Post by Annabel Lee on Jul 19, 2016 19:47:25 GMT
It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee
• • •
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee
• • •
Annabel heaved the larger of her two bags up the front steps with a “Hurgh!” because sound effects always helped. She had definitely packed just a little bit too much for only a few days in Louisiana. She had never been to Louisiana before though and it was hard to know what she might need. If she had only packed shorts and tees it would have rained the whole time.
Maybe she considered a few too many things essential as well, but she had to take her sketch book and pencils because you never knew when inspiration would hit! She never went anywhere without her lucky scrunchie of course, but that didn't take up much room. Leaving Corduroy Bear behind was out of the question. And the swear jar had to come, especially with Az around, or else she might have forgotten how much she was supposed to add when she got back.
Fighting both bags up to the front door, Annabel struggled to get one hand into her pocket to fish out her keys. She was determined not to set anything down even as the weight of her belongings made it next to impossible to get her key into the lock. When she had succeeded the door swung inward before she could turn the handle for herself. Her father was standing there on the other side, likely having heard her struggles from his recliner where he was perpetually watching old westerns.
Silence stretched out as he smiled at her and she beamed back at him. Finally she dropped the bags and stepped through the door, right into a big bear hug. He lifted her right off of her feet and spun around in a circle, making her giggle. It was the same as he had always done when he came backstage where she was waiting after one of his matches when she was a little girl.
When he set her back down on her feet he rested his hands on her shoulders, looking down at her. She could see the threat of tears glittering at the corners of his eyes. Her smile widened until her cheeks ached, she couldn't help it. “I did it! I won my first match! Can you believe it?” Her muscles tensed with excitement, threatening to bounce up and down on her feet.
“I'm so proud of you Princess.”
“That's all I've ever wanted to hear.” The smile remained on her face, but her tone turned to business, “Okay. I brought a DVD home so we can watch. You can tell me what I did wrong and what I need to work on.”
He laughed and shook his head. “We'll do that later. Training isn't go anywhere between now and tomorrow. Are you hungry?”
“Oh totally! I'm starving.”
“It's looking like a nice sunset tonight. Why don't we sit out back for a while and enjoy it?”
“That sounds really nice,” she paused to finish dragging her bags inside and close the front door. “Do you want me to make some coleslaw or macaroni salad or something? Do I need to run to the store and get some drinks?”
“Don't worry about any of that. We've got plenty here at the house.” He gave her a sly look as he told her what she had always told him after a match once she had overheard it backstage, “Relax a little bit. You've earned it.”
Annabel grinned and nodded. The motion of her turning on her heel made her ponytail swing around almost in a full circle before it settled back into place. For a moment she thought she could smell a little wood smoke already as she headed toward the back door. Maybe her father had known he would talk her into sitting outside, but he didn't usually leave the fire pit or grill unattended.
She was so busy kicking her shoes off to go barefoot in the grass that she didn't even look through the sliding glass door before she opened it. Some little noise caught her attention and her head snapped up. A little, “Oh!” escaped before she lost her breath at the sight of the back yard.
Jorge Ortiz, aka Uncle Joe, was standing at the grill turning over steaks and kebabs. “Sunny” (Uncle) Ray Davis and Robert “Uncle Bobby” Redmane were kicked back in lawn chairs. Uncle Ray had his dual knee braces on. Uncle Bobby was a lot grayer than the last time she had seen him. A handful of others that her dad had been good friends with over the years were there too... and they were all looking at her. She felt her father's hand on her back urging her to step out the door, but she was frozen in place.
“Hija, if you don't come get this steak it won't be bleeding anymore,” Uncle Joe speared the cut in question with the barbecue fork and pulled it off of the flame. He had always teased her about liking her meat rare.
She finally broke out of her daze and stepped onto the cement pad outside the door. It was cool under her toes. She rose up to kiss Uncle Joe on the cheek at the same time she grabbed a plate to put under her steak. He gave her a big one-armed squeeze and went back to the grill.
Everyone else was still looking at her when she turned back around. “Daddy didn't tell me he was having a party, I would have made something.”
There was a laugh, and she felt a little embarrassed that she didn't get the joke. She felt even more embarrassed when Uncle Ray explained, “That's because it's a surprise party for you.”
Annabel felt her eyes go wide as it dawned on her. She looked to her father and he nodded the confirmation. Then he got all blurry because her eyes flooded with tears. She set her plate down on the picnic table when her hands started to feel shaky. As always her dad was there to keep her on her feet, wrapping his arms around her for another hug as he stood behind her. “Everyone, meet Annabel Lee, Pure Amusement Wrestling signee, 1-0.”
The round of applause and cheers did not help the happy tears running down her cheeks. She tried to blink them back rapidly, wiping them away with one hand while the other hung off of the arm across her collar. “Oh, you guys!”
She broke free of the embrace quickly, heading over to help Uncle Ray out of the low lawn chair. He smirked a bit and waved her back toward the picnic table. “Sit down and eat before your food gets cold.”
Her head whipped from one side to the other as she looked for the cooler. “Do you want me to get you a beer?”
“I may be turning into a fossil, but I can get my own beer, kiddo. This is your party, your win, you don't wait on us old guys.” He gave a stern point toward the picnic table, the same one he had always used when he was pretending to keep her in line as a child. He had been by far the most indulgent of her “Uncles” but he feigned otherwise in front of her dad.
The same consensus was on the face of everyone present, making her heart flutter with pride. Feeling odd still that she hadn't made sure everyone was set, she sat down in front of her plate and cut into the perfectly cooked beef. Her father was the best at burgers, but Uncle Joe was definitely the best at steak. She made a little sound of approval and nodded as he looked at her to be sure it was just right. “It's awesome, thank you.”
“Think fast!” The warning came just moments before a can of Pepsi came sailing her way. She snatched it out of the air with one hand and a grin. Uncle Bobby was always throwing something at her.
“Get the girl a real drink, Robert, she's not a child anymore.” Uncle Ray and Bobby's bickering had always made her giggle, this time was no different.
As for the drink, her father had the answer to that, “I've got something I've been saving for this occasion.” He retreated into the house for a few moments, returning with an unopened bottle of Crown Royal. She recognized it by the layer of dust he was brushing off with a dish towel. He'd had it as long as she could remember... maybe since... was it the first time she'd told him she wanted to be a wrestler?
He gave her a knowing look and a little wink as he opened it and poured some into a shot glass, which he slid in front of her. “Think you can handle that, Princess?” he asked as he poured out shots for everyone else gathered, with the exception of Uncle Ray, who didn't drink anymore.
Annabel put on a brave face and nodded. “Of course I can, I'm your daughter.”
She was the last to pick up hers as everyone raised their tiny little glasses. She could smell the potent whiskey without even getting it near her face. She could only hope it went down easier than the Patrón Az had got her to try.
“To Annabel Lee, my daughter and Princess, the center of my world, the hardest working woman I know. To her first win, and many more to follow. To all the bumps and bruises and getting back up again.”
“To all the artwork I had the privilege of putting on minibar refrigerators.”
“To Portland's best coleslaw.”
“To the eight year old girl that was always tougher than the old men standing here right now.”
She had been blushing profusely from the start, but by the time Uncle Ray finished up, her eyes were watering again. For once, though, she knew just what to say, “To everyone that helped me get where I am today and taught me that it's more important to be a good person than a good wrestler. I couldn't have done it without all of you guys.”
They all tossed back their shots, and while Annabel made a face and shook her head a little, it didn't make her cough like the tequila had. She smiled even in spite of the burn. Her father poured some more into the bottom of a glass for her and then poured her Pepsi in on top while everyone else piled onto the picnic table.
As she looked at their faces and gray hairs and braces and scars, she could still see them just like they had been the very first time she'd been old enough to hang out at a barbecue instead of being in bed. She could still see herself running back and forth between the cooler and her “Uncles,” delivering plates, fetching condiments, and standing close the fire pit as she waited for someone else to toast her marshmallows because she always caught them on fire.
It was different now, but still the same. That didn't make much sense, she supposed, but it did to her. She had another bite of her steak and smiled as Uncle Joe started to tell her the perfect way to use her size for a good European uppercut in her next match.
• • •
For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee
For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee