Page 18 of Shine For Me

June looks longingly at the tables filled with food and I interrupt before she can argue. “Hey, did you know that there’s a magic forcefield around this house?” I ask. “Any food consumed on these premises doesn’t affect a pre-filming diet.”

She grins at me. “Is that so? Then that definitely sounds like something I need to take advantage of. I’m starving.”

But when we go over to fill our plates, I still notice that she’s sticking to vegetables and small amounts of the roasted, spiced meats that smell so amazing. I scoop some rice onto her plate. “Oops.” Then a few tortillas. “Man, I don’t know what my problem is. I keep thinking your plate is my plate.”

“I’m so sure,” she says drily. But she doesn’t remove the food, and when we find a table on the patio she goes straight for the rice. The rush of satisfaction I feel is ridiculous.

We eat our lunch with Rose, her husband Leo, and River’s family. I’m surprised when Violet and Ash show up as well, since they’ve been mostly preoccupied by their friends all afternoon. “Aw, look,” Rose says. “It’s a Harris family reunion.”

“Harris is my mom’s last name,” I explain to June. “We use it to separate the different branches of the family. It’s too confusing when we’re all Ransomes.”

“That sounds smart.” She laughs. “My grandfather would have lost his shit if any of us ever referred to ourselves as something other than Cain. You should have seen him when my Uncle Jon changed his last name—” She cuts off when she sees that everyone at the table is staring at her, her cheeks going pink. I would give my siblings shit for their blatant interest in Hollywood gossip, but the truth is, I’m dying to hear the rest of that sentence. I vaguely knew that one of Jimmy Cain’s kids struck out on his own, causing a rift, but I never looked into the details. I’m reminded once again of how little June has actually told me about her family.

“So who are the different branches?” she asks brightly, avoiding everyone’s eyes as she scans the crowd. “The girls with the black hair have to belong to Paige, right?”

Rose takes her through a general rundown of the family, which kids go with which aunt and uncle. “Don’t worry if you can’t remember it all,” Leo says drily. “It took me months to keep them all straight.”

“The only important ones are the Harrises,” Violet announces, and we all bang our glasses on the table like the obnoxious children that we still are.

Conversation moves on to the twins’ school plans. I feel myself relaxing while we eat and talk. I love my cousins more than anything, but it’s nice to sit for a while with just the five of us—plus spouses, kids, and June. The familiar feeling of not seeing my family enough has been strong all day but now, for the first time since arriving, it eases a little. Maybe River was right. Maybe I do need to make time to be at home more.

That contented feeling lasts the rest of the afternoon. I play basketball with my brothers, Will, and Wyatt. June and I sit with my mom and my aunts while they pepper us with questions about the filming locations. When Poppy gets fussy later in the day, I walk her around the grounds until she falls asleep on my chest—then enjoy bragging to River about how his baby daughter clearly prefers me to him.

It’s the best I’ve felt in a really long time. And every time I think about leaving in a week, my chest gets tight so I push the thoughts away.

I ask June a few times if she wants to go, but every time she smiles and tells me she’s having fun. And they’re not the too-bright smiles, either. I don’t think she’s acting this time.

Usually we would end a night like this with a fire. Inevitably someone would get out some guitars and my uncles and cousins would play. But tonight the Littles have plans to go out with friends, to the great disappointment of our fathers. “It’s starting already,” I hear Uncle Cash grumble to Uncle Reed.

“They’re all going to abandon us,” Reed agrees.

“There will still be like, a dozen, of your children here, you crazy old men,” Everly says, shaking her head at her father. Then she pokes Uncle Cash. “Not to mention your grandson. We can still have a fire and you can play your precious guitars.”

Her dad just sighs. “I don’t think I’m up for it.”

Aunt Paige, Reed’s wife, rolls her eyes at Everly. “Your dad and uncles have already decided they’re going to sit in the basement and drink whiskey until they pass out.”

“Excellent example to set for a bunch of eighteen-year-olds about to enter college,” Everly says. “When you’re feeling sad, drink to numb the pain! Rather than, you know, deal with your emotions in a healthy way.”

“Where’s the fun in that, kid?” Uncle Cash says.

Since watching my dad and uncles get sad-drunk doesn’t seem particularly fun to me, I suggest we get going to June once most of the non-relative guests have gone.

“Oh, but we haven’t opened your presents yet!” Violet argues, overhearing us.

“So go get ‘em.”

“They don’t have to do that on my account,” June says, seeming a little uncomfortable by the idea.

“Are you crazy? Getting presents from a movie star? They want to soak this up.”

A moment later, all five of the Littles have taken over one of the tables while Violet passes out the perfectly wrapped gifts June brought.

“Where’s your gift, cheapskate?” my little brother Ash says, grinning up at me.

“I went in with Riv and Rose,” I tell him.

Cecelia rolls her eyes. “Meaning Rose picked it out and you paid.”