Chapter Ten
Reese
After about a thirty-minute drive, Kelly parked in front of a single-level yellow house. According to Kelly, we were only about a fifteen-minute walk from the closest beach, but I couldn’t see the ocean from where we were standing.
The house was situated on the side of a hill.
There were some houses stacked slightly below the Iona’s and a few higher up.
Thick, mature tropical plants covered the front, leaning against the house’s sides.
The yellow paint was weathered and chipping a bit on the trim.
There were two cushioned rocking chairs on the front porch, and the door stood out on the yellow house in its robin-egg blue.
This house showed clear signs of having been lived in and loved. The bright colors were the opposite of every beige military base house I had ever lived in, and I loved the vibrancy and the personality. This was a house I had dreamed of living in as a child. It was a home that held memories.
Ted jumped out of the back almost as soon as we parked and trotted right up to the front door, as he probably had a thousand times before.
My phone buzzed in my purse, and I pulled it out. It was a message from Beth.
Beth: Let me know if this cutie turns out to be more of a Ted Bundy ?? I can rescue you anytime. Also, send me the address. I already forgot it.
I rolled my eyes at the screen. I knew there was no way she had remembered it without writing it down.
Me: Funny, he does have a dog named Ted. Coincidence? I think not ??
“Kelly, what’s your parents’ address?” I asked.
He recited it and then chuckled. “I’m glad your cousin is looking out for you.”
“You wouldn’t think so if you knew she was comparing you to Ted Bundy,” I said, then messaged Beth back and put my phone back in my purse.
“Ted Bundy? That means you guys think I’m at least attractive,” he smirked.
“Beth thinks you’re attractive,” I smirked back, refusing to let him know how truly attracted to him I was.
I got out of the truck as Kelly met me on my side.
“I know it’s not much,” he said shyly. “Especially compared to where you are staying. But this is—”
“Perfect,” I smiled at him, bumping my hip into his.
He seemed relieved by my reaction to his family's home and took my hand, interlacing our fingers. “Are you too hot?” he asked, trying out our code word.
A small thrill traveled through my body at the contact. “No, I’m good,” I said back confidently, giving him a little squeeze.
He led up the three steps that met the porch. There was a mat by the door with several pairs of sandals piled up.
“You can throw your slippahs here,” he said as he removed his sandals.
“Slippahs?” I questioned, but slipped off my shoes as well.
He chuckled at this. “In Hawaii, we don’t use the term sandals. We call them slippahs.”
“Good to know,” I said as I tucked that knowledge away for later.
Kelly then opened the door without knocking. My mom would never have her door unlocked, even if she knew I was coming over.
Ted bolted ahead of us, and my eyes adjusted from the brightness outside.
After a second, I saw that we had entered a small living room with a tan tiled floor.
A small, older native woman was sitting on the worn gray couch.
Her silver hair was braided into a crown atop her head.
There were little girls, probably five or six, on either side of the older woman.
The girls looked up at Kelly and instantly jumped off the couch.
“Uncle Kelly Belly!” They yelled in unison. Were they twins? They both had chin-length, auburn brown hair with straight-across bangs.
Kelly released my hand and scooped the girls up in one motion. “Aloha! How are you two?” He hugged them tightly as they pretended to groan. He released them, and they took hold of his hands, one girl on each side.
“Uncle Kelly!” Twin A yelled, “Come sit with us.” They led him back to the couch, and he squeezed in.
I wasn’t sure if I should follow, and instead looked around the room.
There was a window behind the couch that looked out to the side of the house, letting natural light into the room.
Brown leather recliners sat on either side of the couch.
The Price is Right was playing at full blast, with subtitles, on the wall-mounted TV.
The walls were covered inch by inch with pictures of smiling faces. I noticed that Kelly’s family members all had dark features and blended at a glance. Kelly’s baby blonde hair from childhood stood out to me in every single one.
I felt overwhelmed by the loud TV and the girls talking a mile a minute.
“Is that you, Kelly?” I heard a loud and deep voice call out. I suddenly had no idea why I was still standing in the doorway. Should I sit in one of the recliners?
“Yeah, Dad. We’re here,” Kelly yelled from the couch. He looked at me and saw my uneasy expression, motioning with his head towards the closest recliner.
Before I could sit, the elderly woman rose from the couch. “Kelly, honey. Who is this tall wahine with you?” Her voice was soft and yet thick with a native accent. She was wearing a red floral, floor-length dress, and thick-rimmed glasses framed her eyes as she stared up at me.
I tried to smile politely, but my skin itched under the scrutiny.
“Tutu, this is Reese. She’s a friend of mine,” Kelly said casually.
“That means she’s his girlfriend,” Twin B said as she wrapped herself around Kelly’s arm.
“Yeah, Tutu. She’s the new girlfriend that Auntie Kalani was talking about,” Twin A said.
Kelly’s grandma continued forward until she was about six inches from my face.
“Aloha, child. I won’t bite.” She smiled up at me, showing off some missing teeth.
Expecting a handshake, I offered my hand, but she took hold of me with surprising strength as she flipped my palm up.
She ran her thin, wrinkly fingers over my palm as she examined it.
“You have healing hands,” she said.
“Don’t let her fool you.” I’d missed Kelly leaving the couch, but he was suddenly at my side. No twins in sight. “She was already told that you’re a nurse.”
She made a clucking sound with her tongue. “Don’t listen to him, child. You don’t live as long as I do without being able to see who people really are.” Her crinkly brown eyes sparkled up at me.
“Tutu, you don’t have any magical abilities,” Kelly huffed.
“Who said anything about magic? Now hush, boy. I want to get a good look at her. Bend down, child, you’re quite tall.”
My cheeks heated at the mention of my height, but I did as she asked. She grabbed both sides of my face and peered into my eyes. I didn’t breathe as she held me in place.
“Just what I thought,” she said to herself.
Without another word, she released me and headed back to the couch.
“What does that even mean?” Kelly moved closer to me but didn’t quite touch me. His body radiated heat that soaked into mine.
“She’s a good woman, Kelly. But you’re gonna have to hold on tight,” she said as she plopped on the couch. “She’s a voyager who doesn’t like to stay put for too long.”
“Wha—” Kelly started to say.
“Hush, child. My show is getting interesting.” She dismissed us, and Kelly rolled his eyes.
He leaned close and whispered into my ear, “Don’t mind her. She turns ninety-five this year.” I shivered at the feel of his breath against my skin.
I did a double-take at the woman on the couch.
In my line of work, I regularly take care of older adults.
Sometimes, people looked to be in their eighties when they were only forty-five.
But then there were times when you thought you were talking to someone in their sixties, and they turned out to be much older. Kelly’s grandma was the latter.
“Wow, I would have assumed she was much younger,” I whispered back.
“She may look young, but trust me. You can tell she is getting old by the ‘wisdom’ she bestows on us.” He gave me a teasing grin.
“You know I can hear just fine,” she muttered from the couch.
Kelly laughed, clearly trying to get a rise out of her. “C’mon, let’s finish the tour.”
From the living room, he led me down a hallway with five doors.
“There are four bedrooms down here and one bathroom.” He pointed to the second door on our left.
“You guys all fit here?” My mind wandered to the large, empty houses I had lived in over the years.
“We made it work, mostly with bunk beds. I bet it’s much roomier now that everyone except Kahale and Tutu moved out.”
“Wait, Kahale lives here, too?” I asked.
“And his wife,” Kelly said easily. “I told you—multigenerational living is very common here. It can be too expensive to live on your own.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Let’s rip the band-aid off now and meet the rest of them.”
He grabbed my hand again as he led me through the narrow hallway, back to the living room, and down another hallway that led to a bright and open kitchen.
While the rest of the house seemed original, the kitchen had been renovated in the last few years.
There was an island in the middle with white cabinets and a dark stone countertop.
There were stainless steel appliances and a light blue tiled backsplash.
An eat-in breakfast nook with a red booth sat in the corner.
A sliding glass door separated the booth from the island. It was open, with a screen between the inside and the backyard. I could hear a mix of talking, screaming, and laughter carry through from outside. It brought with it the smell of grilled hamburgers, making my stomach growl.
Kalani, Lilly, and a younger woman were sitting at the breakfast nook, each holding playing cards and focused on their game. In the middle of the table sat a tray covered with an array of fruit, cheese, and crackers.
Kelly cleared his throat, and Lilly rose from the table and practically ran to wrap Kelly and me into one big hug. I saw Kalani narrow her eyes at Kelly.