To Have an Older Brother

from “Olivia”, new book in final edit

 
If not for Olivia’s brother, named Anthony John on his baptismal records, she didn’t know how she would manage at all. She relied on Tony as her confidant, friend, and intermediary between her and her aging parents. Maria and John Raggio had lost two other babies before Tony was born, and their grief was still fresh after all these years. When another son came, they again named him Antonio — Anthony, in English — after her grandfather and after the first baby boy, who died. This second Anthony surprised them all when he lived, and it seemed a halo of fluffy grace surrounded his every daily step.
Mama and Papà wanted a big family, but God took each one away. After Tony, another two children died before they reached a year’s birthday. Years later, when they were tired and slowing, bones aching, and their dreams burned away, Olivia was born, although the labor nearly killed Mama, and she was in bed for months afterward. There would be no more babies.
Tony took care of Mama and her while Papà worked. He’d fed and changed the baby girl, staring into her dark eyes with his serious hazel gaze. This early connection remained a remarkable bond between Olivia and her elder brother. As a child, she’d felt his protection every day when he’d walked her to and from school as a child, her small hand tucked confidently in his strong, larger one. Now, when Olivia was nearly grown, Mama wanted him to marry and give her grandchildren, but he only laughed and kissed her on the cheek.
He liked the girls, and since many girls liked him in return, he was unwilling to settle and be captured by any one woman. Tony’s many admirers made Olivia sick with their excuses to drop by and make big eyes in his direction. She would never do that, although she practiced for hours, attempting to imitate the poses of those who tried.