Deanna hated this, another family reunion and another opportunity for her to be treated like crap. It wasn't her fault that she hadn't grown. Everyone in the family teased her about it too. -- Deanna, are you going to sit at the grownups table this year? -- Deanna, how can you be a teacher when your students are taller than you? Of course it is only grade school. -- Someone would always come and find her in spite of her trying to hide. -- Deanna what are you up to? I bet it isn't five feet. -- Worse was the fact that her mother would not let her say anything about it because she might make everyone uncomfortable. Deanna was in the middle of being teased and having a hard time keeping her temper. She was close to exploding, when her Uncle Dan stuck his head in the room.
"Hey dynamite, I need to go to the store, want to help?"
Her Uncle Dan hadn't given her time to answer, or anyone else for that matter. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room. When she got to his car she took a deep breath, "Thanks." She leaned over and gave him a friendly kiss.
"You looked like you needed rescuing." He had been caught off guard with her kiss.
She gave a heavy sigh; it was odd that she could still feel their kiss. "I tried to find a place where I could get away from them but I couldn't find anywhere to hide, there were too many of them." The tears started flowing down her face, "It's not my fault I'm only 4'8"!"
Dan saw the tears and hugged her to him. He wanted to comfort her somehow. "I got a similar treatment when I first told them that Kathy and I were getting a divorce. Imagine someone in our family getting a divorce. Even worse, I moved in with mom. So you shouldn't worry about it dynamite, they'll eventually find someone else to pick on."
She smiled and felt herself reluctant to end being in his embrace. Her uncle was the only one that didn't tease her about her height. He was actually just being playful and she could tell the difference. Even his nickname dynamite was a way for her to tell off the rest of the family. He had told her that he called her that because dynamite comes in small packages.
Dan was getting uncomfortable and realized they should get away from the house and anyone looking. "You can do something when you grow up."
Deanna pushed away and saw him grin at her. "How would you like to get beaten up by dynamite?"
"You better watch out, I might just like that!"
Her mouth fell open; then she saw him wink at her. "You're a dirty old man."
"Let's see, your mom is my oldest sister and she got married when I was 4. She had you the next year. I am only 5 years older than you, so I hardly think that makes me an old man."
Deanna smirked, "What about the dirty part?"
"Well you may be on to something there."
She was intrigued, "Oh really?"
"Of course I've never fooled around with dynamite before."
"Well once you've gone short nothing else compares." She heard Dan laugh and it made her feel better. He was laughing with her, not at her. It was the first time she had been able to make fun of her size. She leaned over and kissed him again, "Thank you."
Her kisses were making him feel things he hadn't felt for her and he actually blushed, "You're welcome."
Deanna moved away from him. Her hugs and kisses had been spontaneous but she felt them all through her even after they were over. He didn't hide his reaction that well and she knew that he liked too. "I wish the family would stop. How long did they say stuff about you?"
He harrumphed, "Until I told them to shut the fuck up."
"You told them that?"
"Yes I did. Look, maybe you aren't 7 feet tall but your heart is. If they had just one brain among all of them they would see that you are bubbly and smart. A room practically lights up when you're in it."
Deanna felt her face get hot hearing him compliment her. "Thanks," and she hugged him again. Once again she felt their contact send electricity all though her. This time she hugged him longer and was reluctant to end it.
They got back from the store and as soon as they walked in the family tried to continue picking on her, but Dan continued to run interference. For the rest of the afternoon he was never more than a few feet away from her. As soon as they started picking on her he would take her arm and they would walk away from them, even if it was right in the middle of them saying something. It got some mean looks from the family but they Dan and Deanna didn't care.
Deanna had pretty much spent the afternoon with his arm around her as he tried to protect her. She had started to feel a little off-balance at the constant contact with him. When it came time for them to escape them, she couldn't resist putting her arm around him each time they walked away.
It turned out that the family getting together on a holiday weekend at Dan's parents' house wasn't a good idea. It was just an average house, with his parents in one bedroom, Dan in one, leaving one bedroom for guests. All of the rest of the family lived out of town and had driven there in two cars, not expecting to stay late and drive back that evening. The children would have slept most of the way home, they usually did.
When it was time to end the family reunion, Dan's sister had gotten a migraine headache and asked if it was all right if she stayed the night. The rest of the family worried about her and wanted to stay also. Their staying wasn't a problem, where they would all sleep was a different matter. It being a holiday weekend, they didn't even try to get a hotel room. Deanna's mom and dad slept in the guest bedroom. Her sister, brother in law and their children took the living room. That left Deanna with nowhere to sleep. The entire family was throwing in their ideas which included her sleeping with the rest of the kids.
Dan stopped it all. "She can sleep in my room with me." That brought on an ear shattering commotion about it, until he'd had enough. "All of you shut up," which brought on absolute silence. "Put your dirty minds away. She can have the bed and I will sleep on the floor." They were still not happy about it but there didn't seem to be another choice.
Deanna followed her Uncle Dan to his room. She shut the door behind her and started laughing, "This should give them something else to talk about besides my height."
"But definitely." He went to one of his dresser drawers and removed a t-shirt. "Here, I'll step into the hall and you put this on to sleep in. Yell at me when it's okay for me to come back in."
"Hey, thanks for helping me today."