Page 27 of Big Red

“Well, step one, you can't have a proper movie night without building a fort.”

They both light up and speed out of the living room as fast as lightning. I patiently wait for their return, not knowing if that’s a good or bad thing. When they come back, I can't even see the upper part of their bodies because they both are carrying multiple blankets and pillows.

“I’m guessing you two aren’t strangers to forts?”

“Nope. Gigi lets us build them all the time at her house,” Cindy says.

“Okay, well, let's get to work on this fort.”

It takes us no time to build one spacious enough for us all. We took all the cushions off the couch to create the base. We also used the dining room chairs to make a canopy. Once our handy work is done, I go to the kitchen to pop two bags of kettle corn. After I’m finished, I split the two bags into two big mixing bowls. Grabbing the rest of the snacks, I head back to the living room.

“So, how do two feel about watching a classic Disney movie? If you don’t like the sound of that, we can watch whatever you want. I’m not picky.”

“Classic Disney movie?” Cindy tilts her head.

“Yeah, you know, likeThe Lion King, Little Mermaid, Mulan, Hercules, Tarzan, Pocahontas, Alla?—”

“We’ve never seen any of those.” Colton frowns.

“What?” I gasped. “You’ve never seenThe Lion King?” I ask, taken aback. I mean, to me, you haven’t had a proper childhood without seeing some of these movies. They’re classics for a reason!

When they shake their heads no, I grab the remote for the television. Not on my watch. I don’t care if I have to come over every weekend until they’ve seen them all. As long as Red is okay with it, of course. I pull up the Disney app on the television and quickly create a new account.

I quickly pull upThe Lion Kingand we settle into the fort. When Cindy takes a bite of the kettle corn, she stares at it spellbound. “W-what kind…of…popcorn is this?” She puts one kettle after another into her mouth.

“Slow down, Cindy.” I giggle. “It’s kettle corn. It’s sweeter than popcorn. I personally prefer it over plain ol’ popcorn.” I fake a shiver with an eye roll, and the kids snort.

“Dad doesn’t let us have too many sweets. Every time we ask for candy or anything, all he says is, ‘All that junk isn’t good for your teeth and body.’ Like, dude, I just want a lollipop.” Colton rolls his eyes and stuffs more kettle corn in his mouth.

I throw my head back, laughing at his grown self. I swear, if you want honesty, kids will serve it up for you unapologetically.

The movie starts and we settle in. Throughout the movie, the kids eat the snacks in silence. These kids are completely honed in. When the scene of Mufasa’s death is approaching, my eyes are already filling with tears.

This scene gets me every time!

Colton almost jumps out of his skin when Scar sinks his claws into Mufasa. Hearing a sniffle beside me, I turn to see Cindy wiping her eyes.

“Why would he do that to his own brother? I mean, don’t get me wrong, sometimes Colton gets on my last nerve, but I would never kill him.” She wipes another tear. “Maybe just choke him a tad bit.” She nods as if that’s the most logical and reasonable thing to do.

Colt sits up to stare at her, his face blank of any emotion. “Yeah, and sometimes I just want to cut Cindy’s hair in her sleep. She’ll go from Malibu Barbie to Cynthia fromRugrats,” he spits.

On the inside, I am dying with laughter. Colton's comebacks are hilarious. But I have to be an adult and keep it together. I don’t want to escalate things by laughing.

They stare at each other in silence for a moment. Then, they both burst into laughter.

“That was a good one, Colt.Cynthia from Rugrats,” she mocks before falling out laughing again.

After we settle down, we finish the movie. By the time the credits roll, both of them are out like a light. I ease out of the fort and begin to clean up the snacks.

While I’m washing out the bowl from the kettle corn, I hear the front door open. Grabbing a paper towel, I dry off the bowl and place it where I found it. When I turn around, Red is standing there with a smile.

“Looks like y’all had a good time.”

“We did. Can I just say, your kids are hilarious? They had me laughing more than the movie.” I giggle.

Red wraps his arms around me, bringing my body against his. “I don’t even want to know.” He shakes his head and pulls back just enough to stare into my eyes with a playful smile. When he dips his head to kiss me, I dodge the kiss. His brows scrunch in confusion.

“That kiss would have been our third, and I don’t even know your name.”

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