Charlie's POV:
Charlie: 11 years old
Ace: 13 years old
"Mommy what's this? I pointed at the balloons that kept growing on my chest. Seriously who was blowing so much air that they just kept growing. Last week my chest was flat and now this. Urgh.
Mom and Dad turned collectively to look at me, walking down the stairs and then to my hand pointed on my chest.
Dad's cheeks turned red and he immediately looked away and then moved his head towards mom, giving her a weird look. Mom started coughing.
"I think I left the stove on. It smells like something's burning. " She waved her hand in front of her face, coughing hysterically.
I sniffed the air and smelt nothing.
"No it's not. " I stated and took another huge sniff to prove my point, crossing my no longer chubby arms over the two balloons.
"It is. Your nose must be blocke. Now I'm going to the kitchen, "she announced. She turned slightly to look at dad but he kept his eyes firmly on the wall behind me. I turned around to see what was so interesting about the wall.
Nothing.
Just a plain blue wall.
Mom elbowed him and he finally turned to look at her. They looked at me and gave me forced smiles and then turned towards each other, talking in hushed whispers. I could see their lips moving but never heard a sound. Wow, I never thought my loud parents could talk so quietly. Dad was about to shout but he looked at me, closed his mouth and gave me a sheepish smile. Mom pulled dad's ear and dragged him into the kitchen by the ear.
I wonder if that is domestic violence.
The nosy old lady in me couldn't stay in the room and I tiptoed my way into the kitchen to see what's going on. I know I'm a nosy parker but hey! You can't blame me. Children get their traits from parents. I think. I read that in my science book.
"You are a woman. She's becoming a woman. You are going to have the talk with her. Problem solved.", dad moved to the door but mom pulled him right back.
"Where do you think you are going, huh? Why should I have the talk with her? What era are you living in?"
"She'll be more comfortable with you." dad said in a duh tone.
"What about me? I'll be uncomfortable too" Mom gave dad her best puppy dog eyes. Now I know where I get that from.
"Oh no no no! No, I'm not falling for the puppy dog eyes this time. You're going to have the talk with her. That's final. When we have a boy, I'll talk to him." Dad shouted, putting one of his hands over his eyes, so he couldn't see anything.
Mom slumped down on the chair in defeat. Dad peeked from the space between his fingers and fist pumped the air as he reached for the door. I immediately ran out to the living room and turned on the T. V., playing Disney channel and started singing along to Mickey Mouse. If there's one thing I've learned about prying from my mom, it's to be thorough.
If you snoop, you don't bloop, as mom puts it.
I took deep breaths, so it didn't seem like I just ran for my life. Mom and dad entered the room, mom looking like she had to swallow a bitter pill and dad like he just won over the world. They looked at me and gave me a sceptical look. Mom walked to the couch and sat beside me.
"Honey, we need to talk, " Mom started.
"I swear it wasn't me. It was dad. He took me out for ice cream afterwards so I wouldn't snitch on him." I blurted, pointing in dad's direction.
"What are you talking about?" Mom looked at dad who was glaring at me.
"Dad broke your favorite vase. Not me" I yelled and ran upstairs to my room.
"Nobody likes snitches. " Dad shouted after me but Mom caught up to him and pulled his ear.
I shut my door and took a deep breath. Well, nobody will bother me for at least an hour. That's how long dad is gonna get his behind whooped.
I feel bad for him.
But self preservation is the priority. An hour and half later, Mom entered my room, looking at me reading my favorite storybook. She sat on the foot of my bed, taking my hand in hers.
"Sweetie, we need to have a long chat."
"But I told you everything. I didn't do anything."
"No, honey, it's not about that."
"Then what's it about? "
"You see you're growing up. And there's a lot of changes that are gonna take place. You're going through a transitional phase in your life. "
Oh yes! Ms. Evans did say something like that but I was too busy thinking about ice cream that dad was going to get me, so he could save himself. What did she call it?
Alberty? Desserty? Liberty? Huberty?
"Huberty!! Yes that's it."
"It's puberty and we're going to talk about it today."
After the most embarrassing three hours of my 11 years of life, mom finally took mercy on me and left my room to give me some time to digest all that she told me.
Just as Mom was about to exit, dad appeared in the doorway and gave me a stern look, staring straight into my eyes, "Also, you aren't allowed to be in the same room with a boy, hold hands with a boy, sit next to a boy or even look at a boy! "
"What! "
"Yep, that's right. We have a no boy policy in the house until you turn 50!!", I gaped at him. Mom gave dad a look, but he wasn't paying attention to her, his sole focus on ruining my life!!!
"Why?," I pouted.
He ignored me and continued,"Also we have an open door policy in the house. "
"Since when? "
"Since you decided to become a young woman," Dad started crying. Mom hugged him and offered him comfort while I stood there like a fish, opening my mouth then closing it again and again and again. I had never seen my dad cry. Why is he even crying? "My little girl is growing up so fast," he squeaked, "My heart can't take it."
Mom rolled her eyes, but continued patting dad's back.
"Can I at least write letters to John?" I whispered.
"Of course, sweetie. "
"No"
Mom and dad said at the same time.
Dad turned to mom,"She can't keep sending love letters to a boy we haven't even met. Plus we don't know who is sending her those letters. It could be a pedophile for all we know."
"Oh come on! What can he do even if it's a pedophile sending her letters. They don't even know each other's real name. And I've read their letters. It's just two kids telling each other about their lives, making friends. It's harmless."
That's right. John and I never exchanged our real names. We wanted it to be a surprise. Meeting each other for the first time, seeing each other, asking each other's name. It'll be like getting to know each other, once again. Wait, what did she just say-
"You read my letters!!" I screamed out.
She ignored me.
Mom and dad bickered with each other for another half an hour or so.
"Are you eating popcorn?," Dad asked, "When did you even get out of this room?"
"When you two were fighting," I mumbled stuffing my face with another handful.
"Did you find a solution?," I asked.
"Yes, you're allowed to write letters but you can't keep exchanging I love yous. You can't say I love you to anyone from now on..... " she trailed off.
"No more, I love yous!!!!????," I cried out.
"No, you can't say I love to just anyone," dad uttered.
"Not even you?"
"Yes, of coure you can say I love you to us, we're your parents," Dad scratched his neck.
"What about Mia?"
"Well, she's your best friend. So, yes? " Dad looked at Mom.
"Then why not John?? " I wailed.
"Because he's a boy!!" Dad shouted.
"So what? You're a boy," I whined out.
"Yes, but I'm your dad, not your potential boyfriend," Dad thinned his lips in a straight line,"Look, I'm not ready to have this conversation today. That's a conversation for the next year."
Wait there's more of this gross stuff that mom dropped on me like an atom bomb?
Ugh! I hate this. I hate huberty!!!
"Could it have been any more embarrassing?", I shouted at Mia.
"Yes, yes, it could have." She put her hand on my mouth and I licked it.
"Eww", She wiped her hand against the sleeve of my shirt.
"There were diagrams!! Diagrams. Who does that to a little child! "
"Apparently, every parent in the world." Mia replied.
"How are you so cool about it. "
"Because my parents already gave me the talk last week."
"And you couldn't have warned me??!!" I took the nearest pillow I found and threw it right at her face. And that is how World War 3 started, my friends.
After an intense round of pillow fight and uncontrollable laughter, we laid on our backs in the middle of Mia's bed, exhausted. We looked at each other and started laughing again.
"How do people not find it gross? ", I asked Mia as I left the bed and hopped on top of her desk. She followed suit and sat on the chair in front of me.
"Cause it's natural, it happens to everybody. Plus I saw alot of stuff on the internet"
"Boys too? "
"Maybe, I don't know."
"John too? "
"It's a possibility."
"He's older than me so can I ask him?"
"Well, you two talk about everything, so why not?" Mia snorted as she turned away from me.
"Do you smell that?"
"Smell what?", Mia asked, fixing her glasses above the bridge of her nose and taking a huge sniff.
"You, burning with jealousy!", I teased,"Don't worry, you'll always be my number one girl. You know that, right?"
I blew her a kiss and she pretended to gag. I jump off her desk that I was sitting on and took my bag from the side sliding it over my shouder.
"Ok I'm gonna go and write to him." I exclaimed.
We took the stairs with her walking in front of me, "Be quiet, if we get caught, I'm gonna be dead. And if I die, my spirit is going to haunt you for the rest of your life. So, shhh" She said placing her finger against her lips, looking around. I blew air in her air and she jumped so hard, she fell on her butt.
"Don't shush me," I said as I moved towards the kitchen. I opened the fridge and took out a Hershey's Bar. She gave me a glare and smacked my head. Thankfully no one woke up. This family sleeps like a log. Someone could break in, organise a party in their house and they wouldn't even know.
"Bye Skittles." She whisper-yelled.
"Bye Popsicle!!"
We said our goodbyes as she sneaked me out of the back door. I ran down the street to my house and started climbing up the tree that was near my window. I reached for the window, opening the lock almost falling down but somehow managed to break into my own room. I jumped from the window sill, careful not to make a sound. I let out a sigh of relief at not being caught, sneaking out of the house.
I changed into my pyjamas, then took out a blank paper and started writing. I kept it aside after I finished it to post it tomorrow and went to sleep.