Was this the reason he and my fathered argued early that morning before he left for boarding school? Was my father unhappy that his teenage son wanted to marry Star? The truth is, I don't know. All I can do is assume that the reason they quarreled was because my brother was making a hasty decision at such a young age. Did my parents know of his plan? Are they okay with his decision?
I was the first to arrive home. I can't say that I was happy to see Star at the house. She never really was all that warm to me. Truth be told, we've never had a conversation with more than one or two words exchanged. I could tell something was up. My brother was the first to approach me with the news of their engagement. As I searched my small brain for the correct response Star joined my brother. I could tell she wasn't happy with the lack of excitement that wasn't coming from me. I drew a blank as she stared at me. Suddenly, I felt like an ant next to her, and she, a giant ready to stomp on me if I gave the wrong response. The sun beating on us made me sweat even more as I started to panic a little. I knew the correct response, "congratulations", but my mouth seemed to forget how to form the word. I opened my mouth to talk, hoping that what was going to come out was going to be what my brain was thinking.
Just as I was about to talk a car pulled up. Saved by the bell. It was my mother returning home from her shift. As she got out of the car Star turned and walked to my brother. I let out a sign of relief that I was able to dodge that disaster. I stayed where I was when I was confronted by Star. I knew I could go inside, but my legs felt like they were made of concrete, and were plastered to the ground. I watched as my mother put her car into the driveway and proceeded to get out of the car. As she exited she turned and looked at the three of us.
My mother never liked Star. She tried to give her the benefit of the doubt, but she always said she had a bad feeling about the girl. She didn't like that my brother and Star rushed into their relationship, and I suppose her dislike for Star had something to do with the rumors that her family had a reputation for being gold diggers and fortune hunters. The rumors didn't come from out of the blue either. Star's family was known for marrying into wealthy families, and living on the wrong side of the tracks. Not that being poor bothered my mother. It was the fact that they were lazy. They all had the tools to gain wealth on their own, having gone to school and getting degrees, but they choose not to utilize them and look to start relationships with people who they can inherit the money through marriage. My mother always disliked my brothers decision to get involved with anyone from that family mainly because she feared Star's true intentions.
As my mother stood there, I could see the emotion die out of her face as it drooped into a more anguished expression. She closed the car door and started toward my brother and Star. I could hear my brother telling my mother that he had just asked Star to marry him and she accepted. The painful look on my mothers face quickly turned to anger, and she started to yell at my brother. I knew I shouldn't have been watching, but it was like watching a car accident and I could not take my eyes off the the destruction that was unfolding in front of me. My brother started yelling back at my mother, something I had never seen him do before, as he tried to tell her that he knew Star was "the one" since the day he met her. Then, as the fight between my mother and brother escalated, and when I thought it couldn't get any worst, it did.
Star stepped forward in a pathetic attempt to back up my brother.
Star's face was red with anger. Anger towards my mother which was new to, not only me, but to my mother. Star had always been the nicest, sometimes too nice, in an attempt to win my mother over. My mother, though, being the smart lady she was, saw through the niceness and saw Star for who she really was. This just confirmed my mothers judgement of her; Star was not as nice as she made herself out to be all those years before. Star started yelling at my mother about how much they loved each other, and how they were getting married whether she liked it or not. My eyes grew large as I heard the words come out of Star's mouth. My parents always taught me to respect them, and any other adult, regardless of how much I may have disliked the person. I knew Star's immature outburst toward my mother was not going to go over well, and I was right.
My mother, always obedient, headed inside. Star, on the other hand, continued to yell at my father how unreasonable my mother was being. My father, having just entered the drama, was more calm about the situation and calmly repeated that Star should go home. After a few minutes of trying to calm her down and convince her to go home, she did. As she left my father stood there and rubbed him neck, tired from working a long shift at the hospital and unhappy about the drama he had to come home to. He let out a long, heavy sigh then entered the house with my brother. Neither said a word. My father headed upstairs to where my mother had retired to. I could hear them talking from where I was in the kitchen. My mother was no longer yelling, she didn't like to yell at my father, but her voice was still raised in frustration. My brother walked pass me without making eye contact and went into the living room where he lay down and fell asleep. I knew this wasn't over. How could it be? Star was going to be a part of our family soon, but there were more surprises to be revealed to me, and my family that, at the time, I did not see coming.
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