“Scooch,” Laurel said, waiting until Skip had shifted to the edge of the step before sitting down beside him. She handed him a beer.
Skip took a pull on the bottle, watching the kids play on the equipment in the park across the street. He took another, swallowed, then tilted his head to look at his baby sister. “What’s up, Shrimp?”
Laurel laughed, nearly choking on her own beer. When she had finished coughing, she tilted her chin toward the kids. “Remember when we were that young?”
“Yeah, why?”
“I remember you used to tease me. A lot. You could be pretty mean.”
Skip turned to fully face his sister. “What’s this all about? I thought we’d worked all that shit out years ago. It was kid stuff. I never meant anything by it.”
“I know,” Laurel said. “The other thing I remember is that we used to sit right here, on this step, and you’d help me with my math homework. We’d be fighting like cats and dogs, and then, when I got my books out, you’d come sit beside me.”
“Yeah, well,” Skip said, feeling his face heat up. “You needed the help. Anyone would have done it.”
“No, they wouldn’t. Brian and Kate never did. And you’re right, I needed the help. My brain didn’t really start to grasp mathematical concepts until grade five. And that wasn’t because of a teacher. It was because of you, Skip.”
Confused, Skip turned back to watch the kids. He took another pull on his beer. “Why are you bringing this up now?”
Laurel, with a grin so wide Skip thought her face might crack, threw her arms around him. “I heard back from Pathways.”
“Wait, what? I thought they weren’t responding to applications until next week.”
“Nope,” Laurel said. Jumping to her feet, she shouted loud enough for the whole neighborhood to hear, “I got the internship at NASA!”
This story started with the thought of someone handing a beer to a sibling, then sitting down beside them on a step or a stoop. I went looking for a picture before I actually started writing, and this photo filled in most of the rest of the story for me.
I knew I wanted the sister’s triumph to be something that required proficiency in math, and NASA seemed a great fit. So I did I quick check to see if they offer internships and came upon the Pathways program. Everything fell into place once I had that final piece.
I never had a sibling but this is how I pictured the relationships and this is also what I see in how my children relate to each other. Not close, different as night and day, but when one of them reaches out the answer is always yes. Special relationships.
Seeing your siblings succeed is the best!