Page 33 of Under The Twilight Rainfall
It’s mid-afternoon, and Theo has decided to take Dex out to the garden for a game of marbles. Watching Dex’s face change as he concentrates, seeing Theo laugh and let loose around him—this is what family is. What family does.
“Your heart is showing.”
I’m not surprised Lola caught me staring. She always seems to have a sixth sense when it comes to me doing things that are bound to get me hurt.
“When is it not?”
She snorts a laugh and pats my back, peeking out the open back door with me.
“Bleeding heart is what you are.”
“Don’t I know it?” I turn away just enough to look Lola in the eyes and find that hers are shining with unshed tears. “Lola? What’s the matter?”
She grabs my face in her hands and smiles bright and sad. “You have given so much of yourself for other people. You are a wonderful man, Valentine. That one out there is most lucky to have your love.”
“Lola...” Not that I’d ever deny it. Being in love with Dex has only made my world brighter over the years. Maybe I spent all of that time pining over someone who would never be mine, but the kind of untouchable love I feel for him changed me in a fundamental way.
I was a scared, lost, and confused teen when we met. Sure, Dex gave me someone to look after, someone to take care of—and it made me realize that’s what I enjoy—but he also made me realize that the ways I directed my pain weren’t helping. The first time Dex followed me to the abandoned building me and my friends liked to sneak into and nearly got himself hurt? Changes had to be made.
I laugh as she leans forward to place a kiss on my forehead and lets me go. “You’re right, Lola. I’m hopelessly in love with him.”
“Hopeless is right.” Sweet Lola seems to have taken a back seat when she lightly smacks my shoulder. “Go out there.”
“And play marbles?”
If Lola was an eye roller, she would have rolled her eyes. Instead, she stares hard, expression unwavering.
“Tell him.”
“Oh, that’s not happening.”
“Stubborn.”
“Yes!” I say with another laugh, wrapping an arm around her in a half hug. “I am. He’s not in a place for that right now, Lola. He’s—“ I sigh, words that taste like sour candy landing on my tongue. ”—emotionally unavailable.”
She glances back out the door, a fond smile on her lips, and I turn to see that Dex and Theo seem to be playing tag or something similar in the yard. Dex is laughing, a smile splitting his face as he avoids Theo’s grabbing hands.
“Plenty of available emotions to me.”
“You know what I mean.”
Lola hums but backs away from the door to peer into the living room, and the sadness emanating from her has me leave my spot to check in.
“What’s going on?”
“Your Pop isn’t feeling too great,” she admits, and she’s as stubborn as me so that’s a big admission. “Today is the first day in weeks he’s been up and about for more than a few minutes.”
Listening to Dex seems to breathe more life into Pop-Pop. In his youth, he did a lot of traveling like Dex. Originally from Canada, the story goes that he fell in love with Lola by a water fountain on a trip abroad and promptly embarrassed himself by butchering the Tagalog he tried to learn to make a confession.
But Lola hadn’t minded. She’d laughed and promised to remind him of this day for years and years to come—and not once in thirty-five years has she failed to do it. Pop-Pop might not be my grandpa by blood—Ma’s Pop was out of the picture before I was born—but he’s just as much family as Ma, Pa, Lola, and Theo.
And Dex, if he’d accept it.
“Do you guys need help?”
She smiles tightly and waves her hand dismissively. “We’ll be fine.”
“That’s not what I asked.” I grab her hand and raise it to my forehead, bending so I’m at eye level—Lola isn’t a tall woman at 4’11. “Do you need help? I can stay. When Ma and Pa take Theo home, I can stay.”
