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“Of course. Oh, and you never said for sure if you’re gonna go take a run.”
“I am.”
“Please be careful. Okay?”
“I will. I’ll take my pepper spray with me, but I’m really not worried about anything happening out there. It’s a great running trail.”
“I know it is. It’s just…”
“It’s just what?”
“I’m protective of you, Stevie, and nothing can ever happen to you.”
“Nothing’s gonna happen to me…and I’m protective of you too. You and Malcolm both.”
Hearing her say that made me smile. I knew how much Stevie cared for me and also my mini-me.
“I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“Talk to you later, babe.”
“Can’t wait.”
I was pulling into my parents’ driveway when Stevie and I hung up. My dad was mowing the front yard and when he sawme, he waved and I waved back. I’d just made it to the front door when my mom opened it and smiled.
“Malcolm is asleep on the couch. The cold meds knocked him out but they made his running nose dry up and his fever go away,” she said.
“Good deal.”
I stepped through the doorway, hugged my mom, and then walked into the living room to check on Malcolm. And he was out. Drool was running out of the corner of his mouth too, and I just grinned at the sight of him.
“Come on,” my mom whispered to me. “I’ll fix you something to eat.”
“Mom, thanks, but I’m really not hungry right now. I am thirsty, though.”
“Lucky for you, I just made a fresh pitcher of sweet tea.”
“Sounds great.”
I sat down at the bar in my parents’ kitchen while my mom poured a glass of iced tea for me. It was Tetley tea. Not Lipton or any other brand. My mom had used it for years and swore it tasted the best. I agreed but had always felt that it had more to do with the way my mom brewed the tea, the pure cane sugar that she used, and the pinch of baking soda she stirred in rather than the brand.
“Here you go,” she said, handing me the glass, then sat down on the barstool next to me.
“Thanks.” I gulped down half of it then sighed. “That is so good.”
“Of course it is.”
“Because you made it.”
“It’s the brand.”
“I know better.”
“Okay, son. I’m not gonna argue with you about this again.”
“Because you know you’ll lose?”
