Page 27 of Burden to Bear

She shook her head. “No. Uncle Brock was going to tickle me until I told him I liked his plan instead of mine.”

Interested in what she had to say, I crouched down and asked, “What was his plan?”

Izzy let out an audible and adorably frustrated sigh. “He told me I have to wait until I’m twenty-five before I can have a boyfriend.”

I pressed my lips together to stifle my laughter and glanced up at Brock. He shot me a look of helplessness. “My five-year-old niece thought I would be overjoyed to hear about her boyfriend.”

“You have a boyfriend already?” I asked Izzy.

“His name is Billy, and he goes to school with me, and we color together all the time,” she shared, the exuberance spilling out of her with every word she spoke. “And we sit together during snack time, too.”

It wasn’t going to be me who broke this little girl’s heart. At the heart of the matter, it was all just innocent. Of course, I thought it was reasonable to advise her on her uncle’s position in a kid-friendly way. “Well, I don’t see anything wrong with having someone you enjoy coloring with. It sounds like a lot of fun. And it’s definitely not enjoyable to eat alone, so I think it’s great you’ve got a nice friend named Billy to do that with. But it might be smart to also listen to what your uncle is saying, too. I’m sure he just wants the very best for you, Izzy, and waiting until you’re older to start going on dates with a boyfriend is a good idea.”

Izzy took in my words, considered them, and gave me a nod. “Okay. I’ll do that.”

I smiled at her and stood up.

“Thanks,” Brock mumbled quietly.

“What about you?” Izzy asked.

When I glanced down at her again, I could see her looking at me, so I asked, “What about me?”

“How old are you?”

“Izzy, we don’t?—”

I reached out and touched his arm. “It’s okay, Brock. She’s just curious.” I could have sworn I felt his body tense at my touch, but I couldn’t focus on it too much, because I looked back at Izzy and shared, “I’m twenty-nine.”

Her eyes widened, and she marveled at me in silence for all of a few seconds. Then she said, “You’re way older than me. You’re old enough to have a boyfriend.”

Quickly, I pulled my hand away from Brock’s arm, sent a fleeting look his way, and confirmed, “I guess I am.”

“Do you?”

“Do I what?”

“Do you have a boyfriend?”

Izzy’s question was met with a heavy silence. I pressed my lips together again, but this time, it had nothing to do with not wanting to laugh or smile. It was a nervous reaction.

Following several beats of awkward silence, I said, “I do not.”

Something changed in the air. I couldn’t explain it, didn’t know what it was, but I knew it was coming from Brock. I didn’t dare look at him and was grateful when Izzy continued to ask questions.

“But you’re old enough. Did you used to have a boyfriend?”

Nodding, I answered honestly. “I did.”

“What happened to him?”

I exhaled deeply. “Sometimes, it doesn’t work out, and unfortunately, we broke up right before Christmas.”

“Did you cry? Were you sad?”

Gosh, was I really having this conversation with a five-year-old?

Crouching down once again, I said, “I did cry. And I was sad for a while, because breakups are sad. But I’m happier now. In fact, I was really happy when I saw you running around with your uncle. I’m very happy to have met you today. And I’m really happy for the sunshine and warm weather that’s been here the last few days. So, there’s always going to be sad things that happen, but there’re always happy things, too.”

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