anyway you want it

Brick didn't see this coming. He hadn't smiled this much since Valentines day.

Not that it was official with Rosie, since there was that matter of them being cousins. Rosie's Uncle Derrick really upset her about it. Thankfully, Granny B set them straight. "You're like second or third or forth cousins." She'd let them make cupcakes on Valentines day. It was pretty much a laugh fest. So what, if they were cousins. It had been a fun evening. Spaghetti, salad and cupcakes. And Granny B had let them make a mess in the kitchen.

Now, he was watching Gordy and a friend of his, head up the stairs with a mattress. His was new. Lord knows, how long his mother had slept on that bed. Naturally, Granny B told everyone how Tiffany's water broke when she was getting out of that old bed.

Brick didn't know nothing about water. His mom didn't have a water bed. He let it slide and thought about going to watch TV, but he wanted to help.

"What can I do?" Brick wanted to know.

"He's got a lot of books." His friend Irwin told him.

"You're not carrying anything!" His mother scolded him, who was upstairs moving stuff around. After all, Brick was still banged up from the car accident with his dad, but he was only in a wrist cast now.

"All righty then." He shrugged, thinking he could at least get them some cold soda pop..even if it was freezing outside, and a windy snow blowing.

"So, you're really gonna live here?" He gave Gordy the root beer before he could go out to bring in another load.

"Yeap."

"And you've never slept with my mom before?" Brick asked while Gordy was mid-way in guzzling the drink down. He was quite for a moment. Total silence.

"She can kick you in her sleep. She talks, too and her toe nails are like little knives." Brick soon informed Gordy.

"OK." Gordy could barely clear his throat with an even lip, as he looked at Brick.

"Didn't mean to scare you." Brick stared at him with a smile. "But I thought YOU should know." He told Gordy he hadn't slept with her in some time. "But we used too, when I was little..cause, well...I dunno." He shrugged as if it hadn't been a big deal. "We moved around a lot..and it was just easier."

Gordy looked at him blankly.

"Maybe, she won't be too rough on you." Brick slightly smirked.

"What?" Gordy with his eyes in the headlight look, really cracked Brick up.

"Restless leg syndrome." Brick nodded.

"Brick." His grandmother whispered and snapped his butt with a dish towel. "Now stop that." She insisted. Brick grinned. He intended to tell Gordy about all his mother's bad habits.