I knocked on the door of the small but humble house that I have been to before. The creepy garden gnome thing was was still blind due to the duct tape from last time. Jasmine was parked right next to the driveway near a fire hydrant. I heard small but distinct footsteps closing in on the door; it was Angela's aunt, Juliana. The door clicked open and Juliana's head popped out and greeted me, "Hey, Micheal." Her demeanor was anxious and a bit afraid.
I responded, "How's everyone doing?"
She closed the door again and unhinged the little lock before opening it all the way. "Everyone is pretty good. Especially Ayla!"
I was a little surprised, so the shot did work well. "Can I meet her?"
Juliana closed the door behind me before she said, "Actually...we're not sure where she is."
"What do you mean?"
She fiddled with her fingers. "I don't know. She sort of took off one day."
That was intriguing, but I didn't want to push it any further. "I'm sure she's fine wherever she is. Ayla is a strong old lady!" Juliana nodded her head in thanks and guided me towards the living room where there was a man in casual clothes- a dull, yellow t-shirt and navy shorts- with black hair sitting on the couch. I said aloud, "So, where's the family?"
The man spoke up while still keeping his head down, "I am."
"So...who are you?" I asked. His hair stayed in a cropped fashion as he lifted his head to reveal icy, blue eyes and looked like shattered glass. His dark hair complemented the contrast and his face was almost perfectly symmetrical save for the small scar near his temple. He had a very close resemblance to someone I know.
He cleared his throat and said, "I'm A-"
I interrupted him, "Angela's brother."
His head jerked faster in my direction. "How did you know? I don't think she's ever told you."
"How can I not know my own future brother-in-law?" I said jovially.
He turned serious and said in a deeper voice, "How did you know?"
I plopped myself on the couch opposite of him and rubbed my shoes on the intricately decorated rug. "Chillax, it was your eyes." Out of instinct- probably, he slightly averted his eyes to the right or his right. I wasn't really sure. "Also, cause she told me there was family here, so...put two and two together." I shrugged my shoulders, reached over to the small, black coffee table, and grabbed myself a green grape.
He hesitantly asked, "Future brother-in-law?"
I looked at him before I popped the grape into my mouth and reached over to grab another one. "Yeah. I thought you were here because you knew that Angela and I are dating."
He looked like he choked on thin air. "You two are dating?!" I simply nodded my head before placing the second grape into my mouth. Then, I got too lazy, so I placed the whole bowl of grapes from the coffee table on my lap. "How old are you?!"
I thought about it. "Like, in my early or mid-seventies."
"You don't know your own age?"
I snacked on a couple more green grapes. I swallowed before I said, "Well, I do, but you don't really have to know."
He shook his head in disappointment, "Do you even know how old Angela is?"
"Of course!" I said passionately, "She's in her mid-twenties, right?"
He stared at me with blank eyes. "Do you...not understand the problem here?"
I grabbed another handful of grapes and started munching on them. I looked back at him with blank eyes. "What...is the problem?" He slapped his forehead so hard that it left his handprint in red. I looked around for Juliana, who was chopping stuff in the kitchen. I called out to her, "Hey, Juliana?"
A voice from the kitchen answered back, "Yes, Micheal?"
I waved the emptied bowl of grapes in the air and said, "You think I could have a refill of these delicious, green grapes?"
Juliana came out from the kitchen and made herself over to the bowl. She said, "Of cour-"
Angela's brother raged, "FORGET ABOUT THE FUCKING GRAPES!!!"
Juliana jumped in shock and yelled, "Roman! Don't treat our guest that way!"
Roman ignored her and stared me down before shouting, "YOU CAN'T MARRY ANGELA! YOU SHOULDN'T EVEN BE DATING HER!!!"
I looked back at him and tried to stay neutral, "If you're worried about whether I have erectile disfunction or STDs or something, then don't worry. My number age may old, but my physical age is around yours! We can check if you want!" Juliana's face turned into a tomato red, and I added to her specifically, "At the hospital, Juliana, at the hospital." She calmed down and scuffled away to the kitchen. "Oh, Juliana, don't forget the grapes will ya!" I called after her with a sweet voice.
Roman would not be calmed on the other hand. "THAT'S NOT THE FUCKING POINT! YOU'RE TOO OLD FOR HER!!!"
I raised my voice in defense, "HAVEN'T YOU HEARD THAT AGE IS JUST A NUMBER??? AND THAT LOVE IS FOR ANYONE???!!!"
He exasperatedly yelled, "YOU'RE OLD ENOUGH TO BE HER GRANDFATHER!" He slunk back into his couch and stared at me with eyes of fury. For a couple of minutes, it was just awkward silence. Then, he slowly said, "How many divorces have you had in your life?"
I laid in a sleeping position with my stomach facing the couch. Sleeping in the most comfortable position, I said, "Zero."
I looked at me peculiarly, "So, did you, like, outlive your spouse? Or, are you into polygamy?"
I turned my head to face him and said, "I've never been in a relationship, dumbass."
"Oh," he looked surprised, "Why not?"
I turned my face back towards the floor and softly said, "Nobody's ever loved me."
He stayed silent for a solid minute. I could feel his gaze penetrating my soul. "What about your family?"
I laughed, "My father left me. My mother dies when I was young."
"Your mother loved you, right?"
I thought about it. "Maybe."
"So..."
"I don't remember it."
"Oh." He studied me for a hot second before he asked, "Why my sister?"
I turned myself to face the ceiling now and placed my hand over my face. "When you go through a lifetime without being loved, you start to isolate yourself. You make it so that a loveless life is a normal life. As if it were natural. But, for the first time in my conscious breath, I feel like putting someone else before me. That that person who pulled me out of the water was your sister. She's changing me for the better, little by little. It makes me want to stay with her, to love her, to take care of her." I paused for a breath. "Tell me, is it bad to want to love someone?"
He looked at me speechless. His eyebrows relaxed a little and he said, "No. I don't think it's bad to love someone."
Perfect! I propped myself up energetically on the couch and looked at him with greedy eyes. "So! Can I marry your sister?!" I exclaimed.
His expression changed back to its usual scowl. "No!"
"But, you just said it was okay to love some-"
"Yeah I know, but I never said that I wouldn't interfere!" I smirked. "Why are you smiling?" he asked.
"I just noticed that this whole conversation was a waste of time in regards to discussing my love towards Angela. If she chooses to marry me- I won't force her, then you can't do shit."
I stood up to leave but waited for Juliana to shuffle out of the kitchen. "Micheal, here are your grapes!"
I took the bowl and said, "Thank you, Juliana, I will be returning this thing later." She shook her head and waited next to the door.
"Wait," Roman commanded. As he wrote something down on a piece of paper, he said, "I can't do anything about love, but I can do something about that." He pointed outside the window at Jasmine. He walked over to me and handed me the paper. It was a...parking slip? I looked at him in confusion. "You can't park next to a fire hydrant, dumbass."
"So who are you to enforce that?" He pulled out his badge and showed it to me.
"A police officer." One of the grapes that I was holding dropped to the floor. Roman snatched the bowl and the grapes from my arms. "And the fucking grapes stay here."