Writers 
Chapter Seven.
"Christopher, come and see something."
I glanced up from my phone to see Uncle Nathaniel standing in front of me, a proud smile playing on his lips.
"What is it, Uncle?"
He stretched out his left hand.
"How does it look?"
My eyes fell on the gold ring sitting on his finger.
"Ah! The wedding ring?"
He grinned. "You like it?"
"It's nice, sir."
"Nice?" He raised an eyebrow. "Is that all you have to say?"
I laughed. "It's beautiful, Uncle. Congratulations in advance."
"Thank you, my boy."
He sat beside me, turning his hand slightly to admire the ring.
"Noami and I went to choose them yesterday. I wanted something simple, but your aunty-to-be insisted on this one."
I smiled at the mention of her name.
Of course, Noami would have something to say about it.
I could almost picture her standing beside him, examining the rings with that thoughtful expression she wore whenever she wanted something done properly.
"She has good taste," I said.
"Very good taste." He chuckled. "Next month, she'll officially become my wife."
Something shifted inside me.
Next month.
I had known they were getting married, obviously. Their wedding preparations had been going on for weeks, and Noami had mentioned the date more than once.
But seeing that ring on his finger made it feel different.
She would be his wife.
I looked away, pretending to be interested in the television.
"That's good, Uncle. I'm happy for you."
He didn't seem to notice my sudden quietness.
"I can't wait, honestly. That woman has brought a lot of happiness into my life."
I swallowed.
"She deserves to be happy too."
"Of course she does."
He said it so confidently that I glanced at him again.
For a moment, I wondered whether Noami was as excited about the wedding as he was. She smiled whenever they discussed it, but I had never really asked her how she felt about everything.
The thought bothered me more than it should have.
"Have you seen the ring she chose for herself?" Uncle Nathaniel asked.
"No, sir."
"You should ask her to show you. She was so excited when we bought them."
I forced a smile.
"Okay, Uncle."
He stood, still admiring his ring.
"Let me go and call her. She'll probably want to know I've shown you."
I watched him walk away, then leaned back against the sofa.
What was wrong with me?
It was a wedding ring, for crying out loud. My uncle was getting married, and I should be happy about it.
I was happy about it.
So why did the thought of Noami wearing a wedding ring make my chest feel strangely tight?
I rubbed my palms against my trousers and picked up my phone, hoping to distract myself.
A few minutes later, Noami walked into the living room.
"Christopher."
I looked up.
"Good evening, ma."
She held out her left hand, smiling as the ring caught the light.
"Your uncle has been showing off his own ring, so I thought I should show you mine too."
I laughed, grateful for the distraction.
"He's very proud of that thing."
"And he should be. Do you know how long it took him to choose it?"
"No, ma."
"Almost an hour." She rolled her eyes. "At some point, I told him to pick one before I changed my mind about marrying him."
I burst out laughing.
"What? I'm serious!"
She laughed too, and I found myself watching her longer than I intended.
There was something about her smile that made it difficult to look away. Maybe it was the way her eyes narrowed slightly when she laughed, or how easily she could turn an ordinary conversation into something I wanted to keep having.
Whatever it was, I had begun noticing it far too often.
She caught me staring.
"What?"
I blinked. "Nothing."
"Christopher."
"I'm looking at the ring, ma."
She glanced at her hand, then back at me, amusement spreading across her face.
"Really?"
I cleared my throat.
"It's fine, Noami"
The words came out before I remembered I usually called her ma.
Her smile softened.
"You think so?"
I nodded, suddenly conscious of how close she was standing to the sofa.
"Yes. It suits you."
For a brief moment, neither of us spoke.
Then she lowered her hand.
"Thank you, Christopher."
I looked away first.
"You're welcome."
She sat in the armchair opposite me, still smiling to herself.
"Your uncle is already talking about how excited he is. I think he's more interested in the wedding than I am."
"Maybe he's just eager to marry you."
She looked at me.
"Maybe."
There was a small pause before she added, "Are you looking forward to it?"
The question caught me off guard.
"Of course, ma. Why wouldn't I?"
"I don't know." She shrugged. "You've been unusually quiet whenever we talk about the wedding."
I stared at her.
Had she noticed?
I forced a laugh. "I'm always quiet."
"No, you're not." She tilted her head. "You talk plenty when you're comfortable."
I didn't know what to say to that.
She was right, which made it worse.
"I think I'm just thinking about my admission," I lied.
Her expression softened immediately.
"Oh, Christopher."
She leaned forward slightly.
"Don't worry too much about it, okay? Things will work out."
I nodded, but I wasn't thinking about my admission anymore.
I was thinking about the ring on her finger.
About the wedding next month.
About the fact that I had started looking forward to seeing her whenever I came downstairs, and how I sometimes found myself remembering things she'd said long after our conversations ended.
I hadn't meant for any of it to happen.
I certainly hadn't planned to start noticing my uncle's fiancée this way.
But feelings didn't always ask for permission before showing up.
And whatever I was beginning to feel, I knew one thing for certain.
Noami was getting married.
And the man she was marrying was my uncle.
"Christopher?"
I looked up.
"Hmm?"
She smiled. "I said thank you for the congratulations."
"Oh." I managed a small smile. "You're welcome, ma"
She rose from the chair and headed towards the kitchen.
I watched her go before forcing myself to look away.
The ring was beautiful.
It looked perfect on her hand.
I just wished it didn't remind me that, very soon, she would belong to a life in which I would always have to keep my feelings to myself.
