Page 24 of Betting Brett

15

Andy

Thesofthumofthe refrigerator and the distant chirping of crickets outside are the only sounds in the kitchen. Brett and I sit at the wooden dining table, the warm glow from the overhead light casting a golden hue through the room. A half-eaten bowl of ice cream sits in front of Izzy at the coffee table, who's engrossed in a complicated cartoon playing on the TV, her spoon occasionally clinking against the bowl.

Brett runs a hand through his hair, his face etched with worry. "She said... she said that your 'kind' was corrupting Isabelle. That you’re unnatural and that she won't let Izzy be influenced by you."

I feel a pang of anger and sadness, along with an unwelcome flare of shame. I shouldn’t have felt it, but I did anyway. It’s hard for me to look into Brett’s sad eyes, so I look out the small window over the sink instead. It’s a cloudless night sky, stars twinkling in the black expanse. "Brett, I'm so sorry. I never wanted to be the cause of any rift between you and your family."

He shakes his head, his eyes filled with determination. He grabs my hand, and my eyes go back to him. "It's not your fault, Andy. It's her own ignorance and prejudice. Isabelle is just a kid. She doesn't need to be exposed to that kind of hate."

Izzy suddenly appears at my side. “Was Grandma saying mean things about Uncle Andy again?” she asks intently.

Brett sighs. “You weren’t meant to hear that sweetie. Wait, what do you mean again?”

Isabelle cocks her head to the side in a grown-up move I haven’t seen her make before. “Grandma came to school yesterday and picked me up. We went to the park, and she said some really mean things about Uncle Andy. I told her that they weren’t true, but she said it was like my name and baseball. That it was your and mom’s fault that I don’t know any better and that I’ll understand when I’m older.”

“What about your name and baseball?” Brett asks. He’s at least as confused as I am. I don’t really understand what Izzy is trying to say to us.

“Grandma Darlene says that I shouldn’t allow people to call me Izzy, that it’s not appropriate or ladylike. And that I shouldn’t play baseball or wear pants because I’ll end up being a hussy just like Mom. I don’t know what a hussy is, but I don’t think it’s a good thing because Grandma’s face gets all pinchy when she says it like she tasted a lemon.” Izzy’s words come out in a rush like she’s been holding them back for a long time. Brett looks as if someone slapped him, and he’s obviously struggling for words.

Izzy braves a look at her Dad, and her face crumples. It’s obvious that she thinks she’s done something wrong. Her words come out even faster. “She told me that I wasn’t allowed to tell you because you had been corrupted, and you couldn’t be trusted to raise a little girl properly. She said that listening to her was the only hope for me since my mother abandoned me to go be a harlot. I don’t know what that means either. Did my mom really abandon me?”

This is a question I definitely know the answer to. “No, Izzy, your mom absolutely did not abandon you. She loves you very much, and you get to spend lots of time with her. And when you’re not with her, you’re with your Dad, who also loves you very much and does a great job of taking care of you and teaching you how to be the wonderful, caring person that you are.”

As I’ve been talking, tears have started rolling down Izzy’s face. She throws one arm around my waist and reaches for Brett with the other, pulling him into a big hug between the three of us with her in the middle.

Brett finally finds his voice. “Oh, sweetheart,” he says sadly, “I had no idea that Grandma was saying such awful things to you. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with your name, or playing baseball, or wearing pants.” He rolls his eyes my way as he says this, finding humor in the ridiculous, even in this emotionally charged moment. “Grandma has some hurtful ideas that aren’t right, and we are all going to take a break from seeing her for a little while. Just until she remembers that being kind to everyone is the most important thing.”

Brett rubs his hand up and down Izzy’s back soothingly. “Can you go get your tablet, sweetie?” he asks. As she heads off to get it, he turns to me. “We need to talk to Jen. She needs to know what's going on."

“I agree, she should absolutely be in the loop. She might have some insights or advice on how to handle this." Jen has always been the smartest of us. She was kind, a walking bombshell, and always willing to help. She was a great person, and I knew why she and Brett were attracted to each other. She also gave great, straightforward advice, which is why she was the one I called first when I started contemplating a move back home to Shafter Falls. Thankfully, Jen and Brett ended things amicably and seemed to be doing great apart, but still… I was a little worried that she would be upset to see me sitting in the same spot she used to occupy.

Izzy returns with the tablet, and Brett sets it up on the table so we can all see. The familiar FaceTime ringtone fills the room, and after a few moments, Jen's face appears on the screen. She’s at home, the sound of the television playing in the background. She lowers the volume and then returns her attention to the screen.

"Hey, guys," she says, her cheerful demeanor faltering slightly when she sees our expressions. “Hi, Izzy. What's going on? Everything ok?"

Brett takes a deep breath, recounting the events of the evening. Jen listens intently, her face concerned. When he finishes, she's silent for a moment, processing everything.

"That's... shit, that's a lot," she finally says. “I wish I could say I’m surprised, but after the way that Darlene treated me, I’m really not. I’m pretty upset that she would talk to Izzy like that, though. I was hoping love for her granddaughter would reign her in.”

“I’m sorry that I wasn’t more aware of how she was treating you,” Brett says. “I'm just... I'm at a loss. I don't know what to do, Jen. Obviously, we’re all going to take a break from seeing her, but I don’t really feel like this is something I have the power to make right."

Jen's expression softens. "First, you need to remember that you're not alone in this. You have Andy, you have me, and you have a whole community of people who support and love you. Your mother is stuck in her ways, but that doesn’t make her way right. Not in the slightest. As for Izzy, we'll do everything we can to shield her from this kind of negativity."

The conversation continues, the three of us discussing potential next steps and how to best support Izzy during this challenging time. After a while, Jen asks to speak just to Izzy, and Brett and I hand her the tablet to take to her room. Jen is a great mother, and Izzy talking to her about the night’s revelations is the best thing for her.

Izzy leaves, and Brett slumps back in his chair, looking drained. "I can't believe I let this happen," he murmurs.

I pull him close, resting my forehead against his. "You didn't let anything happen, Brett. You didn’t know your mother would do this, and now that she has, we're taking action. That's what matters."

When Izzy returns from her room, she seems much lighter. “Mom said bye, can we watch a movie? Something fun?"

Brett smiles, the tension in his face easing slightly. “Sure, kid. What do you want to watch?

Izzy smiles like she’s getting away with something. “How about 'The Little Mermaid', the good one?"

Brett groans and rolls his eyes, mostly for show, and we move things over to the living room, where I put on the live-action film and settle into the couch next to Brett. Izzy plops down in the recliner with a cup of water in her hands and her eyes fixed on the screen. As the movie plays, I marvel at the resilience of children. Despite the day's events, Izzy is still able to find joy in the simple things. Her smile comes easy, and her laughs fill the room. There’s no tension or worry about the future, just pure happiness being in the now. It's a lesson I need to work on myself. I snuggle into Brett’s side gratefully.

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