Sparrow by Sara Mack, Chris McGregor Read Free Book Online

shove him again.  He slugs me in the arm.  Addison
laughs.
    “See. 
She thinks I’m charming.”  Kevin winks at my girl.
    “She
does not.”
    “Addison,”
Kevin rounds the table, “tell your boyfriend that you want both Dayton men to
escort you to the falls today.”
    My
mouth falls open.  “What?  No way!”
    Addison
raises her eyebrows and looks between Kevin and me.  Kevin kneels by her side
and gives her the most dejected puppy dog expression he can muster.
    “You
look demented,” I tell my brother.  “That’s not going to work.”
    Addison
tilts her head and studies the slightly younger version of myself.  Kev has my
dark hair, but he wears it shorter than I do, and his eyes are always the same
shade of gray.  His face is more angular than my own, but you wouldn’t be able
to tell that by the way he has it twisted.  Addison places one hand beneath his
chin and squeezes his cheeks, so his lips pucker.
    “Now
he looks like a demented fish.”  She grins at me.
    Both
Gram and I snort with laughter as Kevin scowls.
    “Aw.”
Addison releases his face.  “Don’t be upset.  You’re a cute demented fish.  Of
course you can come with us.”
    Now
I’m the one making a face.
    “Sweet!” 
Kevin jumps to his feet.  “Give me five minutes.”
    “Make
it ten,” I grumble.  “You need to shower, and I don’t want your smelly ass in
my truck.”
    “Kyle!”
Gram snaps.
    “Sorry,
Gram.  But he reeks.”  I narrow my eyes at him.  “In more ways than one.”
    Kevin
shrugs me off and bounds up the stairs.
    “Addison,”
Gram says, “did you see what Kyle planted out front?  He transformed that whole
dead area; it looks so much better.”  She turns to me.  “You should show her.”
    I
gesture for Addison to follow me.  It might be the only time we get alone
today, thanks to my brother.
    We
head out the front door, and I point out an area by the porch where Gram has battled
a dead patch of grass for years.  “All I did was buy some plants.”
    “Are
those hydrangeas?” Addison asks as she heads down the stairs and bends to sniff
to the blue flowers.
    “Yeah.” 
I move to stand beside her and explain the other bushes I’ve tried to arrange artfully. 
“There’s a Painter’s Palate and a rhododendron in the back.  Those get pretty
big.”  
    “How
do you know?”
    “Because
the tag on the pot said so.”
    Addison
takes her time to look over the plants, touching the leaves on each one.  “What
are these?” she asks, looking down at the ground.
    “Begonias,”
I say.  “Pink is Gram’s favorite color.”
    Addison’s
eyes meet mine.  Her expression softens and she stares at me, as if just
realized I’m standing here.  “It’s beautiful, Kyle.”
    Before
I can tell her she only likes my work because she likes me, she says, “Oh! 
This can be your first picture.”
    “What?”
    She
reaches into her jacket pocket and pulls out a camera.  “I bought this for
you.”
    I
take the small silver Kodak from her and turn it over in my hand.  “Why?”
    “Because
I told you a picture would last longer and you said you didn’t have a camera.” 
She grins.
    “You
got me a camera so I’ll stop staring at you?”  I’m surprised she remembered what
I said.
    “Absolutely
not.  You can keep doing that.”
    She
shows me how to turn it on, where the batteries go, and where the memory card
is.  Then she steps out of the way.  I take a picture of Gram’s plants, then
make her stand in front of them to take another.
    “Here.” 
She reaches for my hand and pulls me next to her.  “Let’s try to get the both
of us.”
    I
hold the camera at arm’s length as she presses her cheek against mine.  I press
the shutter and we look at the result.  Half our faces are cut out of the
frame.
    “Okay,
let’s try that again.”
    She
kisses me this time and, again, the picture ends up being just our chins. 
After several more tries, we’re laughing like little kids.