"Yeah, you said that." He continued to eat. "Where is your brother? Did you call him and tell him to come in for lunch?"
I nodded. "I don't think he heard me," I said.
He shook his head and bit into his sandwich. "How that kid can amuse himself all day with that science stuff is beyond me." He gazed at Ian's uneaten sandwich.
"Looks like you and I have been deserted," he said, fumbling with a smile. He stretched his lips awkwardly. Every movement he made in his face seemed to bring him some pain. Why would anyone want to get so drunk he suffered like this? I wondered.
Suddenly, we heard the front door open. We both turned to see if it was Mama or Ian.
It was Ian.
His right eye was swollen and closed and his lip was split and bleeding. Both Daddy and I sat there with our own mouths wide open.
"What happened to you?" Daddy finally asked him. "I at into a fight," he said.
"I figured that. With who or what?" Daddy asked, smiling with ease this time.
Why was he so happy that Ian got into a fight?
"Some boy over at the park campground," Ian said, and looked at me.
Addison. I thought.
"Over what?" Daddy asked, still a half smile on his face.
"A butterfly," Ian replied.
"What? A butterfly?" Daddy's smiled evaporated. "What kind of reason for a fight is that?"
Ian didn't answer.
"Go clean yourself up. Ian, before your mother gets home." He started toward the bathroom.
"Wait a minute," Daddy called to him. "How did you do? What's the other guy look like?"
"An idiot," Ian said.
"Did you get in a few good shots, too, at least?" "I kicked him in the shins."
"Kicked him in the shins?"
"He's a lot taller than I am."
"Go wash up," Daddy said, sounding obviously disappointed. He turned to me after Ian went into the bathroom. "My first real fight was with a bigger, taller boy, too, but I hit him in the breadbasket with a haymaker that bent him over and then I drove an uppercut into his jaw and broke his front tooth. My father never stopped bragging about me, even though he had to pay for the kid's dental work," he added proudly. "Of course, I was suspended from school and your grandmother wasn't pleased, but I made my place in the standings and didn't have to get into too many fights afterward. It's all just part of growing up. Normal, that is," he added, looking toward the bathroom. "Kicked him in the shins. That's something a girl would do."
He returned to his sandwich. Then the phone rang and he got up to answer it.
"Hi," he said, sounding happy. Maybe it's Mama. I thought. "When?" he followed, his happy face disappearing. "She did what? Came right into the store? No. I didn't tell her your schedule. Why would I do that?"
He listened and then looked at me.
"She said she found it here? But...did you leave it here? Did you admit it was yours?"
He listened and squeezed his temples with his thumb and forefinger. Then he shook his head. "Initials don't prove things, Kimberly. That was really stupid. Right. Sure. It's my fault. Nothing could be your fault. Just don't say anything more to anyone, will you? I'll handle it. I said, I'll handle it. I'll call you. Really stupid," he added, and hung up. He just stood there staring down at the floor.
"Is Mama coming back now?" I asked. He continued to just stare. "Daddy?"
"What?"