Hello. Something a little different. I've completed stories involving a brother/sister, mother/son, uncle/niece, and cousins. Now it's time for some aunt/nephew action. Had this one sitting to upload for a while, been editing here and there. Probably still missed the occasional thing but I hope you enjoy the story.
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The rain was hammering down and my old car had been struggling for the last few kilometres. Had been since I'd started driving, in all honesty. Now the engine light was on. The knocking from the engine was getting louder. I was fairly sure it was just going to up and die on me any moment. I was close to my destination but still far enough that, if the car died, I was partly fucked, at the very least. My phone was dead too. And all the possessions that I owned were on the seat next to me. I kept my foot on the accelerator, though continually eased off.
Then it died. No loud bang or anything. The car just stopped. No idea what exactly it was as I couldn't exactly look under the hood while I was driving, but there was only silence as I rolled the car off the road onto the grass verge. Sighing to myself, I switched off the ignition and looked at my phone. Still dead, and now without any battery, no hope of calling for help. Thankfully, I knew where I was on the highway. Walking along the verge would be risky in bad weather, but I knew it was only a couple of more kilometres until I'd reach the entrance to the farm.
"Oh well, looks like I'm getting a little wet," I muttered, clambering out of the car. Collecting my large rucksack, and two other small bags, I was soaked within a few minutes as I trudged down the side of the road, ensuring I walked towards traffic so I wasn't run over. Getting hit by a car or truck would have been the cherry on top of the shit cake my day had been so far.
Dripping with both water and sweat by the time I reached the drive leading up to the homestead in the distance, the clouds loomed dark and grey overhead. Thunderstorms like this were more usual during a late summer's day rather than an autumn afternoon, but shows how much I know. The dirt driveway was full of puddles. By now, I barely bothered circling around. My jacket, shirt, trousers, socks and shoes were all soaked. Thankfully, my rucksack and smaller bags were waterproof, so as soon as I made my destination, I'd hopefully have a hot shower and some warm clothes to change into.
Knocking on the door, I wondered if anyone would be home. I checked my watch and it was late in the evening. To my relief, the door opened and my Aunt Jessica appeared once she switched on lights inside and outside. I think she was expecting me, as there was no surprise on her face, only a warm and welcoming smile. "Get your butt in here, Chris. You must be chilled to the bone."
"Thanks, Jess," I said, stepping past here, immediately covering her wooden floor in water, "Sorry about your floor already."
"Never mind that. We can sort that out later," she said, closing the door, "Dump your things and head for the shower. Don't want you catching a cold now. After that, we can have a chat."
"You know what's going on?"
"Your sister posted a couple of messages on social media. As I said, we'll have a chat later. What happened to your car?"
"Dead as a dodo a couple of clicks back. Phone's dead too so that's why I had to walk." I sighed as I dumped by bags in the kitchen, running fingers through my short hair. "Don't mean to just show up like this, Jess..."
She smiled at me like I was talking shit. And the fact I didn't call her 'Aunt'. She insisted on just 'Jess' since I'd turned eighteen. "Never mind that, Chris. Now, grab some clothes, have a shower, then we'll talk. Want a hot drink?"
"Love one."
Before I could head to the shower, I heard footsteps bounding down the steps, my two cousins appearing. Before they could get a word out about anything, Jess said I needed a hot shower, so I followed them upstairs to the main bathroom, Michelle grabbing a towel for me, both her and her sister, Kylie, giving me a hug. The fact I'd showed up this late in the evening on a Wednesday, with all my worldly possessions, would have suggested to anyone that something happened.
Something big.
Getting out of my wet clothes, I stepped into the shower and turned up the heat as high as I could handle, giving myself a good scrub before I simply stood there and let myself get nice and warm before finally stepping out. The extractor fan stopped the window misting up, looking in the mirror. Blues eyes. Short brown hair. Proud chin. A nose that had been broken a couple of times thanks to years of rugby and, well, the occasional scrap on the field. And I could see the forming bruise that was definitely going to lead to a black eye eventually. I kept myself fit and looked after myself but I'd been too cocky for my own good. Doesn't make what happened right, though. Putting on a shirt and a clean pair of jeans, I padded downstairs into the kitchen where Jess, Michelle and Kylie were waiting. Sitting down, I had a hot chocolate placed in front of me within a few seconds.
"Finally blew up then?" Jess asked.
"He's a cunt. Always has been." I sighed. "Shit, sorry. Bad language and all."
"Everyone at this table is eighteen, Chris. It's fine. Okay, so what happened? Not heard from your mother or step-father. Your sister has put a couple of things up on social media suggesting something big happened."
"I'm not even sure where to begin, to be honest. How about when my father died and mother decided to marry that prick?"
"Well, your mother has always known the opinion of myself and her parents. But that's not for now. What happened tonight?"
I took a sip of hot chocolate and sagged into the chair. "Okay, so Covid has obviously fucked everything, right? I had a job but lost that within the first couple of months. Considered going to university to re-train, even do a college course, just something. But let's be honest. I have common sense, so I like to think, but I've never been what you call book smart. Tried every mechanic's in the city, no word of a lie, but absolutely no-one was hiring. Not even part time. Most are making workers redundant left, right and centre. Tried up and down the coast. Zero. Zip. Nada. So I've obviously signed on for unemployment just to keep me going. Considered picking up part times gigs here and there, but there are around a hundred people per application.
But Barry... Calls me a moocher and lazy, despite the fact he does fuck all himself. Thinks I'm taking advantage of my mother still living at home. Sure, I'm twenty but have you seen house prices? Even just trying to rent, whether single or with others, is fucking difficult, and without a job, no-one is going to rent to me."
"Help around the house?"
"Do far more than that prick. Anyway, he's been goading me for months now, just looking for an excuse. And he has my mother completely under his thumb. Compare to what she was like with Dad to now... It's distressing. Never mind the fact he thinks it's his house. My father bought that fucking house by working hard and providing for his family. Not his fault some drunk driver..." I trailed off and sighed. "Well, what happened today? Guess it just reached the point where something needed to happen. I was helping Mum around the kitchen, he came in and just went for me. Words first. I've simply had enough of him, so I returned a few choice words of my own. Called him a guest in my father's house and that he was unworthy of my mother. Fucker saw red and came for me. Swung a few times at each other." I gestured to my face. "Got me good here, though I got in a few licks of my own. Made the prick bleed. Then he said I was out. Gone. Immediately."