Part Three
�Ciera.�
Only a few steps from my brother, I hear my name being called. I turn to face the person, and smile. �Chyna.�
�Hey, kiddo,� she greets me, enveloping me in a huge hug. I have a feeling I�m going to be getting many more of those in the next week.
�You going okay?� she asks, concerned.
I nod in assurance. �Yeah, I�m ok. It�s hard though.�
�It always is,� she agrees. She frowns slightly, as if remembering something. Then, she looks at me in the eye. �Your mother and I weren�t the best of friends, but she was a great woman.�
�Thank you, Chyna,� I tell her, meaning it. �That means a lot.�
�I�m just sorry that we never really got on the same page, considering that we did have quite a lot of things in common.�
I had to laugh. �It�s okay. I know that once Mom got something in her mind, it was very difficult to get her to change it again.� I pause, unsure of whether or not to say anything. �I do know that she really appreciated you taking care of Dad. She wasn�t bitter about it. I�m not sure if she ever said this to you, but she did admire you greatly.�
A look of surprise comes over her face. �She did?�
I grin. �Yeah, you were the only one who could beat his ass!�
Chyna laughed out loud, causing a couple of people to glance our way. But we ignore them.
�Well, I don�t know if she ever told you any of this, but back when they were first married, Stephanie actually had Hunter twisted very tightly around her little finger,� the older woman tells me.
I shake my head �no�, my interest piqued. I�m always fascinated with anything and everything that relates to the early years of DX life. �No, she never said anything about that. Neither did Dad.�
She smiles at the memory. I know that back then, when Mom and Dad were first together, Chyna had been extremely hurt. Her and Dad were soulmates, and for him to marry another woman must have been hard on her. But all was forgiven a very long time ago, when Chyna accepted Dad back into her life. The smile has no traces of bitterness, anger or hurt. It�s a sad smile.
�Well, she didn�t exactly beat his ass, as you so eloquently put it, but she could make him do anything she wanted.� Chyna stops once again, reminiscing. �I will miss Stephanie, a lot. She was really good for Chris.�
I can feel the tears begin to form again, but I force them back. I�m about to open my mouth to reply when I feel a gentle hand touch my shoulder. I turn around, forcing a smile. It�s Chyna and Billy�s daughter, Lynette.
�Ci, I�m so sorry,� she tells me, her eyes a little red and raw from crying. She never wears any make up, but she�s always so beautiful. She hugs me tightly.
�Thank you, Lyn.�
Behind her I notice Lynette�s shy eight year old son, Adam, sitting with Dad. I see no sign of her six year old daughter, Carmen.
�Dane sends his deepest sympathies,� Lynette says, releasing me. Dane is her estranged husband, the two of them having been separated for nearly six months now. For the sake of their children they remained on friendly terms.
�Tell him thank you, we really appreciate it.�
�Your Mom was always very kind to me,� Lynette shares. �I want you to know that.�
Unlike all our parents, most of us DX kids had scattered all around the country, a couple even beyond. We didn�t see each other as often as our parents do, which is a shame. As kids many of us were extremely close.
�She always thought you extremely mature for your age,� I tell her honestly. �She was grateful that you were always there for Paul and me when, you know, that little trouble started.�
The three of us � Chyna, Lynette and I � have a little chuckle about �that little trouble�. There was nothing �little� about it. Everyone in the DX family had been involved, and for awhile it had been an all out war. It was now a major piece of DX history, something none of us would ever forget. It pitted Mom, and Chris, against Dad � not a pretty sight.
