And Kelli, I had to admit, was in her happy place too. Her boyfriend Trebie chattering away at the barbecue, calling her Beaner, bringing her Mike, who, despite his singular lack of boyish charisma, she clearly adored. She and I were sharing a beer — that is, I had poured a little of mine into a juice glass for her and she had downed it in two gulps, causing Trevor to bellow, “Easy on the sauce, there, Drunky! We’re gonna be picking this one up off the floor by the end of the night, Mother!” This last remark was directed at me, with a wink. Mike’s game made a musical booping noise and I glanced over at him. He was peering savagely down at it, burrowing his chin into his chest.

“Kelli music,” ventured Kelli. Mike looked up, frowning.

“She likes things that make noises,” I told him.

“Let her see it,” said Trevor.

Mike tucked the game into his stomach like a football player ready to make a break. “She won’t know how to play it.”

“She doesn’t goddamn need to know how to play it,” decreed Trevor. “Just let her see it.”

Mike stood up unhappily.

“If you show her how it works,” I told him, “she’ll really like that. She doesn’t even have to hold it. She’d just like to see what it does.”

Mike relaxed a little. He moved toward Kelli and held the game in front of her.

“You gotta try to get it in the net,” he said. “With these buttons.” He tapped a button rapidly with his thumb and the game emitted a triumphant series of boops.

“See, that’s a goal,” said Mike.

Kelli began to rock. “Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh,” she said. Mike straightened up, smirking. Kelly didn’t reach for the game, but I could tell she was waiting for him to do it again. I was about to explain to Mike that this was what she wanted, but something made me bite my tongue. I could see him looking at her carefully now, making the effort to understand for himself.

“You wanna see it again?”

“’Gain,” said Kelli.

Mike began rapidly tapping buttons again, leaning in so Kelli could have a good view. “It’s kinda easy for me to score,” he explained, “because I’ve been playing it for so long.”

“That’s a hint, if you didn’t know,” Trevor said to me. “That’s a hint to Dad that someone wants a new game.”

The contraption emitted another victorious series of boops and Kelli emitted another series of hehs and this time Mike cracked a genuine smile.

“All right, enough of that electronic shit,” said Trevor. “Everyone grab your plates.”

To my surprise, Mike was aiming that smile at me.

“If I get a new one,” he said, “I could show her that too. I bet she’d like it.”

“Down, boy,” said Trevor, cuffing Mike lightly on the back of head.

Because we couldn’t stand the burn of the evening sun in our eyes we went into the kitchen and assembled our burgers beneath the glare of the fluorescent. Trevor started cutting Kelli’s burger up into choke-proof, bite-sized chunks before I could. Mike was chattier now, and told us, at Trevor’s urging, about how he had started grade four, about how his teacher was “fat, but nice” and his favourite subject was still recess, just like last year. Trevor rolled his eyes and grunted something about the apple and the tree, then he admonished Kelli, who was cramming pieces of burger into her mouth like she was in some kind of competition, to slow down — that g.d. burger wasn’t going to run away off her plate, and then he winked again at me and I didn’t think I had ever seen Trevor enjoying himself more. When all of us — except Mike, who dawdled over his burger — were finished eating, Trevor topped himself off with more rum and brought me another beer from the fridge since he was up.