Page 40 of The Infinite Light of Dust

I thought my heart would burst out of my chest seeing them together. I couldn’t imagine going so long without seeing my brother, especially if he was only a few hours away. Even when Austin had been with our uncle I missed him every day, despite the stress he brought into my life.

I turned my attention to Dory, enjoying the peace and happiness so evident on her face. It must have felt so good to have both of her babies home and on good terms, no matter how long it had been between visits.

“How the hell did you grow a damn foot since I saw you last?” Kael asked her, putting Tay’s feet on the floor.

“You haven’t been here in so long, so you wouldn’t know,” she told him. I could see the dent her words made in him, but he took it well, not moving a muscle in his face.

“Yeah, I get it. I get it. I don’t come here enough. Anyway, Ma said you got another tutoring job. Shouldn’t you be dating or hanging out with people from school at your age?” he asked her.

The look on her face was pure disgust. “Why would I do that? I want to make money. Hanging out doesn’t make me smarter, or richer.”

“And dating sure as hell won’t either,” their mother added.

“I’m never going to date,” Tay said with certainty. I loved it. “Plus, who are you to talk? You never hung out with friends, you just played football and built stuff.” She poked his chest and then turned to look at me. “And you’ve never even had a girlfriend until now.”

Kael’s face was priceless. I couldn’t have loved this girl more. She was so funny, witty, and bright, and I loved that she was slightly roasting Kael, catching him off guard, which was a nearly impossible thing to do. Also, I obviously loved to find out that Kael had never properly dated anyone before me, and I was the first one to meet his family.

“Okay, enough from you.” He shushed her and tried to avoid looking at me. I was so entertained by all of this. I loved being here.

Since Kael had come into my life, I had felt more connected to not only myself, but to other people than I had since the day I was born. Gloria and Mendoza, even Toni and Tharpe, now his mom and sister . . . Kael had given me such a priceless gift without even realizing it. I was never going to be the easiest person to connect with or make friends with, but the people around him were all so warm and welcoming, accepting my awkwardness and even embracing it.

I watched him as he talked with his sister, and Dory disappeared into the kitchen. I didn’t feel left out as they caught up and, truly, I loved watching him interact with someone he had known so long, even if he wasn’t really telling her anything substantial or detailed about what he had been up to since he saw her last. Neither of them so much as mentioned the Army, and the only person she asked about was Mendoza, briefly, to which Kael told her he was doing well. Was that the truth? I didn’t think so, but I guessed it made more sense than the truth.

As I listened to the conversation their voices faded and my eyes grew heavy. When I woke up, Kael was asleep sitting up, on the couch. We hadn’t planned to stay the night, but I was glad we had. We wouldn’t have gotten home until after midnight if we had driven home. I smelled coffee coming from the kitchen but wasn’t sure if I should follow the scent. I checked the time on my phone, and it was four in the morning. I walked into the kitchen and found Dory standing by the back door, gazing into the woods behind the house. I tried to make a little noise so she wasn’t startled by me walking up behind her.

“I hope I’m not interrupting you or bothering you. I smelled the coffee and followed it. Habit, I guess,” I nervously rambled while fidgeting with my fingers in front of me.

She turned around slowly, a black mug with the United States Army logo on it in her hands.

“I hope I didn’t wake you up. I’m not used to having visitors.”

I shook my head, ignoring the little pang at the sadness in her voice. I really needed to make sure Kael visited her more. “No, not at all. We’re the ones who took over your living room.”

“I’m so happy to have you both here. I understand Mikael hates it here, and I don’t blame him, but I will say I got the best sleep I’ve had in years last night knowing he was home. And safe.”

After a beat, she added, “As you can see, I don’t sleep much. Not since he left for basic training.

“Would you like some?” she asked, without looking up from her own coffee cup.

I glanced toward the living room, where Kael was still asleep on the couch.

“Actually, yes, please.” I was absolutely not the “wake up at 4 a.m. and have coffee” kind of girl, but the idea of enjoying a warm cup of caffeine with Kael’s mother while the rest of the house, probably even town, slept, was beyond intriguing.

“Hmm, this one is right for you.” Dory handed me a heavy ceramic mug with little flowers painted on a white background. At the bottom rim there were thin strokes of green paint like grass. It was handmade, maybe by Kael?

“Mikael made that for me for Mother’s Day when he was in grade school.” She answered my question without me asking.

“It’s so cute.” I ran my fingers along the bubbled-up paint and thanked her as she filled up my cup.

I closed my eyes, drinking the coffee slowly. God, it was good.

“I use chicory. It’s one of those love-it-or-hate-it flavors, but I’ve been adding chicory in my coffee for decades.”

I had never had chicory, and wasn’t even sure what it was, but her coffee was fantastic.

“It’s great. Thank you.”

Dory kept looking back at the backyard, making my curiosity eat at me until I was suddenly next to her, peering out into the dark yard to see what she was looking at.

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