“Hey John,” she said and smiled in her endearingly shy way.
“You got a hot date or something?” he asked teasingly.
She turned and fled back up the stairs.
His mother slapped his shoulder and shot him a warning look.
“Don’t be an ass!” she admonished. “She actually came out of her room to see you and you ruined it!”
“What?” He started up the stairs after his sister but his mother gripped his hand tightly and held him. “Why didn’t you tell me that she’s getting worse?”
“No!” she laughed insincerely, the way she would when she was entertaining her lady friends, “It’s not just that!”
“Then why is she freaked out already?”
“You know how young women are, don’t you? Didn’t you learn anything in that big city college?” She put her hands on her hips and smiled. “You’re supposed to compliment a lady – especially when she’s spent all day trying to look nice for you!”
“Sorry! She’s my sister! If I can’t tease her …”
She put her fingers to his lips to silence him.
“Go tell her how nice she looks,” she ordered, “and don’t try to tell me you didn’t notice.”
John felt his adrenaline kick up a notch at the realization that he’d just checked out his own sister and had been busted by his mother doing it … she was a woman now and he’d looked at her like she was some slut at a frat party.
“There’s something else,” she said conspiratorially, “Grace knows …”
She looked away and bit her lower lip the way she did whenever she was undecided about saying something.
“What?”
She looked back at him and took his hand again.
“Never mind … just promise me you’ll be nice to her, okay?”
“Why did she stop the meds?”
“She responds to you. Maybe you can talk to her?”
“Why me? I never thought she needed them in the first place. It’s all psychological anyway … she can get through it, just like people get over Hydrophobia or whatever.”
“She’s your sister,” Mom chuckled to herself, “If you can’t talk to her, who can?”
“Is that why you asked me to visit? To talk to Grace?”
She looked over her shoulder as if to make sure no one would overhear her.
“Not … entirely,” she admitted.
Bobby and Jenna burst through the front door just then and bolted past the stairs. They didn’t notice their mother and oldest brother only a few feet away in their rush to get to the living room.
“What’s the big hurry, Guys?” she called after them.
“That new show’s on!” Bobby answered. They could hear them wrestle the bean bag chairs into place in front of the TV set.
“What show?” Mom asked him but the blare of the TV drowned her out.
“What?” Bobby asked, shouting over a commercial.
“What show are you watching?” she hollered back.
“The Waltons!”
“Well,” she said to John, “I guess I better go see what all the fuss is about.”
“That show’s so square it’s actually kinda cool,” John laughed. “I’m sure you’ll like it.”
He looked longingly up the stairs.
“Go on then,” she pushed him, “Go visit your sister.”
He took a few indecisive steps and stopped, turning back to his mother.
“Maybe we should spend a little time together first?” he asked hopefully.