A Little Love Will Do ~ Part 1

And now these three remain; faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:13

       

            It was Friday night. The pinnacle of a teenager's social existence, and Ken Dodgers was sitting in his kitchen, decked in sweats, his hair un-gelled with no intention of going anywhere. Dutifully cutting up strawberries of all things. He wasn't alone though. His sister, Sheila, stirred a pot of melted chocolate across their marble island. She needed a stool and her long auburn hair was in a ponytail to avoid brushing the stove top. A Kiss the Cook apron protected her school uniform, which she still wore for some reason. Ken shook his head, grabbing another strawberry. In the background, the radio gave out some golden oldies junk, but the idea of the music went along great with the warm aroma of the chocolate.

            "Stir gently!" Valente came to hover over Sheila, holding chili powder over the pot.

            "I can't believe you talked me into doing this." Sheila grumbled, easing her grip on the wooden spoon. Valente gave his best dashing smile and sprinkled the red-hot spice into the chocolate methodically. "You wanted sauce for ice cream, yes?"

            "Yes!" Amanda, Ken's youngest sister answered as she appeared from the hall, swinging two grocery bags. Behind her was Sabina, their cook and housekeeper. Amanda had won the toss to go with her to buy whatever ice cream toppings they didn't already have and a quart of everyone's favorite ice cream.

            "Please," Valente clutched Amanda's shoulders comically. "Do tell me you purchase the pineapple."

            Amanda giggled, gesturing with the left bag. "Right here."

            Sabina wiggled around them, laughing, and fondly kissing her husband... who was also the Dodgers' groundskeeper. Ken's parents had seen it as a sweet package deal when they had first hired Sabina. Only three years since then and it was hard to tell them from an aunt and uncle.
            "Novamente minha linda..." Valente moved Sabina in a circle, kissing her neck beneath her wavy black hair. Sheila puckered her face. "Gross! Don't make Ken get the hose!"

            "Don't make me get soap for your tongue, Miss Sheila." Sabina scolded lightly. She and Valente parted so she could help Amanda arrange the goodies on the counter. Meanwhile, Valente rushed back to Sheila. "Miss Sheila, careful now! We not let it burn."

             As he continued to coach on the preparation of Mexican chocolate sauce, Valente approached Ken, placing a gentle hand on his back. "I see you manage not to cut yourself, Kenneth."

             "Not yet." Ken grinned.

             "Miss Amanda bet me ten 'big ones'," Sabina rubbed her fingers to indicate money, stealing a red slice into her mouth. "There would be emergency squad when we got back. She be asking you for a five tomorrow."

             Ken looked over at Amanda, stuffing the ice cream into the bottom drawer of the freezer. "Why are your bets always costing me?"

             Amanda wrinkled her nose, closing the drawer. "Because you get twice the allowance that Sheila and I get. Plus, you got a job! You can afford it!"

             "I've only been working a week!"

             "Yeah," Amanda snorted. "And Sabina's got your laundry to prove it. Who knew a pretzel stand could actually smell so wrong."

            "Must be the way it mixes with his natural body odor." Sheila explained.

            "Wait a minute..." Ken drew himself up.

            "Children!" Valente waved his hands to shoo the petty argument away. "Hush."

            Everyone looked over to find him turning up the volume on the radio. 'Shout' threw its soul out through the speakers and Valente grinned childishly. "You know you make me wanna..."

            Sabina burst out laughing again, allowing Valente to come around and sweep her onto the open floor of the breakfast nook. The kids watched them a minute as they performed a very improvised dance. It hardly went with the music, but it only took ten seconds for Amanda to drag Sheila in to join them. Ken shook his head at their silliness. He collected his julianed strawberries in a juicy pile and scooped them into a bowl. Placing it beside all the toppings Sabina had left out, he glanced back to find Sheila busting a move with Valente. Ok... I need to go get a life now!

            "Mister Kenneth," Sabina twirled over to him. "You miss all the fun."

            Ken planted himself firmly on his stool. "Oh, it's plenty of fun just watching."

            "Nonsense." Sabina took his hand. "God give you feet, yes? In Ponte de Sor, whenever there is music, everyone's feet come alive!"
            "You've always told Dad it's a quiet, humble little town." Ken arched a brow at her. She arched it back. "Every town... how do you say? Lets their hair down."

            It took more convincing then that, but she finally pulled Ken out as 'Shout' ended and 'Old Time Rock and Roll' took over their dance floor. Ken became part of a circle with Sheila and Sabina as Amanda claimed Valente as her partner. Valente made it worth her while, swinging her clean off the floor as the chorus came around. The merriment continued, their laughs urging each other on. Ken's smile soon became genuine and he had just spun Sabina into a dip when the music cut off. Holding the star-struck pose, Ken, Sabina, and the others looked up.

           "What in the name of Wall Street is going on!?"

~To Be Continued~