{"id":2890,"date":"2016-06-03T06:41:44","date_gmt":"2016-06-03T10:41:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ceceliadowdy.com\/blog\/?p=2890"},"modified":"2016-06-03T06:41:44","modified_gmt":"2016-06-03T10:41:44","slug":"sweet-dreams-chapter-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ceceliadowdy.com\/blog\/2016\/06\/sweet-dreams-chapter-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Sweet Dreams &#8211; Chapter 1"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/ceceliadowdy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/SweetDreams.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-2878 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/ceceliadowdy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/SweetDreams-200x300.jpg\" alt=\"SweetDreams\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ceceliadowdy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/SweetDreams-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/ceceliadowdy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/SweetDreams-682x1024.jpg 682w, https:\/\/ceceliadowdy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/SweetDreams.jpg 1800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/B01DEOKWC4\/ref=series_rw_dp_sw\">Sweet Dreams will be released on June 23rd as an e-book.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This is the first chapter:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Chapter 1<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Rain pounded on the roof of the stretch limousine. Thin streams of water slid down the closed window. The rain reminded him of his unending tears. He\u2019d never cried so much in his life. Tired of staring out into the gloomy day, Sterling focused on his two brothers. His bottom lip quivered as salty wetness spilled down his cheek. He swiped the moisture away. Toughen up, that\u2019s what he needed to do. He needed to be strong. Burying Dad had been awful and now he had to hold himself together before they had the meal at his home for the funeral guests.<\/p>\n<p>The car swerved. His brother, Leon\u2019s neck-length dreadlocks bounced as he jerked forward. \u201cWatch it!\u201d Leon\u2019s voice boomed at the limo driver.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSorry about that.\u201d The driver peeked at the threesome in the rearview mirror. \u201cHigh winds out there, just hit a rough patch.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He couldn\u2019t take his brother anywhere without acting a fool. \u201cDon\u2019t pay my brother any attention.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Leon pulled a small flask from his backpack, poured amber liquid into one of the glasses provided in the back of the limo.<\/p>\n<p>Louis, Leon\u2019s twin, wiped his wet eyes, his mouth mashed down. \u201cMan, don\u2019t get wasted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Leon gritted his teeth, clutched his booze. \u201cDon\u2019t tell me what to do.\u201d He gulped the liquid during the hour-long drive from the gravesite. It was mighty tempting to grab that flask and toss it out the window. No, he couldn\u2019t do that. His brother would act even worse if confronted. Ignoring his brother, he focused on the raging Florida storm. The leaves from the palm trees lifted in the wet summer breeze as they passed stretches of deserted beaches.<\/p>\n<p>The threesome remained silent during the rest of the journey. When skyscrapers, hotels and city streets zoomed by, signaling their arrival into Miami, Sterling sat up straighter in his seat. He squeezed his hands into fists, his eyes watering. Again, he blinked his tears away. He focused on Leon. The empty flask tumbled from his fingers, his eyes partially closed. Drool dripped from his mouth. How disgusting.<\/p>\n<p>He grabbed tissues from the box on the floor, shoved them into Leon\u2019s hand. \u201cWipe your mouth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Leon pressed the tissue over his full lips, his hooded eyes appeared glassy and unfocused. Leon dropped the tissues on the floor, his thin body swaying. They\u2019d be home soon. He\u2019d barely have enough time to get everything ready for the guests. He didn\u2019t know what he\u2019d do about his crazy brother.<\/p>\n<p>He closed his eyes, leaned back on the leather seat. Fatigue settled into his bones like hot glue. He\u2019d been awake all night, baking sweet treats in the bakery he ran with his father. He wanted to serve the baked goods during the after-funeral meal as a final memory to his dad.<\/p>\n<p>He closed his eyes. Maybe if he could just rest for a few minutes, he\u2019d find the energy to make it through this day. The limo stopped. Sterling opened his eyes, smiled. Home, finally. He was just one step closer to getting through this awful day. He said a few words to the limo driver before he rushed to his front door. Fat drops of cool rain slithered down his face. He glanced back, spotted Leon shuffling behind him. Louis\u2019s deep angry voice sliced through the humid air while he fussed at his twin.<\/p>\n<p>Sterling unlocked the door, but before he could open it, Leon kicked it, crashing it open. The door swung into the wall, the loud racket filled the otherwise silent house. Leon shoved Sterling aside, stumbled into the house, water dripping from his hair. Sterling grabbed Leon\u2019s shoulder, pushing him into a chair. \u201cMan, would you sober up?\u201d Leon\u2019s hooded eyes remained glassy.<\/p>\n<p>Sterling sighed, rushed into the kitchen to get the boxes of desserts he\u2019d baked. He kept his eye on Leon. His brother continued sulking in the chair like a wounded cow. Gritting his teeth, he placed the cookies on the tray as thoughts of his father filled his tired brain. He recalled how often he and his dad had made these vanilla cookies in their bakery. He hurried with his task, wanting to finish before the guests arrived.<\/p>\n<p>Louis approached the table, clamped his hand on Sterling\u2019s shoulder. \u201cYou need some help?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo, I\u2019ve got this.\u201d This was his tribute to his dad. He needed to be the one to arrange the treats on the serving table. He\u2019d always been closest to their father.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy did Daddy do that?\u201d\u00a0 Leon\u2019s slurred, drunken voice grated on his nerves. Sterling winced, dropped one of the vanilla cookies. It landed on the floor in a sugary heap. Why did Leon have to refer to Dad\u2019s unfavorable terms on his life insurance policy now? He\u2019d been complaining about it while they drove to the burial site. He figured his brother would at least wait until another day to bring this up again.<\/p>\n<p>He lifted the ruined cookie, tossed it into the trash. He closed his eyes. <em>Jesus, help me to mend the rift between me and my brother.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>He finally pushed the box of cookies aside, rushing to Leon, grabbing his arm. \u201cMan, would you calm down?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Louis followed behind him obviously wanting to help. \u201cYou know how stupid he acts when he\u2019s wasted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Leon jerked his arm away, narrowed his eyes. He pulled a pack of cigarettes and a lighter from his pocket. His partially unknotted tie hung loosely around his neck and brown spots of booze tainted his shirt. Leon stood and stormed to the table, grabbing a cookie and throwing it on the floor. He crushed the confection with his foot. Sterling grabbed Leon\u2019s shoulder, turning him around. \u201cStop it! Now!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Leon jerked away, pushing a cigarette into his mouth. He flicked his lighter, attempting to light his cigarette.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUgh!\u201d Sterling grabbed Leon\u2019s arm. \u201cCut it out! You know you can\u2019t smoke in my house!\u201d He hated the acrid scent of cigarette smoke.<\/p>\n<p>Leon jerked away, still trying to light his cigarette. Would this day ever end? Sterling grabbed Leon again. Louis attempted to take the lighter away and Leon dropped it, the flame catching onto the carpet.<\/p>\n<p>Louis stomped the flame, creating a black smear. He grabbed Leon\u2019s other arm and they pushed Leon against the wall. Louis spoke through clenched teeth. \u201cYou idiot!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Leon glared at his brothers. When they finally released him, he calmly picked up his lighter and lit another cigarette. He then cursed, his mouth set in a hard, tense line. \u201cYou guys can\u2019t tell me what to do. I\u2019m smoking.\u201d Leon puffed on his cigarette, as if daring his brothers to stop him.<\/p>\n<p>Sterling eyed the cookies he\u2019d been setting out before dropping onto the couch, weary, tired, suffering from enough drama over the past week to last a lifetime. Louis plopped down beside him, running his hand over his forehead. \u201cMy head\u2019s killing me. You got any aspirin?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sterling made a trip to the bathroom and got the bottle of pills for this brother. He then refocused on the cookies and cakes. He wiped his moist eyes as visions of his dad danced through his head like a non-stop movie. Leon shuffled around the living room, smoking his cigarette, mumbling as if in a trance.<\/p>\n<p>He eyed the desserts he\u2019d prepared in loving memory of their father: Bright red velvet cake smothered in white cream cheese frosting, vanilla sugar cookies, lemon pound cake and a huge batch of chocolate chip cookies sprinkled with nuts. The delicious sugary scents of the sweets were now tainted with the nicotine smell from Leon\u2019s cigarette.<\/p>\n<p>He sniffed, turned away, wiped his eyes with a tissue. Louis glared at his twin. \u201cI hope Leon doesn\u2019t act a fool when everybody gets here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sterling rubbed his tired eyes, downing two of the aspirins with a cup of water. \u201cYou tried to stop him from drinking. He never listens to us.\u201d Although Louis and Leon were identical twins, their personalities were as different as night and day. Louis was always apologizing for Leon, as if he felt responsible for Leon\u2019s crude behavior.<\/p>\n<p>Leon\u2019s voice boomed from across the room while he dropped into a chair. \u201cWhy would he do this?\u201d He glared, his cigarette dangled from his mouth. \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sterling forced himself to stare into his brother\u2019s eyes. \u201cI told you, I don\u2019t know! You\u2019d better get yourself sobered up before the people come here to eat.\u201d The thought of his drunken brother acting foolish around his father\u2019s friends was almost enough to make him puke.<\/p>\n<p>Leon took another drag from his cigarette. \u201cYou make me sick. Dad always favored you and treated me and Louis like crap!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWould you stop?\u201d Sterling turned away, ignoring the ugly truth that tumbled from his brother\u2019s mouth. He\u2019d always been so close to his dad. He recalled that a lot of his school mates didn\u2019t get along with their fathers.<\/p>\n<p>That wasn\u2019t the case with Sterling. He supposed that their shared love of baking had helped them to create a bond as thick as a corded rope. He took deep breaths, the ugly truth from his brother\u2019s mouth haunting his mind. The twins had always been on the fringes of the close relationship he\u2019d shared with their father \u2013 almost as if they were on the outside, looking in.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy would Dad make you the sole beneficiary of his life insurance policy? Why?\u201d Leon\u2019s deep angry voice cracked throughout the living room like thunder.<\/p>\n<p>Sterling shot out of the chair, stormed toward his brother. The good Lord knew he wanted to make everything better. But, he couldn\u2019t do that until Leon stopped drinking. \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d He took a deep breath. <em>Jesus, help me.<\/em> \u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know why Dad did this. We can talk about it later.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Louis approached his twin. \u201cCome on, Leon. I\u2019ll drive you home so that you can go to sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Leon shook his head. \u201cNo, don\u2019t want to.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sterling checked his watch. The guests would be arriving soon and he didn\u2019t want Leon around. Leon glared at them. It looked like he needed to repeat Louis\u2019s suggestion. \u201cLet Louis drive you home. This is hard on all of us and we need to deal with it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Leon cursed again, dousing his cigarette in the paper cup he\u2019d used as an ashtray. \u201cEasy for you to say.\u201d He stood, and jammed his index finger into Sterling\u2019s chest, speaking in a low voice. \u201cDad made you the sole beneficiary. Is he trying to tell me and Louis that we\u2019re not good enough, that we\u2019re not really his sons?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sterling squeezed his eyes shut. \u201cLeon, I don\u2019t know.\u201d He glanced at the wall, sniffed, his eyes again becoming wet. \u201cYou and Louis&#8211; \u201d<\/p>\n<p>The fist that slammed into his jaw took him by surprise. White hot pain seared his face as he stumbled against the wall, knocking a picture onto the floor. \u201cUgh.\u201d He held his jaw as Leon attempted another blow. He pushed his brother away, resisting the urge to pummel Leon\u2019s face.<\/p>\n<p>Louis grabbed his twin. \u201cCut it out!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Tears streamed from Leon\u2019s eyes as he glared at Sterling, balling his hands into fists, as if resisting the urge for another blow. \u201cI. Can\u2019t. Stand. You.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sterling swallowed, stunned. This was the first time he\u2019d seen his brother so tormented and out of control. \u201cCalm down.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When Leon stormed toward Sterling, his fisted hand swerved toward Sterling\u2019s face. Sterling blocked the clumsy punch. \u201cUgh!\u201d <em>Lord, I want to knock the daylights out of my brother. But, I\u2019m so angry now, if I start hitting him, I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ll be able to stop. <\/em><\/p>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; &nbsp; Sweet Dreams will be released on June 23rd as an e-book. This is the first chapter: Chapter 1 Rain pounded on the roof of the stretch limousine. Thin streams of water slid down the closed window. The rain reminded him of his unending tears. He\u2019d never cried so much in his life. 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