Page 27 of A Very Grumpy Father's Day
“Who have you been texting with all night, Piper?” my sister asks her.
“Oh my God, Mom, why don’t you read about it in my journal tomorrow?!”
“It better not be someone you’re DTF with,” Bex says, looking more proud of herself for knowing what that stands for than warning her daughter off of DTFing.
The look on my niece’s face is priceless. “Mother. I am going to proceed to live the rest of my life pretending you did not just say that to me.”
“DTF FTW!” Bex exclaims, raising her arms in the air.
Piper slowly shakes her head, turns her body away from her mother, and stares down at her phone again. “No.”
My sister gives me a look, and I know exactly what it means:Enjoy your totally dependent daughter while you can.
I am filled with nostalgia all of a sudden.
This is the first time I’ve been to Aunt Mel’s without Declan since that time he surprised me by coming here on Christmas day.
I miss him.
It’s alarming how much I miss him and Ciara. So much that I almost want to cry. It’s strange. I can get through each day at work, but being with the family I was born into without the family I’ve created feels all kinds of wrong. It doesn’t mean that I love the family I was born into any less, I just don’t feel complete without Declan and Ciara anymore.
I go to the front windows and glance out of them. It’s so easy to picture what Declan looked like when he was standing out there in his big puffy coat and scarf and wool cap a few winters ago. Also, I need to open another window because, y’know—roast chicken farts.
