41
Her voice was soft, almost distant. I could tell that the topic of our father was a painful one for her and I hated pushing those buttons, but I really needed to know more about the man who had given me life.
“I’m sorry if this is uncomfortable to talk about,” I said after a few seconds of silence.
“No, it’s okay,” she sighed. “It’s painful to think about him, but I at least have those memories. I can’t imagine what you’re feeling.”
She stepped closer to me and wrapped her arm around my neck, pulling me into a hug. I encircled her slim waist and pulled her against my body, then immediately felt horrible for enjoying the feel of her body against mine. The hug only lasted a few seconds, but it had much more feeling and emotion behind it than any sign of affection I’d received from any girl in the past.
“Thank you,” I said.
“That’s okay,” Amanda smiled. “Come on, let’s get this over with.”
I stepped around her and took the shopping cart handle to follow her in. For some reason I expected the supermarkets here to be different from back home-not sure why-but apart from the different brands of products, everything looked about the same.
“Was Dad a good guitarist?” I asked.
“He was fantastic,” Amanda grinned. “He didn’t get to play much when I got older since he was always busy with work. But he was great.”
“Guess it must run in the family,” I smirked. “What about the others? Emily plays bass and Erica drums, right?”
“Yeah,” Amanda nodded. “Once they were older, they all wanted to learn something. Dad could play bass too and helped Emily learn, but Erica needed a teacher.”
“Is she any good?” I asked.
“Very,” Amanda smiled.
“What about Mel?” I asked.
“Mel didn’t show any interest in learning an instrument,” she explained. “She loves music, but she put her time and energy into photography, art and video games. She is quite an artist though.”
“Interesting,” I mused.
I thought about the information about my new sisters as I followed Amanda around the supermarket, hardly paying attention to what she threw in the cart. My mother hadn’t been very musically gifted, even though she loved music, and I gathered that their mother was about the same. It looked as if all of my father’s children had developed an affinity for music, with the exception of Amelia. Art was another form of expression that many musicians displayed also, so I took that another inherited skill from our father.
We spent about an hour in the grocery store and by the time we hit the check out the cart was filled to the brim. Amanda had gone a little crazy, but when I mentioned it, she simply said. “You can only welcome your big brother to the family once.”
Once we were paid up and I had loaded the car I stopped to pull my pack of cigarettes out and realized I only had two left.
“Ah, shit,” I said. “I gotta go back in.”
“You’re not very observant, are you?” Amanda smirked.
“What?” I asked with what I assumed was a dumb expression on my face.
She leaned into the back of the car and rummaged around in the grocery bags for a few seconds before pulling out a carton of cigarettes. They weren’t the brand I liked from back home, but I was well aware that I was going to have to find something new.
“I got these for you,” she tossed me the carton.
“You really didn’t have to do that,” I said in shock.
“I know, but I wanted too,” she shrugged and smiled at me.
I wasn’t sure if this is how siblings were with one another-definitely not how my mate and his sister acted-or if she had other feelings for me, as I did her. She could simply just be a lovely person and I was reading into this too much. I decided to let it go and just thanked her again.
I lit up a smoke and jumped in the passenger seat when Amanda signalled it was okay to smoke in her car. I personally never smoked in my own car back home, but each to their own. I managed to memorize most of the route back home and was sure if I had to, I could drive down to the shops myself. I’d have to get my Australian driver’s license sorted soon and get a new car.
“Hey, can I ask you something?” I asked Amanda.
“Sure,” she said, turning the music down.
“There’s only two cars at the house,” I said. “For four people. What does everyone else drive?”Còntens bel0ngs to Nô(v)elDr/a/ma.Org
“The Barina belongs to Erica, and Emily has a motorbike,” she replied.
“What about Mel?” I asked.
“Mel doesn’t know how to drive. She hasn’t shown an interest in learn,” Amanda said. “Usually one of us will give her a ride, and the public transport into the city is pretty good so she doesn’t miss out on much.”
I nodded at her explanation, and she turned the music up. I hadn’t seen a bike anywhere in the garage or around the house, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t one. Maybe I could get my own bike instead, then Emily and I could go for rides. I enjoyed riding back home and had even ridden my grandfather’s old Harley for a few years before it broke down. I’d always wanted to fix it up, but Hayley parts were so expensive, and we never had the money. I ended up selling it off for parts in the end.
Once we reached home, I loaded myself up with the grocery bags, and assured Amanda I was able to do it in one trip. It was time to show her that these muscles were indeed useful for lifting heaving things.
She held the door open for me as I brought everything in and dumped it all on the huge island counter in the centre of the kitchen. I helped Amanda sort the groceries and start setting things up for the party. I’d suggested a barbecue for the party which Amanda thought was a great idea, but she had no idea I intended to cook for everyone.
“Looks like we’ve got everything,” I said, once we were done.
“Looks like it,” Amanda smiled. “There’s still a few hours before anyone is going to show up. I’m gonna grab a shower and chill out for a bit.”
“Sounds good, I might go unpack my stuff, see you in a bit.”
With a hug and a smile, we parted ways. I went up to my flat to un-pack my bags and put my clothes away. I really didn’t have much to do once that was done, so I headed back down to the house to see if I could find any of the girls.