The Misbegotten
K.I.S.S.I.N.G. - Summer 2018

Hours later, Flavia and Johan had picked up Martín atschool and all three walked the remainder of the way home. After, they had eaten some of the leftoversof the huge brunch I had made earlier in the day, the doorbell rang.

My spry step-sister jumped to her feet to answerit. Her movement was quicker than usual. So, I knew she’d invited some of her friendsover.

Not that this was an issue. I didn’t care. If I had, what was I about to say? Nothing. I was sitting on the large couch in the T.V. room with two sets of girlsto either side of me.

We were watching some documentary about the marvels ofDams, of all things. I had Ramona’s legsdraped across my lap, Katie’s head resting on my shoulder opposite Ramona. Leda was filing her nails beyond mygirlfriend. Sandy, sitting next to mycousin, played with a lock of her hair, her eyes locked onto the huge LCDbefore us.

To a one, they relaxed, were themselves, at home andso was I. It felt normal, though thefour of us had never sat together to watch TV. It felt like we’d been doing it for years.

I was more than content, being around so manybeautiful women. Each of them was vastlydifferent than the next, but each of them was stunning, arresting. In my mind’s eyes, they were a diamond, asapphire, an emerald and a ruby lined up, side-by-side. They were a marvelous display. With such a wide array of personality andintellect, in truth, I could think of nothing else, but them. I sat there surrounded by female flesh,femininity. My mind wasn’twondering. I was in the moment. I was there, present – young and alive – sureit was where I needed to be, the exact spot.

“Hey Eff,” said Flavia breaking me from my dreamythoughts.

I glanced toward the sound of her voice, indicating Iwas listening with a jut of my chin.

“This is Jolene, one of my friends; she came over tohang out, ok?”

Though my step-sister was just a year younger than me,it had become a forgone conclusion for some years now when our parents were outof the house, I was in charge. I wasresponsible for everyone. This wasn’t abig deal, because all my younger siblings were good kids in a relative sense, whichmeant they were easy to look after.

Plus, I wasn’t about to be a dick either. Not with all the girls over. Not after what we had gone through earlierthan morning. No way.

“Cool,” I said back to my sister, waved and dipped myhead in the direction of the girl.

She waved back at the group of us. Her eyes darted over me and the sheer amountof girlish bodies resting about my person. I assumed it was mild surprise in her expression. After all it wasn’t every day one saw onedude in the middle of four teenage girls.

She was pretty, Jolene. She had dark brown hair cut just passed herears, curled into a more timid version of a bob. She had dark, wide spaced eyes and sculptedeyebrows. This gave the impression shespent hours making them symmetrical. They were as close to perfect as perfection itself. She had prominent cheeks dominating her faceevery time she smiled. Her narrow noseended in a cute button, but it was her thin lips - even all these years later –that resonate in my memory. They werethe reddest I have ever seen, natural, blood-like.

She stood about the same height as Flavia –five-foot-two – had larger breasts with hips already ripening to maturity. She wore bright blue Capri pants, a whitet-shirt with blue lettering stating something trendy. A pair of white flats covered her feet.

Johan walked into the T.V. room from the door oppositethe one the two teen girls had entered. His eyes darted over to Jolene and immediately his entire demeanorchanged. He went from his usual half-arrogantsaunter, to some slack-shouldered geek in the matter of seconds.

What the fuckis this? I remember thinking as Jolene’s face lit uplike fireworks. I swore I saw a sheepishsmirk play along the lines of my brother’s mouth. I sent a pair of raised eyebrows in Flavia’sdirection.

To which, she replied, by rolling her orbs in disgustas if she were beyond weary of the situation. “Come on, Jol, let’s go to my room,” she suggested with a beckoninggesture.

“I think Johan has a kissing friend,” whispered Katiein my ear.

I nodded, involuntary. I couldn’t get my head around my fourteen-year-old brother capturing theattention of a girl two years his senior. I should’ve known I wasn’t theonly one who was good with the girls. It’s in the blood!

“Can Johan come too?” asked Jolene in a voice thatdidn’t sound quite her own. She seemedto catch herself and she swallowed with haste, clearing her throat. “I mean to hang out too, you know,” she addedwith a hand coming to rest between her neck and chest.

Must’ve beenone hell of a make-out session, Ithought.

By then, we could not look away from the sceneunfolding before us. It was riveting.

Flavia’s threw up her arms in supplication, spun on aheel and walked out. “Well, come on youguys,” she called from the stairs.

Johan walked up to Jolene and whispered a soft “hello”that none of us can hear, but we could make it out by the way his lips moved.

Jolene just smiled as she turned, graceful, to followmy step-sister though her eyes never left Johan’s. Together they walked from the room, a numbsilence in their wake.

“Oh shit, Eff, your brother’s got game too,” bubbledRamona, at my side. She made the couchbounce as she giggled deep her throat, smiling so wide her entire face bunchedup. Her eyes were mere slits, which Idoubted she could see through.

“I swear I could see that girls toes curling in hershoes,” muttered Leda, out of the corner of her mouth. Again, she let her tiresome, sour veneer dropand laughed just as throatily as my girlfriend.

Sandy edged to the end of couch, “one-bunning it” asmy mother was fond of saying. “I wouldsay that was at least a second-base reaction right there.” She was smiling like the others.

“Could even be third…,” peppered Katie. Her eyes still gazed upon the landing wherethree others had vanished from sight.

That made Ramona laugh even harder. “Man-o-man, Johan got some titties!” shewheezed. She was chortling too much todo much else, which made all the girls explode with laughter.

I just sat there, unsure if I was happy for Johan orif I was sad that my little brother was growing up. I mean, he had always been at my heels,following me, asking questions, my constant companion. This was before my mother had married mystep-father. By then, our house was fullwith people again. In less than aminute, he had gone from that little boy, that curious, happy little boy tosomething else, something more akin to me. Had he sucked on that girl’stits? Had he felt her up, put his handatop the mound of her pussy or cupped her ass? Was it possible that he would know what to do? Would he know the right time to do it?

I look back and I can see just how naive I was attimes. When it came to those around me Igrew dense, especially when it came to members of my family. Of course, he knew what to do and when to doit just as I had when I was his age. What the fuck was I thinking? Ilost my virginity when I was twelve. True, she was older than me, and true, I hadn’t known what the fuck Iwas doing, but I had inklings. Even backthen, when it took only seven or eight pumps into a girl before I blew my load,I had an idea. Unpracticed novice ornot, why wouldn’t Johan know? Why was Iso special? I wasn’t. Johan was my brotherand that should’ve been enough to explain it.

“You ok, Effy?” asked Katie with a grin stillplastered to her face.

I must’ve looked at her like an idiot, because hersmile froze in place for a moment.

She read me and her levity returned - full force. “Ha-ha! Jeez, Effy, what did you think, that you’d be the only one to get acrack at some pussy?”

“I-I just hadn’t thought about… Johan,” I stammered,not sure what else to say.

“We all grow up, babe,” said Ramona like a Greek sage,still bouncing here and there with laughter. She wiped at her eyes, so her mascara wouldn’t run.

“Yeah, I know, but still. It was kinda weird to see in person, youknow.”

“You think he might have a ‘power’ similar toEstefan’s?” asked Leda. The thought hadjust occurred to her and the notion scared her. That much was obvious.

“Naw,” replied Ramona at once, making us all gaze inher direction. She looked from one setof eyes to another. “He’s different.”

“Has he got sick yet?” asked Sandy, looking from me toKati. Since we were family, we had beenwith him the most over the last few days.

“Not that I know of,” I answered with a shrug off myshoulders.

Katie shook her head in the negative, but stayedsilent.

A thought occurred to me and I turned to Ramona. “Will he get sick though?”

She nodded, but there was little pause between the endof my question and the movement of her head.

She had knownfor some time, came the thought,which invoked a deeper version of the same line of thought. “How many of us will get sick do you think?”

She tilted her head to the side, studying somethingetched on the inside of her skull. Avague smile etched her lips for a moment or two. This was a thing she always did when someonehad asked something serious of her and put her on the spot.

A heartbeat later, she was downtrodden. “Every one of us, in this house right now,who hasn’t been sick yet, will be within the next few days.”

My eyes bulged at that, because I hadn’t expected heranswer to include such a wide swath of my family and friends. JesusChrist every fucking one of us!?!

“We’re becoming Mutos, huh?” asked Leda, her tonequiet from the other side of Ramona.

“Yes,” was all Ramona said.

“Which means… sooner or later, someone’s gonna snitchon us. And then the NIA Special Divisionwill come for us,” added Katie as a matter of fact, devoid of emotion. “There’s no telling what they’ll do, youknow. Everyone that gets corralled bythose bastards disappears permanently. I’ve never heard of them releasing someone once they’re incarcerated.”

“What’da’ya think they’ll do to us?” wondered Sandy aloud. It was more to herself than any of us, but itwas open speculation all the same.

“Nothing good, Sandra,” began Leda. Her eyes were direct, hard about theedges. “What would you do if you were amember of an all-powerful government organization with a Muto teenager in yourgrasp?” Every one of us looked herway. “They’d do their worst, that’s whatthey’d do.”

God thatsounds horrid!

“You believe it is that bad?” Sandy always had an over-optimistic outlookon life. She just didn’t tend to see theworst of things, even when it was staring her straight in the face.

“Come on, girl, after experimenting on you in everypossible way, don’t you think they’d turn to more basic methods oftorture?” Leda could be callous at times- thick headed and callous, on the verge of being mean. “They’d be raping you every hour on the houruntil you couldn’t take it no more and died of exhaustion before anythingelse.” She paused to shake herhead. “Fuck, Sandy, why do you have tobe so childish sometimes.”

Sandy was staring at her in abject horror. Her mouth was working, but no sound cameforth for a few seconds. “They’d dothat?” she choked.

“Come on, Leda, why do you have to act that way?” Idemanded more than a little annoyed at the girl. After everything she had done earlier up in the Loft, she should’ve known better. You’d think she’d have garnered a shred ofhumility, but it seemed unlikely.

“What, Effy? Lookat her, she freakin’ hot. What lame assturnkey wouldn’t want his way with her,” was her justification for being rude.

“You’re hot too, Leda. Who wouldn’t want a crack at your ass?” I countered, deliberatinglooking her up and down.

She squirmed upon the couch. “Yeah, I know…,” she responded with truetimidity. Then, she glanced over atRamona, her brow knitting. “Get you manunder control, girl. He’s creeping meout with those eyes of his.”

“You deserve it, Leda. Besides, Effy, makes a good point. It’ll be bad for us all, if we’re caught. So maybe… instead of fighting, we should – Idon’t know, stop all the bullshit and put our heads together. This Muto-shit isn’t going away. Sooner or later, something is going to happenand it’s not going to be good. In fact,I think it’s going to be bad – real, real bad…” She trailed off.

A profound, but charged silence followed her propheticwords. Every one of us felt a tinglingsensation at the back of our necks. Wefelt the unease run up and down our spines, because we knew then and there,together – as one - Ramona had spoken the absolute truth.

[He iscompelled to speak with an unaltered mind.]

My littleprophet of a girlfriend, I need to convey to you just how grateful I am thatyou’ve been by my side all these years. I am so grateful you’ve saved us all from utter disaster time aftertime… I love you, Babes!

Anyhow, Iregress… sorry.

[He sinksinto what has gone before.]

So we shared a long, intense look of mutualunderstanding. We felt, for the firsttime, the weight of what was happening. It was unsettling, awkward upon our shoulders. This was no longer about me and Katie orRamona, or anything like what we thought this summer would be. No, this was different. It was not the same at all.

Our group was getting bigger and would continue to doso. If we were going to keep everyonesafe and out of the clutches of the NIA, we were going to have to startcoordinating like a team. I mean it,especially against the likes of their Shock-troops. They're armed to the teeth and used lethalforce without question. We had to bebetter, now that our future’s had all changed.

“You won’t let them take me, will you, Eff?”

I twisted to look at Sandy, right into the pool ofthose light-brown orbs, uncaring of who was watching. “No, Sandy, I will not.”

“Promise?”

“Of course,” I replied, my voice deeper than I hadintended, which almost made me apologize. I chanced a quick glance at Ramona, who was looking back at me inresignation, her eyes welling.

She leaned forward, taking her legs from my lap andwhispered with husky accusation, “I told you!”

I shrugged a wordless, “what?”

She breathed in my ear, so close her tongue flicked myearlobe more than once. “You don’t evenknow it, Steve, but they are both falling for you. I can fucken read it in their minds!”

“What -?” I started to say when little Martín camerunning into the room - full tilt.

“Effy, Effy, Effy!”

“What, big guy, what’s the deal?” I asked, trying toget him to calm down. He came right upto me, little chest heaving. He wasbreathing in mighty gulps because he’d run from the floor above us. It took him a few minutes to get in a wordedgewise.

“I-I-I went to Flavia’s room to get, umm… to get herto fix my parachute guy, because… well, he got all tangled, and I saw Johankissing a GIRL!!! Yuck and gross, dude!”

I laughed out loud. The swings in our conversations couldn’t have been more dramatic, evenif I’d planned them. The twists andturns so unexpected, all I could do was act out of instinct. The whole shit was fucking crazy.

Martín stared at me wide-eyed for a few moments. He tried with all his six-year-old intellectto understand why I was laughing. Tohim, what he was describing was so intrinsically disgusting. I should be barfing out my guts, not laughinglike a hyena.

I reached over and mussed his straight, jet-blackhair. For some reason, my mom had alwayscut in a bowl-like shape, except for his bangs, which were usually an inchshorter than the rest of his mop. He wasa beautiful little boy. I’m not sayingthat because he was my half-brother. No,he was adorable. He had big, dimpledcheeks and pale skin, dark eyes to match his very dark hair. He was not skinny or over weight, butproportioned somewhere right in the middle. He was solid, but not thick, and he was the keenest little guy I haveever known.

When I look back through the many, many, many years –and I am not exaggerating, I have lived for a long, long time. Every time I’d gone to the doctor’s office,to watch him administer a sonogram, so he could tell me the sex of one of mymany unborn children. Every time it wasmale, in secret, I have wished to see a face like Martín’s upon his birth. I never have though. I’m still looking for him, even in crowds oron the public Starliners. The nostalgic,old-school part of me still looks for him.

I miss you,Marty. I wish I could see you one moretime…

On that day, when he had come up to me horrified overJohan’s descent into ultimate betrayal, I asked what Flavia was doing.

For a second, he seemed mad, outraged that I hadn’ttaken him serious. His eyes narrowed,because it didn’t seem to bother me that Johan was putting his lips upon a female, that he was putting his tonguein her mouth. Then, he got it. The light bulb went on and heunderstood. His entire demeanor changed. He became more like a mad scientist than thecherubic six-year-old boy he had been at the time.

“She’s mad, Effy… watching TV, but I can tell she’smad.”

I could see it, clear in my mind. Johan and Jolene frolicked upon Flavia’s bed,making out like crazy, while she’s forced to watch TV. She would hear everything as they jostled andannoyed her with each smacking, slurping sound. I chuckled again.

“Why don’t you go ask her to fix our toy and maybethat’ll stop Johan from kissing that ugly… nasty… creepy girl!” I supplied abig smile for him and reached out to tickle him.

He evaded me with ease, more than used to my tactics. He bounded a few step away, made toleave. He stopped of a sudden, a grin onhis face, so wide it appeared about to split his skull in twain. “I don’t think she’s creepy, Effy! SHE’S CUTE!!!”

Before I could so much as move, he was gone.

“Oh my god, Estefan, is every single one of the malesin your family a fucking chick magnet! He’s adorable!” gushed Sandy.

It’s in theblood, baby doll.

“They are all like that, girl,” concluded my girlfriend. “These boys are dangerous.”

“Yup,” added Katie, pinching my side in secret, whichtickled like a bitch.

That was when my cell twitched alongside my thigh andI moved to read the incoming text. Thespecificity of the notification decried what sort of message it was.

“Hey Dick, gonna callthe house in like 10. No cells today, landlineonly!”

It was Jacob. His message meant he had news. Infact, news serious enough that he didn’t want anyone else to hear, but me.

“Hey, guys,” I announced over the general din of thegirls still immersed in conversation about us Ernando boys.

One at a time they stopped.

“Jacob’s got some cheese on what happened to Tirza’ssister.”

That got their attention and the room plunged into thesilence of the dead.