Mia + James

This is a short outtake of a story I've been working on recently.  It's in the very beginning stages of being written, but I hope you enjoy!

Two days before Christmas, the front door flew open and the sound of stomping feet made its way throughout the house, I crawled out of my bed, where I’d been working on my Mom’s Christmas present, and went downstairs to hug the life out of him.  I didn’t see him nearly enough considering the two of us lived in the same city.

I threw my arms around him and laughed when he lifted me off my feet.  “Put me down, you ogre.” I said, even though I was perfectly happy where I was.  Patrick was the tallest and widest of us siblings.  He had muscles left over from his college football days that made him look brawny.  We started calling him an ogre when he died his hair green for a high school basketball game and the name stuck ever since.

Lauren walked up.  “Mia, you’re hogging him!” She complained, purposely sounding like a brat.  We both knew she was joking though, otherwise it would’ve been obnoxious and we would’ve tossed her outside.

I held up my hands, “I’m not even holding on, Lo!  He’s being clingy.”

“I’ll show you a clingy,” Patrick murmured under his breath before lifting me higher onto his shoulder, with my butt in the air.  I screamed and barely heard him announce that he had enough love to go around.  From the movement, I could tell before she was beside me that he picked up Lauren in a similar fashion.  Soon enough, we were both over his shoulders and he was walking to the kitchen.

“I swear to God, Patrick, if you drop me, I will saw your balls off with a rusty blade and feed them to you in your sleep!” I shouted, my heart racing.  I tried to speak calmly as I said, “Are you even strong enough for this?  Shouldn’t you put us down?  You’re going to hurt yourself!” I yelled again.  While I was trying to make him put me down, Lauren was laughing hysterically and clearly having the time of her life.  “I could crack my head open if this goes wrong,” I added.

“Calm down, Mia.  You might eat like a pig, but you don’t weigh the same as one.”

I snorted and started punching his butt.  That gave me an idea.  “If you don’t set me down gently on my feet in three seconds, I’m going to give you a wedgie that even your grandchildren will feel.”

He didn’t set me down.

“One,”

He kept walking.

“Two,”

He hoisted me up higher on his shoulder.

“Three.” I said with finality, fully prepared for what I was about to do.

I was just pulling at the back of his pants when Patrick said, “Good luck finding any underwear, Sis.”

It took a moment for the words to sink in, and then they did.  The noise that came out of my mouth as my hands flew away from the waist of his jeans was hardly human.  It was somewhere between a whale and a donkey, and it made Lauren laugh even harder.

“PATRICK!” I screamed, horrified that now I knew my brother was going commando under his jeans.  There were things a sister need never know about her siblings.  This was one of those things.

I didn’t know how long I’d been freaking out before Patrick calmly said, “Hey, Mom.”

There was laughter in her voice when she told him to set us down.  When I was finally upright, I had a moment of dizziness wash over me before I could fully commit to the evil eye I was sending Patrick.  “You are such an asshole.” I made a fist and punched him solidly on his arm, taking great joy when he winced and rubbed the spot I hit.  He taught me how to do that, so it was his own fault.  I had to be careful about the punching, though.  It became a habit around my brothers, since we all do it to each other, and last year I went back to school and accidentally punched a boy who I’d been flirting with.  He nearly cried and then never spoke to me again.  Patrick thought it was hilarious when I told him about it afterward.

It wasn’t until after he hugged Mom and Dad that I realized we weren’t alone.  I’d forgotten about the friend he was bringing with him.  Had this guy just watched me being manhandled by my brother and heard me shriek like a shrew?  How embarrassing.  I looked up at the stranger and did my very best not to show any outward reaction, but it was difficult.  Patrick never mentioned that his friend was possibly the most attractive person I would ever see.  His dark hair, long enough to pull to the back of his head, light blue eyes, and tall height were all things that I would’ve described as my “type”.  He looked muscular without being hulk-ish.  Plus, he was smiling at me and, combined, it was all enough to make me stop thinking any thoughts other than, Oh holy mother of God, for a few moments.

My parents were introduced to him first, and then Lauren and me.  “Guys, this is Jamie,” Patrick said, gesturing to his friend, who had his hands shoved in the front pockets of his jeans and looked like he didn’t know what to say.

“It’s nice to meet you all,” He finally settled on, and I could’ve passed out right then and there.  He had an accent. Not just any accent, but I was pretty sure it was Scottish, which, once again, was my type.  Lauren, who had heard all about my dream guy throughout our teen years, sent me a meaningful look and I struggled not to burst out laughing.  The only thing left on my list was for him to be a dog lover.  If he was, I would lose my mind.

Mom took charge of the situation then, “Patrick, I want you and James to take your things upstairs.  He’ll be using Mia’s room during his stay.”