Temperamental Havoc of the Teenage Life (5) - Part 1 and 2

Part 1 - Grandma's Tale

Apparently, Drew forgot that we were supposed to have coffee. He's still angry with me I guess. These are one of those times that it sucks to be me. One of the things that I hate the most is the idea that my brothers are mad at me. Today it's worse.

I got out of the car without uttering a single word. Tom and Drew took notice of my unusual silence then. Tom decided to break the silence.

"Are you okay Kayce? You look shaken."

"If I say I'm okay will you promise that you two won't be angry with me anymore?"

They looked at each other and laughed.

"Is that why you've been so quiet inside the car?" Drew asked. I nodded my head.

Next thing I knew, they were both hugging me, squishing might be a more appropriate word.

"Oh Katherine we're not mad at you." Drew said.

"We were just worried that's all." Tom said, backing up Drew's statement. "The both of us are just afraid that something, or someone for that matter, has hurt you."

"Oh God." I said, rolling my eyes at them both. "Tom does this mean that you would be as crazily overprotective as Drew. Uh-huh. I'm not letting you young man! Having Andrew is enough do you hear me?"

"Nope he doesn't." Drew said, uncoiling himself from the hug.

"Yes I do." answered Tom, hands still encircling my waist.

"Traitor!"

"Good boy!" I said messing Tom's hair up.

"Don't be too assuming sister." Tommy said, finally letting go of me. "You interpreted that wrong. What I meant was I hear you when you say that Drew is overprotective all the time so I am clearly suggesting that I replace brother..."

"Not a chance!" Drew said at once.

"Why? You've been doing it for as long as I can remember. Why not let me give me the reigns this time? I am capable of doing it now!"

"Guys, hello? I'm still here."

"How about we just work as a team." Drew said not minding me in the least bit.

"Not good enough for me big brother."

"Then how about we act as a team and than cover for me whenever I am not around."

Tom seems to consider this suggestion or a while then shamelessly took the hand offered by our older brother. I raised both my hands, very exasperated at them both. I think they saw that. I could really not believe this two, one second they were so mad at me, then the next one they were already invoking plans on how to look after me at all times.

"What are you three still doing at the garage?" The impatient voice of our grandmother filled our ears. "It's snack time already!!"

We all chuckled and headed for the door. I make their favorite cuisine and they don't come running? Nana obviously forgot to turn off the speakers again. At the other end of the house we hear our grandfather informing grandma just that and being grandma, she stalked out of the room. She always does whenever she's in tough situations. I could envision my Gramps bob his heads sideways, evidently used to this.

As we enter the kitchen, there were pans and saucers everywhere. The maids were obviously thrown out of the kitchen again by our grandmother. I don't really understand why she wants to work on the kitchen alone. It's not like the helpers are going to be a bother, in fact they help so much that the only work you end-up doing is the one where you are facing the pan.

Our parents were not there on the table. Typical, but still bugs me. And they're right on time, both of them came into the room, still wearing their work clothes. Grandma was abashed by their appearance and forced them out of the room, still yapping endlessly about formal clothing not being appropriate while at home.

"Well then kids, your growling stomachs will just have to wait until your parents come back!" Gramps said, while eating a chocolate chip cookie.

"That's really unfair grandpa." Complained Tom, voicing our thoughts.

"Yes, that is unjust Thomas. I made these cookies especially for your grandchildren and then you eat one ahead of them."

"I may eat these all the time but I'll never get enough of them." He said, eating another piece.

"Mom can you please make me some more of those. I'd like to stock them up here for the kids." Dad said, entering the room hand in hand with mom.

"Are you sure it's for the kids, dear son, or are you going to rob your children of my pastries?"

"Ha! Your mother caught you again son. She always does." Grandpa said, enjoying the caramel candy now.

"I love those Gramps! Spare me some!" I said.

"That's enough for you old man." Nana said, taking away grandpa's saucer full of pastries. "Do you really want to push yourself to the limit? You are not getting any younger. What if you suddenly have heart failure?"

"Oh he won't Nana." Drew said, eating a fork full of chocolate. "Gramps is as strong as a bull."

"You got that right Stefan!" Grandpa said, thumping his back.

"What am I here? What about me?" Complained Dad. I chuckled.

"Stop that now you guys or Katherine will eat up even your share of pastries."

The family was whole again, sort of. Mom's parents died on a plane crash when I was five. Grandpa Arthur would carry me on his back while Nana tries to catch us both. It was a dire day, that one. And since then, the family was never complete.

Enough with the drama; I love them both but I need to nurture the sadness deep inside me, hold it in because they were here, they would want me to move on with my life.

Nana was in the middle of telling the story of this young couple in one of their trips that married at the age of forty. They both of them had kids already from failed marriages but soon they realized that the only ones that are going to really care about them is the other. They were best friends, she said.

"...They said it was awkward at first but their love conquered their shyness. How romantic!"

"Speaking of that Nana. Did you know that your dear granddaughter is now interested in those things too?" Tom said. I gaped at him, stunned that he was being like this with me too.

"Come on Tommy! Yesterday, Drew did it, now you? I can't take this anymore!" I said, while my brothers are grinning at each other, liking the fact that they just opened the topic that is gonna be the end of me.

"Don't be like that Isabelle." Gramps said. "It's perfectly normal to be interested in these things. You are sixteen, very curious about everything. It's your time to explore the pristine waters that human life has to offer."

"Spoken like a true English professor." Mom said.

"Thank you, Emma dear."

Ha! It was my time to change the topic. "Gramps did you know that Drew already asked Pau on a date! It's about time right?"

"No, Isabelle, honey. You are not going to get off that easily tonight. Your brother is two years older than you and he has already gone through all these things. He was caught up in the middle longer than usual but he has known how to truly love since he has seen Pauline in that dress."

Drew on the other hand was smiling mischievously at me, knowing that he has won this round. Tom was too, until my mother told him that two years from now, his time will come. He froze on the spot, scared at the concept. My grandfather who was closest to him pat his back and consoled him by saying that father was as bad as Drew when he was my age, which on the good side brought Tom back to normal and for the bad, my father was turned into stone.

"Now back to the business at hand." Nana said. "Isabelle, Arthur and Alice, and your grandpa and I have talked about what we would do when you three came of age and be curious about these things. Sadly, your other grandparents have met a very unfortunate demise..." She said, giving my mother a meaningful look. "So your grandfather and I have decided that we will be the ones who should follow-up the job."

"Tom, go to your room and read that new book I bought you." Mom said.

"But I want to hear everything too!" He complained.

"You'll just have to wait two more years son!" That was Dad.

Tommy would complain further but my mother silenced her by raising a finger. She gave him a kiss on the forehead and said things that made him think twice about eavesdropping on the conversation. To ease all her worries, she asked dad to walk my little brother to his room.

"Just... just wait for me mom. Please. I love hearing you talk about this."

"Adam, you don't need a refresher course on this one. You have perfected the craft of loving with all your heart. Don't let it get to your head." She said, restraining that smile about to surface from my dad's lips. "I just hope Isabelle proves to be a better student than her brother."

"Nana! I was not..."

Drew was still conversing with Nana when dad came back. It looks like he was going to deny with all his heart that he was a poor student in this area. Grandpa, mom and I were just enjoying their fun banters. The counter-attacks were rather witty and no one was holding back.

"...Just now? Oh, Andrew dearest. I forgot that I invited Pauline for dinner tomorrow night."

That stopped Drew from talking.

"I thought that would do the trick." Grandma said, pleased with herself.
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Part 2

I just want to build up the story of Isabelle and her family because I do believe that they are the most important factor that makes a person who they are, so please bear with me. With that said, I would like to hear more comments and suggestions for this story. Thank you for reading. Enjoy.
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"That's hitting below the belt Nana! Totally unfair!"

"Well Andrew, if you are truly prepared for everything then whether your opponents cheat you will not lose."

"Is she really coming Nana?" I asked.

"Yes Isabelle. We're going to Casa Isabelle tomorrow. Your father is cooking."

I beamed at my father. It's been awhile since he cooked anything for us. Don't get me wrong though. My mother cooks really delicious food but it's been known for decades that the male of the Smith family are better at cooking than their wives.

"I should start briefing my lovely granddaughter now or we'll go off track again." Nana said firmly. No one dared to breathe. The family knows better than to anger grandma when she's already this aggravated. "Now because I am not in the best mood tonight instead of telling you your parents' love story, I'm telling you mine."

"What? Mom! Why are you doing this? I really want to hear..."

"You have lived those times Adam and you know every single moment of it, you have heard it enough to scrutinize every single detail there is. So for once cut me some slack and try listening to others' love stories for a change!"

"Okay mom, sorry." Dad said, extending his hands to reach grandma's.

"That's fine son. However difficult it is to imagine I am already accustomed to you and your father's ways. Now, on with the story."

"Listen to your grandma well Isabelle. Rarely does she talk about how we came to love each other very much. And I am quite certain that she'll be unfolding everything, even those parts that we didn't tell your father about." Gramps said.

My grandmother motioned me to sit beside her.

"It all started with a wimpy kid in high school. But unlike others belonging to the stereotype, he wasn't an outcast. He was well liked by the student body. In fact the only one who saw him as a wimp was me." She paused for a bit. "Your grandfather was very prig then. He was handsome, very wealthy and intelligent so you can imagine him as quite the ladies' man. Changing from a pretty girl to the next, never minding what others think of him."

"Partying all night, always having a good time, and the most interesting thing is that he never flunks school. He has remained the top student of the whole batch despite this, never having to study because he only needs to hear or see something then he gets it, he memorizes it instantly. Yes, your grandfather has a photographic memory. His brain capacity has surpassed the minimum brain potential that a person needs to be able to think rationally."

"Ah." Said grandpa. "You flatter me too much, love. I had my share of ups and downs then. I am not as brilliant as I think I am. No, far from that. There's always more to learn."

"Stop being so discreet dear husband. I am only giving justice to what you really are. Understating things is not one of my best features as you very well know. Now let's get back to the story.

"Where was I... oh yes. I on the other hand was always second, second to your grandfather in academics, second in sports, second in everything. You could only imagine the intensity in which I hated your grandfather then. It seemed like my only goal in life was to beat him at something.

"I got my chance one silly night. I was too desperate that I rejoiced at the idea of his only vulnerability. You see, I was boyish then. They would never see me wear anything shorter than below the knee. Boys would still ask me out though, but I turned everyone down for the sole purpose of my existence then was to shame your grandfather.

"What did I end up doing? I called on some friends and coerced them into giving me a make-over. Next thing I knew, I was looking in the mirror looking exactly like my mother. Your great-grandmother, as you well know was a woman of great beauty so I never did expect to see the same face that nurtured me for years to be staring right at me. I still remember the look on your grandfather's face when he saw me enter his annual party. All dolled up for the event."

"Your grandmother was so beautiful then that every man in the room was looking at her, every girl in the room wanted to be her. That was when I devised a plan in my head, knowing that this was the perfect opportunity to destroy my archenemy because I hated your grandmother then, too." Grandpa said.

"All the others ogled intently at us both, never imagining that after all the fights that we have had with each other; we were such a striking couple. One of my friends said that the student body at that time has never seen a pair as well matched as the both of us." Grandma said, the pair of them speaking alternately now.

"No one has ever seen me slow dance with a girl before, they thought the only decent dance that I could muster is the one where I am standing on my head instead of my foot. So I gave everyone a shock and danced a slow, romantic dance with your grandmother."

"Oh, every girl who had a crush on your grandfather, who was most if not all the girls attending the school, was green with envy. They fell in love with your grandfather even more and thought of me as a pest who they want to bugger off right away.

"That night was one of the best nights of my life and I will never exchange it for the world. Never would I have imagined that the guy I have been meaning to defeat will be my husband."

"Neither have I. I might've said that it was the most impossible thing in the universe then."

"Yet here we sit." Nana said, smiling at Gramps.

"But you said you were just deceiving each other than. What happened to that?" I asked.

"I see you were really listening young lady." Nana said. "Your grandfather walked me home that night. Seeing that I was only living across the street from his house it was a very short distance. The same thought was on our mind, that we were misleading the other into the trap that we have set. Not knowing that the only one we seemed to entrap was ourselves. We continued the charade for months and months, putting on a good show for our classmates, thinking that the other was falling deeper in love and that the main event was nearing, meaning we won't be pretending to like each other any longer."

"What do you mean Nana?" Drew asked.

"They were about to dump each other Andrew." Mom said.

"Then came the night that altered the both of us forever. It was the ball held right after the graduation ceremony, both our plans are seemingly perfect. Then a playful student saw us talking quietly on the side and pushed your grandfather towards me. Then we kissed." Said Nana.

"We couldn't look at each other for hours! Even after the party the awkwardness was still there." Grandpa now.

"I was restless that night, tossing and turning in my bed. I even had to resort to waking up my mother so she could sing me to sleep. That worked out every time but that night it didn't. We started to avoid each other, then our friends asking us what happened but still no one was brave enough to talk. But when we were forced to look at the other on the face in one of the balls that the school had for their graduates, we knew. What is that thing that you like to call it dear?" She said, speaking to grandpa.

"We crossed that fine line between hate and love."

"Ah, yes. The perfect way to describe things. We were so busy plotting against each other that we didn't realize that the ones being caught in our own trap was our own selves. We thought we were just pretending to like each other but the connection was real then, we were just not up to admitting that to ourselves. That same night, your father was conceived."

"What? I thought you were married when you had me! I was under the impression..." Dad said.

"Exactly son." Grandpa started. "You were the one who jumped into conclusions, not bothering to ask me and your mother for a confirmation."

"How and when did you get married though?" Dad asked.

"Right after your father finished his degree in law and I my degree in education, your father had planned a wedding right under my nose. Harvard is a very wide place that I didn't even notice the workers from both the companies of your great grandparents going in and out of the place for a month. He staged the wedding at our hiding place inside the campus. I didn't have any choice so I said I do that day."

"You would've said yes anyway mom." Dad said.

"No, your father knows perfectly well that I would've say no but got on with it anyway. He knew me too well to even bother to ask. I would have rolled my eyes on him and said that the wedding thing was a waste of time."

"So we were married right away. Everyone was so pleased." Gramps said.

"And you were getting older each day. You were not present in ceremony because as you said, we led you into thinking that we were already married by the time that we had you."

"Huh. So if you didn't hate each other so much then none of us would be here today." I concluded

"I doubt that." Gramps said, a knowing grin plastered on his face.

"Why papa?" Asked mom.

"Because this was not a story that just happened. We were not the masterminds of this great love story. We like to think we are but the truth is we're not."

"How so?" I asked.

"Because if we didn't have attraction, if we didn't love each other like we do today, then our parents would've had arranged our marriage anyway. It was planned even before we were born." Nana said calmly.

"What?" The four of us said in chorus, the both of them smiling at each other, obviously pleased with themselves.

As the conversation ended, it was a toss-up between me and my father who was the most shocked at the ending of this story.

We may have been deluded into thinking that this was for the sole purpose of seeing the shock across our faces when they finally break the ice. But deceived or not, at least we know that all of what we are today came from one great love story. Because plans of arranged marriage or not, the elephant in the room was that my grandparents loved each other, and will continue to do so for nothing less than forever.