September 1999

"You know we have to tell someone about this, right?" Brian's voice was soft against the flesh of my ear, and it was drawing me in. But his words…his words I didn't care for. Not at all.

"I don't want to tell anyone," I whined. "Don't you think Matt knowing is enough? He's gonna end up telling anyone anyway."

Brian chuckled and kissed my cheek. I wrapped my arms around his neck; pulled him closer. "You know we have to tell someone, baby," he whispered. "Even though the whole secret, forbidden relationship thing is pretty damn sexy."

"Watch yourself," I teased. "Only fifteen, remember?"

"Oh, I remember," Brian grumbled playfully. "I remember that I'm secretly dating a piece of jailbait."

"What's 'jailbait'?" I asked, pulling back to look Brian in the face. His eyes - a shade lighter than milk chocolate - seemed to match the laughter that left his perfectly plump lips. I frowned at him. He shouldn't laugh at my lack of knowledge of the English language.

"Well, that means that you're too damn young to be as sexy as you are," Brian replied, pressing me against the trunk of the oak tree we stood near. I may have been mistaken, but I could've sworn I felt the heat radiating from the area just below Brian's belt. I blushed. His words and this surely imaginary source of heat were too much for me. "And I can't do anything about it, or I'll go to jail."

"Why would you go to jail?" I pressed.

"Because it's illegal for someone over eighteen to have sex with a minor," Brian pouted.

"Aww, that's not fair," I pouted. "They shouldn't be able to tell us what to do." I raised my hand, using it to gently caress the soft skin of Brians's cheek, reveling in the smile that stretched across his cheekbones. "We should be able to do it if we want to."

"You know I more than agree with that," Brian said. "Because trust me, if our having sex wasn't illegal, the shocks on my car would be getting a serious test right about now."

"Oh," I whispered, surprised at his bluntness. I suppose Brian had always been this way, I'd just been too caught up in falling for him to notice. "You should stop talking now."

"Aww Senoma, you're blushing," Brian cooed. He pinched my cheek and I swatted his hand away playfully.

"Shut up," I grumbled at him, casting my gaze away from his smiling eyes.

"But I like your blushing," Brian whined, pressing his face into my neck. He'd begun to develop whiskers on his chin, and the short, prickly hairs tickled the sensitive skin of my neck. "It's so noticeable, and it's so cute."

I grabbed Brian's face in my hands and pulled him away from my neck, relocating his lips to my own. We kissed sweetly for a few moments before he pulled away and rested his forehead against my own. Right here, right now, with Brian next to me, his breath mixing so perfectly with mine, I was in heaven.

♪•♫•♪•♫•♪•♫•♪•♫•♪

A few weeks later, Mother was in a frenzy, cleaning the house and things of the sort. When I asked her why she'd suddenly developed this strange behavior, she paused for a short second to inform me that Zina was stopping by with her boyfriend, Josh; that they had something very important to tell us all.

I was excited to hear that my sister was dropping by. Because although Zina and I hadn't gotten along when I'd first moved to America, we were closer now. And this would provide me with the perfect opportunity to ask for some advice about Brian.

"When will Zina be here?" I asked Mother, taking a seat at the island in the kitchen.

"Later this afternoon," she answered. "I'm anxious to know what it is she has to tell us."

"Is Zacky coming, too?" I pressed.

Mother shook her head. "No, I'm afraid not," she replied. "Your brother has things to do with his band. Touring and such, you know. I believe he said something about getting onto a label."

My heart pulsed with excitement upon hearing this news. Zacky's band was getting signed? Well, they would certainly deserve it. They worked hard, they were incredible musicians, and they cared a great deal about the music they created. They'd spent the past six or seven months with their noses to the grind, and they had a full album to show for all their hard work. I knew the work it had taken, because I had graciously been allowed to play the piano part on their song 'Warmness on the Soul,' which was a stark difference from the other songs on their album.

"I wish he was coming," I said with a sigh, leaning heavily on the tiled counter. "I miss him." I missed Brian, too, but Mother need not know that. In fact, there were a lot of things Mother or Father - or even Zacky - needed to know about Brian.

"Your brother will visit home soon," Mother replied. "I'm sure. After all, his eighteenth birthday is only three months away."

Our conversation was cut short when the doorbell rang, filling the house with the deep sound of bells. As she was far too bust scouring the kitchen counter with Lime-Away, Mother sent me to answer the door. I sprang from the chair I'd been occupying and ran for the door. I was expecting to see my sister and her boyfriend, and I wasn't disappointed. The two of them stood on the doorstep, hands intertwined and twin smiles gracing their faces.

"Hello, Zina," I said, returning her smile. "Hey, Josh. Come in. Mother's cleaning the kitchen."

My sister rolled her green eyes, which seemed to possess an extra sparkle that I couldn't quite place my finger on. "Oh, I told her she didn't have to do that!" she exclaimed.

"But you know Mother," I said simply, and that was explanation enough. Zina nodded understandingly, and she and Josh stepped over the doorstep. I called out to Mother, letting her know that Zina and Josh were here, and quite soon afterward her footsteps could be heard echoing up the narrow foyer.

"Zina!" she shouted. She went to my sister, her oldest child, and placed a kiss on her pale cheek. I always guessed that this was a trait of their Italian heritage, and years ago I'd been proven right. Next, she went to Josh, pecking him on the cheek as well. Josh had been part of our family long enough to know that when Mother wanted to kiss your cheek, you let her. "How nice to see you! Come in, come in!"

"So Mom, Senoma tells me you've been cleaning the house for me," Zina commented slyly. I knew why she said this. It was a pet peeve of Mother's for us to know how much she cleaned. She obviously wanted us to think the house was always this spotless.

"You know your sister likes to tell fibs," Mother said with a teasing tone. "Anyway dear, what is this big news you said you wanted to tell us?"

The atmosphere in the room changed immediately. Suddenly the air was thick with happiness and joy and nervousness. Zina and Josh gripped each other's hands, their faces looking both anxious and excited, and Zina said, "We're pregnant."

Mother let out a squeal and hugged Zina. No one could blame her for being this excited; this would be her first grandchild. And Zina and Josh seemed so happy that it was impossible not to feel the exact same way.

"Congratulations," I beamed, doing the same as Mother and wrapping my arms around my sister's neck. I could feel the joy practically radiating from her body in waves. "I'm so happy for you."

"When did you find out?" Mother asked.

"A few weeks ago," Zina answered, sharing a loving glance with Josh. "We're so excited. We've got names picked out and everything. We just wanted to wait until we could get an ultrasound before we told anyone."

"What do you have picked?" I pressed. I normally wouldn't care about these sort of things, but this was my sister and she was carrying my niece or nephew. And so this was vital information. At least to me.

"Well, we like Gavin for a boy and Cassandra for a girl," Josh answered with a wide smile.

"Those are gorgeous names," Mother commented.

In the distance, the door could be heard opening, then closing, and then my brother Matt's voice called out for mother. "Mom!" he yelled. "Why is there an extra car in the driveway?"

"Come into the living room, dear," Mother responded. "Your sister and Josh are here, and they have wonderful news."

"What is it?" Matt asked, stepping into the living room.

"You're going to be an uncle!" I squealed. Matt's eyes widened as Zina settled her hand on her nonexistent stomach, and then he cracked a smile.

"That's great," he said. "Congrats, sis. So does dad know yet?"

"Not yet," Mother answered. "But I'll let Zina and Josh fill him in when he gets home from work."

"And I'm guessing everyone completely forgot about Zacky?" It was more a question of reassurance than confusion. Of course, Zacky had been forgotten. Zacky hardly spent any time in the house since he'd graduated, so he was never around. He and Zina hardly saw each other these days, so it stood to reason that she would forget that he would probably like to know he was going to be an uncle.

"Oh my God, I forgot about Zacky!" Zina exclaimed. "Oh, I'll just call him in a while and let him know."

"Oh, this is so wonderful," Mother stated. "I can't believe I'm going to be a grandmother."

"There's one more thing, mom," Zina interjected. She held out her left hand, and balanced on her finger was a stunning diamond ring wrapped in what looked like white gold.

"You're getting married?" I asked, the pitch of my voice turning upwards at the end of the sentence.

"Yea, in November," Zina answered. "We wanted to get it over quickly, so we'd have time to get things ready for the baby without having to plan for a wedding."

"I can't believe this is happening," Mother squealed softly. "My oldest daughter is getting married and she's having a baby."

Zina once again laid her hand over her stomach, a motion which would eventually become almost second nature to my older sister over the next nine months. "I can't believe it, either," she whispered.

♪•♫•♪•♫•♪•♫•♪•♫•♪

"Hey baby," Brian's voice greeted as he answered his phone. My heart swelled at the suave sound; I absolutely loved the sound of his voice. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"I have something important to tell you," I said, bouncing on my bed. I didn't even give Brian a chance to respond before I blurted, "Zina and Josh are having a baby! And they're getting married."

"That's great, Senoma," Brian replied with a light chuckle. "So I take it you're excited, then?"

"Of course I'm excited!" I exclaimed. "I'm gonna be an aunt. That's amazing."

"Well I'm glad you're so happy," Brian stated. A pause, then, "I miss you, baby."

His words tugged hard at my heartstrings; made me yearn for him, yearn for his touch, for his burning kisses. "I miss you, too, Brian," I said softly. "When are you coming home?"

"In time for Halloween," Brian sighed, his voice heavy with relief. I knew he and the 'Sevenfold boys' - as Raury and I had dubbed them - loved their band and the music they made, but sometimes the work just got to them. "Oh, and I forgot to tell you…but we got signed."

"Signed?" I squealed. "That's great! By who?"

"Warner Brothers Records." Brian answered, his tone of voice perking up. "I can't fucking believe it. It's so fucking unreal."

"That's great," I commented, not knowing what else to say. But I meant it.

"I wish you were here," Brian cooed, his voice making another tone change. "Then we could uh…'celebrate' Avenged Sevenfold getting signed."

"But I thought you said that was illegal," I teased.

"Well, us actually having sex is," Brian said dejectedly. I couldn't help but laugh. "But everything up to that point isn't."

"Oh, so if I was there, we could--" I started.

"You know, I'm really curious as to how you're gonna finish that statement," a familiar voice interrupted. I jumped, dropping my phone onto my duvet, and saw Zina leaning against my bedroom doorframe. Her green eyes sparkled wickedly. "Who on earth are you talking to?"

"Um…Brian," I answer meekly, hitting 'end call.' I prayed that Brian would understand why I had ended our phone call so abruptly.

"Brian Haner?" Zina repeated incredulously. "Why were you talking to him?"

"Because he's my boyfriend," I said softly, and Zina's eyes widened to twice their normal size.

"Brian's your boyfriend?" Zina asked, shocked. She came over and sat down on the bed in front of me, crossing her legs Indian-style. "When did this happen?"

"On my birthday," I said. "He…He kissed me."

"He kissed you?" Zina squeaked. Oh, cue the older sister act. But I did say I wanted advice on Brian. "I'll bet you liked that."

"I did," I whispered, tucking a whisper-soft strand of my buttery blonde hair behind my ear. "But how would you know that?"

"Senoma, everyone knows how you feel about Brian," Zina answered, smirking slyly. "And I do mean everyone."

"Oh, be quiet," I huffed. I could feel my face burning, so I knew my cheeks must be on fire. "But…there's something I wanted to ask your advice on."

"Ask away, little sister," Zina said.

"Well, Brian keeps saying that he wants to um…have sex, but I'm not sure I'm ready," I whispered, ducking my head. I'd never admitted this to anyone, not even Raury. I loved her dearly, but she couldn't keep a secret. And I just knew that if this information somehow got to Brian, he wouldn't want to be my boyfriend anymore. It may seem stupid to care about something like this, but I was fifteen and in love.

"First off let me tell you that it would be illegal for the two of you to have sex," Zina started, her voice gentle and tentative. "That's your major barrier. Now, does Brian know that you're not ready to sleep with him?" I shook my head no, and Zina laughed quietly. "And why not?"

"I'm too scared to tell him," I answered meekly. "I'm scared he won't want to be my boyfriend anymore if I tell him that."

"Okay, first off, if the only reason he wants to be your boyfriend is to sleep with you, he's not worth your time," Zina stated flatly. "But Brian's not like that. Even I know that. So I'm sure he'll understand if you don't want to have sex, which you can't anyway. And if he doesn't…well, my shoulder's here for you to cry on."

I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around Zina's shoulders, relishing in the hug only two sisters could share. No one else could understand that bond. "Thanks, Zina," I said.

"No problem, little sis," she replied with a smirk. "Now you tell that Haner boy to keep his dirty hands off of you, or he'll have to deal with me."

"I will," I laughed. "You wanna watch Milo and Otis with me? Just like we used to?"

"I'll pop the popcorn," Zina offered, and suddenly I was swept back eight years. Back when Zina wasn't engaged and pregnant. Back when things like Brian and sex didn't matter. Back when things were simple.

Notes