Chapter 7 - Family Issues

Leo’s POV

I stretch and yawn, glancing at the clock. 10:45. I’m up early today.
I could go back to sleep…nah, not this time. Today feels important. I get out of bed and walk downstairs to find Mom sitting in the kitchen with a photograph in her hand.
She looks up. “Hello, Leo,” she says, her voice calm and articulate.
“Hey Mom,” I mutter, taking a tiny step back. She’s not normally like this.
“It’s okay, Leo,” she says, her voice soft. Right now she looks so…normal. Not the happy, crazy mom that I’ve come to know. “Let me show you something.” She beckons me forward, and I come, curious. I look down at the picture in her hands, and look at her. “It’s us, our family portrait from back when you guys were four.”
I see it now; I’m the little boy with the big smile and light brown hair. It’s darkened over the years. Leanne is the little girl who has wild red hair, and, like me, a big happy expression on her face. We’re about the same height; now I’m taller than she is. Mom is the woman standing behind us, her curly red hair – just like Leanne’s – tucked back in a headband.
And then there’s the guy next to her, who can only be our dad. He has my hair, and my blue eyes that I also share with Leanne. He looks happy to be with Mom, to be with us. He looks like he would have been a good Dad.
“You guys were so cute back then,” she murmurs, looking reminiscent.
I agree, and quietly leave. Wouldn’t want to ruin the moment for her.
I walk down the sidewalk, silent as I think. Why did Dad have to die? Why did he get in the stupid car crash? And why the heck did he look like Telsa in that picture?
Questions, questions, questions. Why can’t I have some answers? And there we go. Another question. A question about answers, double points for that. Or am I taking away points for each question? In that case, I lost double points and then lost another double points for the last question I did, the one about questions. So far I have…negative eight points. As soon as I get an answer, I get more points. An answer about answers is worth…two points, and answers about questions (not an answer to a question, there’s a difference) are also worth two points. Otherwise I get one point per question.
I’m at Telsa’s house. How did I get here? I guess my feet just carried me. Shrugging, I ring the doorbell, and Telsa answers. Does she really like answering doorbells that much? Darn, now I’m at negative nine points.
“Hey Leo!” she says happily. I don’t know how she does it in the morning.
“Hello Telsa.” She invites me in for breakfast, and I join her gladly. Rob appears to be gone, and she says nothing about him. Until I bring him up.
“Where’s Rob?” I ask. Negative 10 points now.
She looks down at the table, not meeting my eyes. “He’s…busy,” she says finally, her words reluctant. “But we don’t need to worry about him.”
“Why?” Darn, I got a point and then I went and asked another question. Back to negative 10.
“He’ll be fine, trust me. Besides, I’m on your side.”
“My side?” Okay, that counts as half a question. And because she half answered my last question, I’m still at negative 10.
“Yes, your side. There are two sides here, and I’m on yours.”
“ So Rob is on the other side.” That was NOT a question!
“Yes, he is. We’re on the better side, trust me.” Down to negative 9! Yes! But…oh no…
“Is Leanne involved in this?” Crap.
Telsa looks hesitant. “Yes…yes, she is, but she’s on the other side.”
“So she’s with Rob.”
“Uh-huh.” Telsa is quiet, playing around with her last bit of scrambled eggs.
“What are these sides, exactly?” I take a chance with asking another question, in hopes that I’ll gat a few answers.
“You’ll find out.”
Darn. Nine and a half.
“Leo…there’s something I should tell you,” she continues after and awkward pause.
I look up, determined not to ask – or think – the question that is bordering on forming into words.
“We’re related.”
I stare at her, fighting a mental battle no to think any questions and to keep my mind blank.
“Um…See, your father and I…”
Oh no. She’d better not say ‘had an affair’.
“…we’re siblings. Rob, your dad, your Uncle Howard, and me are all siblings.”
So that explains the resemblance between picture Dad and Telsa. I’m up to negative eight and a half points. But why do Rob, her, and Uncle Howard all look so different?
Darn, down to negative 9 and a half.
You know, maybe I should have started at zero.
“There’s…not much resemblance,” I note, and she nods.
“Yeah, we all look completely different, except for your dad and I.”
“So, back to the sides thing…”
“Um, you really don’t need to know right now.” Telsa looks awkward, but I press on. I have to at least try to get into positive numbers.
“Please, Telsa, I need answers!”
“You can call me Aunt Telsa. And I can’t give you answers.”
“What? Why not?” You know, to heck with this questions game. I’m totally losing.
“I’m not allowed to tell you. It’s part of the Rules.”
“The rules?” I repeat, giving her my best I’m-confused-please-help look.
“The Rules.”
“That doesn’t explain anything.”
“Well, sorr-ee, mister! I can’t explain anything to you and that’s final!” she screams, looking furious. I suddenly can see how it is possible that she was mad at Rob, and lean back from her angry words.
“Sorry, sorry.”
“Sorry, Aunt Telsa is what you say!”
“Sorry, Aunt Telsa.”
“Thank you!”
She leans back in her seat, exhaling with a huff. “Rob will be home soon, you’d better go,” she sighs, tipping her head back. I nod and get up, grabbing my plate to take into her kitchen…only I don’t quite know where it is.
“Telsa?” I ask.
“ That’s Aunt Telsa.”
“Fine, Aunt Telsa?”
“Yes?”
“Where’s the kitchen?”
“Oh, let me get that.” She gets up and snatches my plate out of my hands, walking into the kitchen. I tag after her, feeling useless.
“Leo, I love you, I really do, but you have to understand that I can’t tell you anything about what’s going to happen. If I do…well, you wouldn’t believe me, for one thing, and for another, you wouldn’t like it.” She says all this as she sticks my plate into her dishwasher, and I nod in reluctant agreement.
“All right, I get it. But what do you mean, what’s going to happen? People can’t see the future, can they?”
“People can’t. That’s true.”
“Are you saying that you’re, like, not human?”
“I really can’t tell you, I’m sorry. Trust me, I want to so badly, and it’s hard to resist, but I have to. It’s just one of those things, you know?”
“I…guess…” Telsa’s kind of weirding me out.
Then the door opens.
“Oh no! Leo, get out the back door right now!” she gasps, and shoves me outside.
“Telsa?”
“Coming Rob!”
The door shuts behind me, and I walk around to the front yard, confused by her reaction. Why can’t I see Rob? He’s such a nice guy, and I don’t think he minds me that much.
Whatever. I’d better head home anyways.

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