It looked like the ideal idea to throw my husband Brad’s milestone fortieth birthday celebration in our large garden, but I was completely overpowered by the din of loud music, dozens of boisterous adult visitors, and what seemed like a whole kindergarten class gone crazy. With a stack of paper napkins in one hand and my buzzing phone in the other, I stood close to the glass patio doors and briefly glanced at my husband. I found myself admiring him from across a busy room, silently reflecting on how extremely fortunate I was to have made a life with him, even after years of marriage and the inevitable flattening of long-term romance. I felt a surge of pride because Forty looked unfairly wonderful on him. I was so incredibly ignorant that I was totally unaware of the decay that had quietly eaten away at my house’s foundation.
I was soon distracted from my thoughts by the obligations of hosting. While a tiny child nearby started screaming uncontrollably over a disputed toy vehicle, others were noisily demanding answers on whether the veggie tray dip included dairy. A tiny swirl of energy suddenly flew past my legs. I glanced down in time to see Will, my four-year-old son, running at full speed toward the closest patio table while holding a forbidden chocolate cake pop firmly in his sticky grip. As he disappeared under a flowing white tablecloth, I shouted a traditional parental caution after him, which he inevitably ignored. I shook my head and turned to face the middle of the yard. Ellie had just said something that caused Brad to flash his endearing, dimpled smile. Since the second grade, Ellie and I had been inseparable; I had spent my entire life believing that she was family to me in every manner except blood. Family
The party’s logistical weariness started to show as the afternoon went on. Ellie casually moved to stand next to me by the kitchen door, pointing out that I was overdoing it and grinning sympathetically. I dismissed it with a giggle, utterly appreciative of her presence and our enduring relationship. A few moments later, I heard a loud screech coming from under the tables, and I saw Will and two other kids crawling out from under a chair. They appeared to have grown up outside with a group of happy raccoons. His small hands were filthy, and his legs were badly smeared with grass. I took him by the wrist and led him inside to the kitchen sink, where I turned on the faucet to clean away the dirt because I knew we were going to cut the birthday cake soon. Instead of complaining, Will simply stood on a chair and smiled up at me, his cheeks flushed and his eyes bright. He lowered his head and mumbled something that made me freeze when I asked him what he thought was so hilarious: Aunt Ellie has Dad.
I scowled and wrapped a fully dry towel around his hands, figuring it was just a tired child babbling. His small face became very serious when I asked him what on earth he meant. He demanded to show me exactly what he saw when he was playing beneath the tables, so he pulled his hands free. He took hold of my fingers and excitedly pulled me back out into the sun-kissed yard, raising his little arm to point at Ellie, who was reclining against the outside bar. Will made a loud announcement to the other guests that his father was present. Ellie looked up and laughed, and I chuckled politely, thinking he was mistaking his father for his aunt. Will, however, continued. His little face stiffened with determination, frustrated by my lack of comprehension, and he continued to point his finger lower, concentrating only on her stomach.
Ellie’s cropped top moved slightly in the breeze as she leaned forward to get her drink, giving me a glimpse of the delicate, dark ink lines carved into her torso. It was an expensive, intricate portrait tattoo. From that vantage point, all I could see was the distinct outline of a human eye, the exact bridge of a nose, and the shape of a mouth. I kept a courteous grin on my face, but on the inside I felt like I was attempting to survive a category five cyclone in a flimsy wooden dinghy. I told Will to go sit at the children’s table while maintaining a perfectly level voice. Then, I calmly marched over to my lifetime best friend and asked if she could come inside for a short while to assist me with organizing the kitchen.
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