Third Person Limited: Thomas

Jenna’s voice interrupted Thomas’s perusal of the business section of the Journal. “Did you like it?”

She knew how much he hated being interrupted during his time with the paper. “Not at all.”

“Really? I thought it was at least halfway decent.” Matthew chimed in, and Thomas realized that whatever Jenna had been asking about, it wasn’t the morning paper. Or the stocks. Or anything. Especially since his stocks had gone down.

“Halfway decent? That’s not really flattering.” Jenna’s tone was hurt, vaguely, but sometimes she was oversensitive. She got it from their mother.

“Were you asking for flattery? Because last night you insisted on a whole lot of honesty --” Matthew began.

Jenna interrupted him with a flurry of cloth. “I wasn’t talking about last night, and you know it!”

Thomas glanced up in time to see Matthew snatch a tea towel from mid-air. Thomas resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Jenna did like to use cooking implements as projectile weapons. It was incredibly juvenile.

“Did I really? Because all I heard was a question, ‘did you like it?’ And judging by your tone, you wanted honesty --” Matthew’s sudden trepidation was confusing, and Thomas wished he’d just pretended he hadn’t heard Jenna at all.

“Now, now, children,” Thomas said in his best imitation of Father. It had never failed to work on him.

“Don’t even start with the children. Please. Not this morning. I never want to see another human being under the age of fourteen for the rest of my life.” Gina sounded ill.

Thomas lifted his head and studied her. Her usually flawless pale skin was shadowed, dark bruises around her eyes. Then he registered her comment. She was complaining about children? It was entirely counterintuitive.

“Don’t you teach first grade?”

Matthew teased her. “A little hung over, are we?”

Gina growled. “Not so hung over I can’t pound you into the ground.”

“I’d like to see that.” And there was Matthew’s false bravado. His years as the class clown hadn’t taught him a thing.

Jenna seemed to think he was entertaining and egged him on with a, “So would I.”

(355 words)