The Rodgers

We walked holding hands in the shadows down one of the last cobblestone roads in the city.

Our steps were hurried even though I was in heels, trying to avoid the spaces between the stones. Our breath was loud. Our voices were silent.

Neither of us had words to express what we experienced. We were still processing the information.

Neither of us broke pace as we rounded the corner to the subway. It's so much easier to get around Philly on SEPTA to where we live in the city.

We stood on the sub-platform in silence awaiting the train, with the all too familiar whiff of fresh urine in the air and rats scurrying in the tunnels. It wasn't until we boarded the car that I began to speak.

"Sooo, where did you say you met him again?"

"The gym! I met his sick ass at the gym. Okay?!"

"Okay. Calm down."

"I didn't know he was like that. I didn't know." His head hung low the entire time. It's usually on a swivel because there are predators everywhere in the City of Brotherly Love. I was keeping watch this time. Besides, we had been traumatized enough already.

Drew had recently joined a gym downtown and made a new friend, which isn't easy for him. He's quiet and reserved and suspects everyone is up to no good. He should've stuck to his instincts but was too preoccupied with his actual gut to notice something was off with Sam.

We got off at Broad and Ellsworth and walked the 3 blocks from the sub stop to our house. It was my grandmother's home left to me when she passed away. This 3-story gem needed a lot of renovating, but it was still standing and now considered a part of The Avenue of the Arts, which made it nearly 20 times more valuable than it was when my grands first purchased it.

Home sweet home. "Front door open." Our alarm system chimed. Our wild Shih Tzu "Lion" comes running and barking as if we're strangers every time. She likes Drew more than she likes me.

I try bribing her with goodies but it's obvious she prefers his presence over mine. I prefer his presence over hers, so we're even.

I let her out into the spacious backyard. My oasis. Brick patio aligned with a weatherized grey sectional, tempered glass top rattan coffee table, potted palm trees, overhead shading, and fairy lights strung from fence wall to fence wall.

Lion mainly poops in the same area. That's about all the respect I get from her. She appreciates the oasis too.

I grab a glass of Lambrusco. Drew prefers water. We convene in the living room. Speaking simultaneously, "What do we?" I ask.

"Do we report it?" He asks.

**********************************************************************

I met Sam at the gym during my second week there. It was just long enough to start feeling the burn but not long enough to feel the motivation to continue. It's like he sensed it. He immediately began encouraging me to keep pushing. "Don't quit now, Man. You'll start seeing results in another week."

This stranger looked like he knew something about fitness. He was a cool white dude with freckles and dirty blonde hair, 6’2” like me, and about the weight I was aiming for of 185 pounds. He wasn't jacked, he was lean and chiseled like a model more than an athlete.

That's the look I was chasing for myself. I decided to take his advice and we became quick friends.

We'd hang out afterward talk sports, women, and work. He started telling me about some club he's a member of that supports family unity. All the while being mindful of the work we put in at the gym by drinking green tea, low sugar smoothies, or grabbing vegetarian meals I wouldn't have considered trying if not for him.

We started sharing stories about our lives, our childhoods. How we both had a younger sister. How I'd always wanted a brother. I teased that her name was better suited for a boy anyway. He said his sister Margaret was the most precious person in the world to him; I couldn't relate. We talked about our wives, his kids-- a 3-year-old and another on the way--, and my dog.

So when he suggested we have dinner together at his home I thought it would be a great idea. It would be nice to meet his family and I wanted him to meet my lovely wife Eve. My nickname for her is Lovely.

"What should I wear to this dinner party?" Lovely asked.

"It's just the two of us couples. How about the red African Kente cloth dress I like with the black stilettos?" Lovely will be killin'em in that outfit.

"You look good, Chocolate Thunder!" Lovely said as she checked me out. My newly toned physique was appearing through my white tailored Oxford shirt and straight-cut jeans. Feels good when your lady notices the work you've put in. Especially when she calls you by a stripper name.

Lovely always looks good. Caramel complexion, sandy brown coily hair, high cheekbones, large amber eyes, plump pink lips, shapely petite physique with firm lower and rear attributes that catch every eye.

"Let's take a rideshare there and the sub home," Lovely suggests.

"But we always have the best stories to tell after riding the sub. There goes our dinner material."

"I'm not in the mood for subway slum shenanigans," Lovely.

"In that case, our car will be here in 7 minutes."

"That's a good girl, Lion!" Had to snuggle my dog. Nobody loves her like I do.

*********************************************************************

"Hey Man. We're in the Honda Accord out front on Catharine Street. Can you come to the gate?"

They live in a million-dollar gated community in Center City/South Philly cusp. I'm sure he would have given me the passcode if we weren't in a stranger's car. It's safer to just come out to meet us.

"Aaaayyyyyee!" Sam shouts.

"Aaaayyyyyee!" Drew responds.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Lovely Eve." Sam reaches for my hand and kisses the back of it like it's the 1900s.

"Likewise." I smile, flattered.

We follow Sam into his street-level, two-story modern home. It is a spacious, open concept, with hardwood floors, cathedral ceilings with floor-to-ceiling windows. It was as if we walked onto an HGTV set.

A very pregnant Peggy was in the kitchen adding the finishing touches to the night's meal. The house was filled with aromas that made my mouth water. She was covered in freckles. A tall blonde bombshell with a shape that even her prominent baby bump couldn't distract from. Her blouse was a bit early 20th Century styled but her vibe was definitely not outdated.

There was a very pale, perhaps even albino, toddler napping on the couch with headphones on his head and a tablet at the fingertips of his partially opened hand.

"Come on in!" Peggy happily greets us with a bit of a southern twang.

She wipes her hands on her apron, removes it, and embraces Drew and me within seconds. Belly protruding so much her arms barely could reach.

"You guys go on and get some drinks while we ladies talk. Dinner will be ready shortly." Peggy announces.

Peggy begins to ramble about what she's made, what she was going to make at first, putting Tommy down, and how it's nice to meet new people.

I begin to look around. There are numerous pictures and various artwork hanging on the walls throughout the living room, dining room, and even kitchen.

"Is that you?!" I asked Peggy pointing to a hanging picture of a little boy with his arm around the neck of a little girl. They were standing with inches in between them and her arms on her hips. They were smiling big. It was awkward but cute.

"Oh yeah, that's us as kids."

"You've known one another a long time."

"Our whole lives."

"Awwww! How amazing is that?!"

"It's truly a blessing to find your soul mate so early in life."

"Wow."

Dinner was delicious and homestyle. We had a tender brisket with loaded mashed potatoes and collard greens. Whoever said white people don't use seasoning has never met Peggy Rodgers. She can burn.

The conversation was infectious and funny. Sam and Peggy seemed to have a long-running inside joke. It wasn't until after-dinner dessert and home movies were we let in on the punch line.

We gathered in their media room downstairs. Cake plate in one hand, libations in the other. I nestled on the chaise, Drew was beside me on the big comfy couch. Peggy sat across Sam's lap and pressed play. Sam stroked her baby bump as he watched the home movie intently.

"The Rodgers Family" appeared on the screen written on poster board and flashed in front of the camera by little hands.

There was a naked and bald, pink baby splashing in a kiddie pool in the front yard of a farmhouse.

"Don't poopoo in the pool again, Margaret!" Shouted the tiny voice behind the camcorder.

Peggy chuckled and blushed with embarrassment.

There were dogs running and chasing each other around the yard.

The video recorder is aimed at "Mama" and then at "Pop." According to the small voice manning the camera.

"Alright, it's your turn to be spied on Samuel." Mama says as she approaches Samuel reaching for the camcorder.

Little Samuel, no more than 5 years old, begins to strip to his undies and climb in the pool with his sister.

His mother encourages them to embrace. And begins to sing "Peggy and Sam sitting in a tree. K-i-s-s-i-n-g…"

It was then I realized that Margaret and Peggy were the same people. I hadn't considered that Peggy is a nickname for Margaret much like Meg.

Of course, they've known one another all of Peggy's life. They are brother and sister. These siblings are having an incestuous relationship, they are cohabitating, they say they're married, they have a son and another child on the way.

I choked on my chocolate cake. Up to that point, it was the best slice of chocolate cake I've ever had. Peggy is such a great cook. I’m going to be sick.

Drew must have realized around the same time that I did as he frantically pats me on my back to clear my airway.

"I'm not feeling well.”

“It's time to go!" Drew announced as we hurried up the stairs and out the front door as if the house was ablaze behind us.

“OKAY! Feel better!” Sam and Peggy shouted in unison like twins from their entryway as they waved goodbye. With their height, freckles, and hair color they actually looked alike.

“I think that went well,” Sam said to Peggy.

“I do too. We’ll see them again.”

“We have to in order to complete our mission. Morgan is certain that when Miss Lovely Eve is out of the way she and her brother will have the kind of love you and I share. The tension they’ve faced throughout the years was just due to not fully embracing who they are. What’s the number one initiative of “The Full Nest”?

"The Full Nest” organization’s number one initiative is to ‘keep it in the family.’” Peggy recited.

“Exactly! We said we’d help bring Drew into the fold so we’ll do just that.” Sam spoke confidently.

"It's a shame. I really like Eve, but I'll take care of her."

*******************************************************************

"All the times he told me about having the best sex of his life was with his sister?!"

"All the times I felt sorry for him because he talked about his son having birth defects and all these rare complications."

"Are we supposed to report incest?" Drew asked while wringing his hands incessantly.

"When it's abuse, yes. But when it's not, do you just mind your business?"

"What if they abuse their children?"

"Just because they're attracted to one another doesn't mean they're automatic child molesters too."

"Let's just see if it's legal in Pennsylvania and go from there." We grab the laptop and search.

"It's illegal in Pennsylvania to knowingly marry or have sex with your sibling. You can pay up $25,000 in fines or get up to 10 years in prison."

"Let's report it and then wash our hands of it."

"Then there will likely be two special needs kids in the foster system."

"They seem to take care of Tommy just fine."

"Their house is amazing."

"Peggy is really attentive. She’s a stay-at-home mom."

"Sam has a great job and makes good money."

"I don't think they'd hurt their children."

"Neither do I."

"They really don't seem like bad people..."

*******************************************************************

"Hey Babe, make sure you pick up the wine on your way home from the gym. Remember it's our night to host dinner with the Rodgers. Love you-E"