The Stillburrow Crush

by Linda Kage

Mom asked if she could refill Marty's glass with iced tea. When he lowered his head and said he was fine, she poured anyway and kept talking to him like he was interested. When she got into gossiping about Luke spending two evenings at our house, Marty's head shot up and he nailed me with an intense look. I wasn't sure what the warning in his gaze meant, but I met it and stared back at him, lifting an eyebrow and daring him to say something about my love life. Finally, he glanced away. Mom had already started in about our neighbors across the street getting their driveway paved. When we went home, Marty came with us. For some reason, he'd walked to Aunt Kay's for Thanksgiving dinner. I don't know, maybe he just needed a good walk to clear his head. All I knew was he came home with us. Jordan, Uncle Stan, and Aunt Kay waved us off and Marty sat in the back seat next to me for the short ride. It surprised me at first that he'd said OK to Mom's invitation to supper. He rested his head against the window and stared out as Mom chattered away in the front seat. I was sure something bad was going on with him then.

Marty waited half an hour after we made it home before he dropped the bomb. Since I already knew something was up, I'd been hanging around the living room to get in on the action when things went down. Marty was sitting in the middle of the sofa, not leaning back but with his back straight like some kind of guest. Mom had situated herself next to him. Dad was relaxing in his recliner with the footrest kicked up, and I lay sprawled on the loveseat, letting my feet dangle over the armrest.

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The Stillburrow Crush

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"Mom, Dad," Marty said, taking in a deep breath, "I need to tell you something."

I stopped swinging my foot, knowing this was it. Mom took his hand and smiled. "What is it, honey?" He licked dry lips and stared down at the floor. He nodded his head a little as if giving himself a mental pep talk before speaking. Then he said, "Abby's pregnant." My feet hit the carpet floor and I sat up just as Mom covered a gasp with her hands. "Oh! Oh no," she moaned.

"Who's Abby?" Dad said.

Mom's eyes flashed to his. "Dean," she hissed. "I told you Martin was seeing Abby Eggrow."

Dad scratched his chin then, as if his beard was itching. Slowly, he lowered the footrest of his chair. When he was in the upright position, he calmly folded his hands in his lap and eyed Marty critically. "Eggrow?" At Marty's nod, he continued.

"She any relation to the principal?"

"She's his daughter," Marty said quietly. Dad nodded thoughtfully, as if letting that soak in. "Does he know?"

"She said she was going to tell her family today." Mom started to weep into her hands. She looked frail as she leaned away from Marty. I sank further into the loveseat, hoping it would swallow me whole, and suddenly, I couldn't breathe. It felt as if an anvil had been laid on my chest. My brother had gotten a girl pregnant.

Dad stood and patted Mom on the back.

But she pushed his hand away. "Don't touch me." 157

The Stillburrow Crush

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"Now, Andrea." He sat next to her. "Just calm down. It's not that bad. Think about it on the bright side. We're going to be grandparents."

"No," she cried out and jumped to her feet. I think she startled everyone in the room because we all gawked at her. She glared at Marty. "How could you do this? How could you do this to such a nice girl like Abby Eggrow? How could you do this to me?"

Marty said nothing. What could he say? He lowered his head.

Mom wiped at the tears that were flooding her cheeks. "Do you not think at all, Martin? What were you thinking?"

"I wasn't," he said.

Dad had to turn his back to them as Mom laid into Marty. I cradled my stomach and tried not to cry.

When the front doorbell rang, I jumped. Mom immediately wiped her eyes and turned away. Marty buried his face in his hands. My head swerved around to gawk at the door. Only Dad had the presence of mind to stride to the entrance and answer the bell. I was certain it would be some Eggrow, either Mr. or Mrs., here to beat Marty to a pulp, or maybe it was Abby herself, running to Marty for support. I had no thought the caller would be for me. So when Luke filled the open doorway, I jumped to my feet and let out a gasp. My heart sank as my father's voice echoed back to me.

"Not tonight, Luke. Carrie can't see you right now." Luke glanced past him, right at me, saw my pale face and then looked over to Marty and Mom. He took a step back and nodded to Dad. Then he sent one last look my way before 158

The Stillburrow Crush

by Linda Kage

Dad shut the door in his face. When my father turned back to the family, his eyes slid accusingly toward me. I noticed then that Mom and Marty were also glaring at me like I was the guilty party here. I clenched my jaw and said nothing. The silence was oppressive. I slid back down onto the loveseat. Finally, Dad turned to Marty. "Well, what're you going to do about all of this?"

Mom huffed out an angry sound and started in again, but Dad finally had control. "Andrea," he said in warning. "That's enough. What's done is done. We've got to see about fixing it as best we can now."

Mom glared at him, then spun away and left the room. Marty jumped when she slammed her bedroom door. He scrubbed the back of his neck with his hand.

"I don't know what to do, Dad," he said, so quietly I was afraid I'd misheard him at first.

But Dad came and sat next to him. "I wish I could tell you. I wish I could fix this for you, but you're a man now, Martin. And you've got to make a decision your mom and I can't make for you." Dad blew out a breath. "There comes a time in a person's life when they have to make a choice and there is no easy solution—when either option means a big change." Marty glanced up at him and nodded. "I guess you're right. I've got to do this by myself." He ran the back of his hand across his nose and sniffed. Then he set his palms on his knees and rose to his feet. "I think I need to talk to Abby and get everything straightened out."

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Dad laid a supporting hand on Marty's back. "I'll tell you one thing. You're a Paxton. You're my son. And I'm confident you'll do the right thing. I'll support you any way I can."

"Thanks, Dad," Marty told him and held out his hand. "I'm glad you didn't lose it like Mom did. I really needed to hear a reasonable voice right now."

Dad nodded and walked him to the door. He handed Marty his coat. "Don't worry about your mother. After the shock wears off, she'll be better." When Marty only lowered his head, Dad patted him on the back and opened the door.

"She'll come around. Before you know it, she'll be buying baby toys by the carload."

Marty lifted his face and gave Dad a half smile that said he wanted to believe him but couldn't. My brother glanced briefly at me and then left.

Dad shut the door behind him, but didn't lower his hand. He stared at his fingers on the doorknob for a while. Then he dropped them and sighed. When he turned, he saw me still hovering on the loveseat. He paused.

It was only five in the evening, but he said, "Go to bed, Carrie."

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The Stillburrow Crush

by Linda Kage