair to the back of her ear. "But what he did not tell me was that we were going to have dinner with his brother and his brother's wife. I almost wanted to bail but I couldn't. Somehow a part of me wanted to be there." She said.

"And then?" I asked, not wanting her to stop her story.

She smiled again, clearly remiscing what had happened that night. Her eyes were glistening. The kind where you'd know someone was happy. "So we had dinner and when he introduced me, he introduced me as his girlfriend." She added.

"OH MY GOD!" I exclaimed. My heart was beating with excitement. I felt so happy for my aunt. "Honestly, this sounds straight out of a book or a movie or something."

She laughed. "I know!" She exclaimed, equally as excited. "And after that, when he dropped me off, he asked me if I was okay. And I said I was and he smiled so beautifully and then he kissed me."

I took a deep breath, leaning back. "Well, you're a grown lady and you are perfectly capable of handling these things. And Harry is a good guy." I really did not have anything else to say. They're just perfect for each other. And plus, it's about time for both of them to settle. "So, when's the wedding?" I asked.

Her eyes bulged in shock at my words. She took a piece of grape from my bowl and playfully threw it at my face. "Shut up!" She said.

I smiled at her reaction.

"I'm really not in a hurry to have something more than what we have now." She said. "I still have to take care of you and Jack. I have to because I can't break a promise." She looked at me and smiled.

I looked down, feeling bad. I sighed. "I'm sorry I made things hard. I shouldn't have been reckless." I said.

Aunt Mary sighed. "Let's not bring that up again. It's done okay? Don't burden yourself with the thought of it anymore. Let's focus on the now and plan for the future. Okay?" She said.