((Part1, Part2, Part3, Part4, Part5))
“Don’t be nervous. It’s going to be fine!”
Samantha did her best to refrain from rolling her eyes at her aunt's ‘encouraging’ words. She knew she was just trying to reassure her but she just wanted to feel anxious and nervous now so when she went in for her interview she’d felt everything and could focus on the task at hand.
Her uncle came into the small kitchen, chuckling in a deep voice that reminded her of her fathers. “Of course everything is going to be fine!” He echoed his wife’s words. “Sam is one hell of a writer. That Drew fellow be an idiot to pass on her.” He took a seat next to Samantha at the table and picked up the newspaper.
It was a routine that Samantha could imagine clearly in her mind. Every morning they all get up and get ready for the day. But before anyone left the house they’d all sit in the kitchen and have breakfast that was prepared by her aunt Riona.
“Uncle Cillian! Please don’t jinx this for me,” she knocked her knuckles against the table. “ It’s only an internship. I doubt I’d be writing anything.”
“Nonsense! This is just one step towards your dream. Just watch and see.” Her aunt announced as she placed a plate of eggs, potatoes, and toast in front of her. She watched as her aunt Riona elegantly made her way back to the stove to retrieve her uncle Cillian’s breakfast as well as her own. It was like she was dancing and twirling through the tiny kitchen and to her chair next to her uncle. She reached over and squeezed his hand that was holding the paper he was reading. When she did that he folded the paper down and blew a kiss her way. She smiled and wink at him before tucking into her breakfast.
“Hurry up and eat, Sam. Your brother said that he’d wait for you at the studio entrance,” she smiled as she took a bite of toast.
“Shawn called?” Samantha perked up at the mention of her brother. She didn’t get to see him that often. The two had been sent to America together after their father drank himself to death leaving them without family or guardians. When they had arrived stateside Shawn was just of legal age but didn’t have a job yet. Which meant he couldn’t d be the one to hold responsibility for his little sister. Thankfully their father had a brother living in New York that they could stay with when they arrived in America. Shawn had managed to land a job at Joey Drew Studios in the toy department a month later. Shawn had always been an amazing artist and to see him demoted to a mere toy maker was sad at first but he enjoyed his job; or so he told her every time she asked if he was happy at Heavenly Toys. She could see that he was not only trying to convince her but himself when he said he was happy. She never pushed him into telling her the truth about his feelings. If he wanted to tell her she felt he would eventually.
Applying for the internship at Joey Drew Studios wouldn’t just help her in maybe one day achieving her goal of being an actual writer for cartoons but it seemed to be an opportunity to see more of her brother.
“No sweetie, he came by yesterday,” she said meekly as she took a sip of her coffee.
Uncle Cillian quickly closed the paper, “He came here?”
Her uncle wasn’t Shawn’s biggest fan. A while after acquiring the job at the studio he moved out. After some time of working at the studio Shawn started showing similarities to their father. Their uncle and aunt loved them both equally but they couldn’t stand some of the choices Shawn made. Drinking being the main one. Samantha didn’t like it either. She had memories of how alcohol affected their home life before coming to America. Every time she asked him why he did it his answer was always the same, ‘You’d understand if you had a boss like mine.’
She knew it was an excuse and a lame one at that. Samantha could always tell when Shawn was lying but never questioned it. Shawn knew deep down that his drinking upset her and even though he’d always promised to never be like their father he still continued to drink. Samantha hoped that his fate would be different then their father.
“Yes but only to give me information to pass along to Sam. He didn’t stay long.”
Samantha asked,”When did he come by that I wasn’t aware?”
“You were out getting supplies for today, sweetie.”
Samantha sighed. Had she waited to go get new pens and notebooks she might have seen her brother. She thought about the last time she had spent any time with him. She had convinced her aunt and uncle to let her go over to his loft on the other side of town. Samantha just wanted to spend time with him but Riona and Cillian were extremely over protective. If they weren’t around they usually didn’t allow it. She had talked them into it just like she talked them into allowing her to apply for this internship. The fact that it was something she truly wanted to do as a career in the future had convinced them.
“Oh.” Samantha took a small bite of toast before pushing her plate away. “I’m not that hungry.”
“You sure, Sam? You might have a long day ahead of you. Gotta have something in you to keep your strength up.”
“I’ll be fine, Uncle Cillian.” She smiled at him. “I’m just gonna grab my stuff and I’ll be heading to the studio. Don’t wanna keep Shawn waiting out there too long. It’s supposed to be a hot day.”
Her uncle didn’t say anything. He just unfolded the newspaper and continued to read, or so she assumed. She hurried to her room to gather her messenger bag that held her brand new pens and notebooks. The things that had caused her to miss seeing her brother.
There was a light knock on the door as she was slipping the bag over her head.
“Come in,” she called out, adjusting the strap to sit comfortably on her shoulder.
It was her Aunt Riona. “Just making sure you are okay, sweetie.” She stepped inside and closed the door carefully behind her. She didn’t leave the door until Sam acknowledged her fully. Samantha appreciated that her aunt and uncle respected her space and privacy. They were overprotective but there were boundaries that they kept.
She turned to face her aunt and sighed, “Why doesn’t Uncle Cillian like Shawn?”
The question should have been shocking but it wasn’t. Her Aunt Riona knew that it was coming. “It’s not that he doesn’t like him, Sam,” she stepped further into her room and stood by the bed. “It’s just Shawn has taken a path that we weren’t expecting. We just want better for you and he thinks keeping Shawn at a distance is a way to achieve that.”
Samantha couldn’t keep her eyes from rolling this time as she walked past her Aunt to her vanity to touch up her braid. It was the same line over and over. She'd accept it if it wasn't so vain. They always spoke of Shawn taking a path or choosing a way of living but they never went into detail and it frustrated her that they seemed to be keeping something from her. Once she had tried to push the conversation further but her Uncle Cillian had put a stop to it. It was the only time she had ever seen her uncle furious at her. It had reminded her of how her father would yell at Shawn so she never did it again.
She could see her aunt looking at her through the mirror of the small vanity they had gotten for her when she turned sixteen. The vanity looked to be an antique. The glass looked to be old but she could still see her reflection. The frame holding the glass had small detailed flowers carved into the wood. She turned and leaned carefully on the vanity with her arms crossed, “Whatever path he’s taken doesn’t change that he’s my brother and that I miss him.” Tears were stinging behind her eyes threatening to fall.
Her aunt walked over to Samantha, wrapping her arms around her holding her tight. “I know, Sam. I know how much you miss him. But hopefully this opportunity will work out and you’ll find yourself getting to spend a little more time with him.”
Aunt Riona and her positive thinking. She was so optimistic that it made Samantha laugh at times but at this moment she was thankful. The butterflies in her stomach seemed to settle after hearing her words.
After hugging her aunt back they pulled apart and her aunt adjusted her dress a bit and stepped back to look at Samantha.
The looks she was giving her had her worrying that maybe the outfit she’d chosen wasn’t right. “What is it? Is this too much?”
“Oh no, dear,” he aunt laughed. Placing her hands on Samantha’s shoulders she squeezed and said, “You just look so grown up. It’s hard to believe that you're not my little Sammy anymore.”
Samantha took one of her aunts hands off her shoulder and held it tight. “I will always be your little Sammy, Aunt Riona.” She had to look up at the ceiling for a moment to fight back the tears. “Thank you for all you’ve done for me. You and Uncle Cillian have been great and supportive of my writing. I only hope I can do you proud.”
“We are already proud of you, Sam.”
They stood in silence until Uncle Cillian called from the other room, “Better get a move on, Sam! Don’t wanna miss your bus!”
“Oh shoot!” Sam cried as she took one last look in the mirror before heading for the door.
“Sam wait!” Her aunt called out.
Samantha hesitated at the apartment door and looked behind her. Her aunt was approaching her with a hat in her hands. “Don’t you wanna wear your hat?”
Samatha looked carefully at the hat in her Aunt Riona’s hands. It was the hat Shawn had bought for her before they left Ireland. She remembered him pulling the flat cap out of his bag as they were boarding the ship that would be taking them to their new home. He had placed the hat on her head but it was too big for her at the time. Once in a while she’d put it on and reminisce in the memory but she rarely wore it out of the house.
She made a face and was about to reject the idea but her aunt stopped her.
Her heart skipped. That was exactly what Shawn had said to her when she asked why he had bought her the hat.
‘For good luck,’ he had said with a giant smile on his face. Doing his best to show no fear or worry about the trip into the unknown they were about to take. ‘Gotta have a piece of the motherland with ya.’ He winked at her as he adjusted his own similar hat that rested on his head.
Samantha reached out and took the hat. There was a small mirror by the door that her Uncle Cillian used to do one final check before heading out the door to the bank where he worked. She placed the hat on her head and adjusted it to where it sat comfortably on her head. Unlike the day she received it it fit perfectly now. Fixing her bangs under the hat to her liking she turned to face her Aunt and Uncle.
“Looking like a true Flynn,” he uncle smiled. “Now let’s get going before we are both late.” He kissed his wife sweetly good bye and they both headed out the door as she waved.
(((GlitchNote: I hope you enjoyed that! Thank you so much for reading. Also a ginormous thank you to @guess-zaki-is-here-now for helping and listening to me rant about the idea of Samantha. Again, thank you for reading!✨)))
