To those that continue to fight when all seems lost.





October 19, 2013



Uuuugggghhhhh. I’m hot…really fucking hot. Who turned the heat up? It’s only the middle of October I don’t think the heat this high is necessary. What is that? There’s something heavy smashing me across my chest. Ugh. Kavy.

“Kav,” I groan trying to push his arm off me. This thing must weigh fifty pounds. Nothing.

“Kavy,” I groan a little louder and start trying to roll off the bed. His arms just pull me in tight to his chest. He smells. Gross!

“Kavanagh get off!!” I throw my elbow into his ribs and push off with my feet.

“Kid, just five more minutes,” Kavy mumbles in my hair. I’m no further away from him than I started, but at least he’s somewhat responsive.

“Let me up Kavy. I have to pee and you reek!” I’m finally released by my rank captor and push up to sit on the side of my bed. Oh my head hurts. There’s no light coming in under the curtains. I look over at my clock beyond Kavy. 5:45 a.m. I let out a huge sigh. I’m not a morning person. Even more so on a perfectly good Saturday morning before the birds are up. He’s already back in a deep sleep. I stretch and get up to at least go pee before I seek my revenge.

After being freed from Kavy, I realize it is actually cold in our house. I’m only wearing a tank and boy shorts, but it’s cold regardless of my lack of sleeping attire. I get onto the tile floor of the bathroom and realize I should have put on some slippers.

“Shit,” I say under my breath, hopping from one foot to the next, trying to free a foot from the cold at a time. I don’t bother shutting the door or turning on the light. I’m in my ensuite and Kavy is dead to the world, I can pee in peaceful darkness. I can also sit on the toilet and plot my revenge against Kavy for interrupting my sleep. My feet are so cold, at this point they are almost numb and that’s when my sleep deprived brain hops into plotting mode. I get off the toilet and go to the sink to wash my hands in cold water, keeping my mostly frozen feet flat on the floor. I have goose bumps from my ankles up to my scalp at this point and my body is starting to shiver.

I cross my bedroom and go around the bed to the side that Kavy is occupying. Very gently I glide under the duvet facing his gorgeously defined back. Not that I can see it, because it’s pitch black in here. Because it’s 5:49 in the morning! I snicker to myself and put my plan into action. Simultaneously, I plant my iceberg feet in the middle of his naked back and wrap my freezing hands around his chest and hold on for dear life.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!” Kavy screams (a little bit like a girl) and jumps up from the bed. I’m hanging by a death grip with my arms, but have to drop my legs and wrap them around his waist to maintain my grip. I’m hanging off his back like a baby monkey, laughing so hard that I’m glad I just peed…otherwise this laughing would surely cause me to pee my pants. There are tears forming in my eyes that I’m not sure are from the laughter or the smell coming off of Kavy’s body.

“WHAT THE FUCK?! KID!!” He’s now yelling in his man voice. My bedroom door flies open and Sully and Cally come racing in, allowing much needed illumination to stream in from the hallway light.

“Kavanagh?! What the fuck is going on?!” Sully is staring at us still mostly asleep and totally confused, yet pulsing with adrenaline.

“Kid, are you okay?” Cally questions, slightly out of breath after no doubt running to my room.

“Sorry boys I didn’t mean to wake you up. But you asshole,” I say pulling on Kavy’s ear, “had that comin’ for wakin’ me up at five forty-five on a Saturday morning after keeping me up until three thirty.”

Sully and Cally hunch their shoulders forward and relax now that they realize there’s nothing serious going on. Kavy reaches around with his arms and grabs me. I try to wiggle away but it’s a pointless effort. He spins me around so I’m horizontal to the floor, face down.

“Kavy don’t you dare!” I squeal trying my damnedest not to laugh. No sooner are the words out of my mouth than I am flying through the air onto my bed. And the three of them are on me. Tickling me and holding me down at the same time. I’m really glad I already peed!

“Stop! Stop! Stop!!” I sputter like a five-year-old between gasps and laughs. I thrash and flail until finally getting a leg free and thrust it forward kicking one of my assailants in his man parts.

“Game off,” Cally groans and falls to the floor. This stops the tickling immediately, as this is our phrase to indicate a serious need for a break in the action: House Rule.

“Cally, are you all right?” I jump off the end of the bed and squat down beside him.

“I think I’m gonna yack,” he mumbles under his shortened breath. I’m snickering again.

“I’m so sorry Cally, but you know better than to get in the way of these bad boys.” I stand up and do a dramatic QVC pose, showing off my legs.

“It’s true Callaghan. You know better than to confront those bad boys, unless you wanna try to get between ’em,” Sully smirks at me. He knows it’s coming.

“Fuck you Sully!” I start to move toward him. “You sit up at night jackin’ your two inches, prayin’ to even sniff what’s between my stems.” I launch myself, wrapping around him like a snake. He’s sitting on my bed so I land with my legs around his lower torso and my arms around his head. His face is planted in my cleavage. I throw us of kilter so we’re lying on our sides and I lock my ankles behind his back and start to constrict. I can hear the air leaking from his lungs. He’s laughing so it makes it easier to squeeze harder. He starts motor boating my boobs which just sends me over the edge. I bear down with everything that I have at this time of day. Finally, there is no more laughing and he taps my arm. The universal “I’ve had enough” tap out. I, however, don’t let go.

“Say it,” I command. “Say it first and then I’ll let you tap out.”

“You are my master,” Sully whispers into my boobs and I let him go. Cally and Kavy are dying laughing at this point. Tears are streaming and I think Kavy laughed so hard he farted. Sully rolls onto his back, trying to regain his breath and I hop up from the bed to avoid any retaliation he may be concocting.

“Well boys, since we’re all up and at ’em at the ass crack of dawn on a Saturday, what do you say to takin’ my sexy ass out to breakfast?” I ask determinedly.

“Kid you just gave me frostbite, unmanned Callaghan, and squeezed the life outta O’Sullivan and you want us to take you out? Something is fucked up in that math.” Kavy shakes his head at me with the cutest smirk on his lips.

“I believe I’ve earned a prize, being able to fend you three off on two and a half hours of sleep. So yeah, you douchebags owe me breakfast,” I say, trying to sound confident and serious, but am truly fighting off the giggles.

“Okay Kid,” Cally relents. “Let’s go get our master some breakfast, before she kicks our asses some more,” he says smiling at me and hops up off the floor. “Whatcha in the mood for Kid?”

“IHOP!” I jump up and down excited that I’ve won my first battle of the day and then some.

The three of them head for the door to go to their respective rooms and get ready.

“You have to quit wakin’ her up man,” I hear Sully chastise Kavy. “Why are you still crawlin’ in her bed after you send your randoms home? We’re not in college anymore.”

“I’ve been crawlin’ in bed with her for what? Thirteen years. I sleep better with her than I do alone and you know I can’t sleep with anything I fuck, so she’s like my comfort blanket man. I’m not ready to be weaned yet.” Kavy shrugs and keeps walking down the hall to his room. I laugh to myself, thinking how jacked up our little family would seem from the outside looking in. But I smile thinking about how amazing our strange family is, and I wouldn’t trade it for a thing in this world.

Once my boys have exited my lair I flip on a lamp so I can see something. My room is a comfortable space. My floors are dark walnut hardwood with a charcoal rug under my California king bed. The tufted suede, light grey fabric headboard stretches three quarters of the way up the wall. My bed linens are grey and cream, with swirly designs and accent pillows in chartreuse. My dresser is an antique that was left to me; it’s a substantial walnut piece of furniture that smells like home. I have a few other pieces of furniture throughout the room: a chartreuse fabric reading chair in the corner by the window, a cream ottoman at the foot of my bed, bedside tables that are beat up walnut treasures that I found at a flea market years ago, and an enormous cream dressing table with an equally large mirror above it against the wall. I grab a pair of jeans and a long sleeved T-shirt from my dressing room, go over to my dresser and get a bra and underwear…comfort is the name of my game. I’m going to have to jump in the shower and wash my body, because I smell like whatever Kavy brought home last night. Yuck!

I decide not to wash my auburn wavy hair that’s standing on end and just pull it up in a messy bun on top of my head. I’m in and out of the shower in no time. My mirror isn’t even steamed up. I look at the reflection of my naked body. It’s not a bad body to look at I guess. Just that round rippled scar in the center of my chest right below my bust line and the gnarly mangled one on my hip. I put a hand over each of them and take a deep calming breath. No need to focus on that right now.