“Be nice to your siblings, they’re your best link to your past and the most likely to stay with you in the future.”
– Baz Lurhmann
Nick wasn’t sure what to expect out of being a brother when he heard the news. Sure, he was a big kid at eight years old, and it shouldn’t bother him, but it did. Everybody was paying lots of attention to his mom – even he had been, ‘cause she had been sick a lot. But he had noticed a difference in his parents’ actions. At first, he tried his best to help his parents. Soon enough, though, what some of his classmates at school had been saying seemed to be coming true. It was the usual stuff kids might say when a new baby came into the house – “Your parents are going to be too busy with the baby to spend time with you. Might as well get used to it.” and variations therein.
Right now, his parents were at the hospital to check the baby and see how healthy she was, and since they were both there, Nick was staying with his Nana and Grandpa – his Dad’s parents. He loved spending time with them, and it wasn’t because they spoiled him. Grandpa always had interesting stories and would teach him new chords, while Nana would make all his favorite foods and help him with the piano. Presently, he was sitting on the front porch, looking sullen.
“What’s got you down, boy?” his grandfather asked, sitting down next to him. Nick looked over, but didn’t say anything. His grandfather waited patiently for several minutes for the boy to speak, but when he remained silent, the older man folded his hands in front of him and looked at his grandson. “I’ll ask again. Qu’est-ce qui te déprime autant?”
Nick looked over. His grandfather’s Louisiana accent was always deeper when he spoke French. The boy closed his eyes and sighed. “Mom and Dad are gonna forget about me.” he finally said.
“What makes you think that?” Christophe asked patiently.
“Everybody says they’re gonna forget about me once the baby’s here.” Nick said.
“I promise, they won’t. They love you so much, Nick. Haven’t you noticed how much they want you to be a part of things?”
“I guess.” he said, still worried.
“Besides, you have a very big job ahead of you.” Christophe said, smiling.
“I do?”
“Yes…you’re going to be a big brother to a little sister, and that’s an important job.”
“Oh.” Nick said, thinking. “Well, what am I supposed to do?”
“You need to stand up for her, protect her, be kind to her. It may be hard sometimes, but it’s important, and you’ll thank me later.”
“Is it hard being a big brother?” Nick asked, now curious.
“Oh yes. It can be very hard sometimes. But very rewarding, too. And if you do things right, you’ll have a good friend in your little sister. Think you’re up to the job?”
“Do you think I am, Grandpa?”
“What I think doesn’t matter. What do you think?”
“I’m gonna try really hard – especially if it’ll help mom and dad. They’re a good mom and dad, you know?”
“I do know.” Christophe said, nodding sagely. “Nana and I raised your Dad, remember?”
“Oh yeah.” Nick said, smiling as his grandfather ruffled his hair. Just then, Nana Emmy called them in for dinner.
The next day, Nick was taken up to the hospital to see his mom, and meet his baby sister. “She’s so pretty! What’s her name?”
“Well, we were thinking of calling her Olivia.” his mom said.
“We were also thinking that you could give her a middle name, if you wanted.” his Dad said, smiling as he watched Nick look at the baby in awe.
“Can I really?” he asked, reaching out to touch the baby, who reflexively grasped his finger.
“Of course you can. Your first job as a big brother.” his mom said with a tired smile.
Nick thought. What kind of person would his sister turn out to be? It was hard thinking of a name for that. She was such a pretty baby…maybe something pretty for her middle name, like a flower name? He kept thinking, mulling things over in his head for a while.
“Jade.” he finally said.
“What made you pick Jade?” his dad asked, sipping from a cup of coffee and also looking tired.
“She has pretty green eyes.” he pointed out. “Plus, it just sounds good – Olivia Jade Jackson.” he said, feeling proud of himself.
“I think that’s a very good name.” his mom said. Nick stayed a little while longer, but eventually left to go back to his grandparents, so that his mom and dad could get sleep.
~ ~ ~
Over time, Nick proved to be something of a big help. He helped more around the house, and could sometimes calm his sister down by playing on the piano at their grandparents, or his keyboard. More often, he could calm her down or get her to sleep by singing her a lullaby. As she got older, he would play with her, and when she got to be about four, he started what became known as “Disney Day”, where they would sit down and watch two or three Disney movies, depending on her attention span at the time. When she turned eight, she coerced him into making her a Disney mixtape – but it had to be him singing the tunes. Whenever he tried to protest, she’d pout, so he eventually gave in, giving her the best recordings of what he managed – it took time to make sure he could sing in the right vocal range for him after all.
After he began dating Ryan, his time with her was less, but he still made sure they had their Disney Day together. Annoyingly, she’d still try to spend time with him, intruding on his ‘dates’ with Ryan and watching superhero movies with them. Nick tried not to complain about it, but it was frustrating. Time at Ryan’s house wasn’t nearly as relaxed, and moreover, Ryan couldn’t be himself there. He never told her that, though. Ryan didn’t seem to mind Liv all that much, so he didn’t want to complain to hard.
The only time he pushed her away, at least before he left, was when he and Ryan had their fight. She had seen the worst of it and it scared her; made her cry. It hurt Nick to see that, but he couldn’t bring himself to go comfort her when he himself felt broken, so he just left her and went upstairs. He’s never mentioned that day to her, and though he regrets it, never wants to bring it up.
He’d gone away for a little over three years, leaving her to deal with things on her own. Another thing he felt a little bad about, but not much anymore. She has friends, and he imagines they helped her through hard times. Still….what all had he missed? She’d have been 10-13 while he was gone, and those were some big years for a kid. Had he missed much significant? He supposed it was more like missing six years of her life, if he counted his dark days. He just hoped he was there for her enough to have helped in some fashion, if only a little.