Page 67 of 'Til You Choke
He opens the door, and it doesn’t take long for his walk to turn into a run as he hurries down the hallway.
God damn, I love this man.
***
Colter
Normal isn’t a word I’d ever use to describe myself. For most of my life, that description was far removed from any truth about me. My mother passed away when I was a boy, and left me in the hands of a man who had no place raising a child. The only idea I had of family came from the values my brotherhood instilled in me. I was allowed no friends, lest they corrupt me and veer me off course from the Veil’s designs.
And for the longest time, I didn’t believe I deserved more than what they offered.
“You catch the game yesterday?” Raymond Lincoln asks, handing me an ice-cold beer. He flops into the single recliner to my left, kicking his feet up.
“Nah. Not really a sport kind of guy.” I crack the can open and take a long drink from it.
“What kind of guy are you then?”
I still haven’t gotten used to casual conversation or to answering questions about myself. He’s proven, time and time again, that he has no ulterior motive in asking andjust wants to be friendly, but I have a hard-stuck rule to be wary of everyone.
Still, I do enjoy seeing his eyes bulge out of his skull at the fun replies I come up with.
“I’m a hunter.”
And there it is. Right on cue, Lilith and her mother enter the living room.
“Are you traumatizing the poor man again, Colter?” Maybelle says, nestling my daughter against her chest.
She and Raymond have been together for almost the same length of time as Lilith and I have been. I’ve grown fond of her, too. She has a kind way about her.
“Oh, no,” Raymond’s the one to answer for me. “Nothing of the sort.”
“But maybe a little,” I add, and the ladies laugh.
Lilith sets out a few dishes of finger food and other snacks on the coffee table, before joining me on the sofa. We’re about to watch a movie, and you can’t do that without a good helping of snacks to get you through.
Her head falls on my shoulder as the introductory credits begin to roll. Overwhelmed by the sudden warmth her presence brings, I lean in close to her ear and whisper, “I love you.”
“I love you too,” she says it louder, for everyone to hear.
I don’t mind. I haven’t gotten to the point of wearing my emotions on my sleeve, the way she can, yet, but perhaps someday I might.
Because my beliefs have shifted since Lilith walked into my life. She showed me there’s more to it than being a blind follower. It’s a place where we’ve found our own little rituals, like this one tonight, and where we gather as family and friends without expectations.
A place where I learned I can be loved.
In other words, a perfect andnormallife.
THE END.
