Chapter 15 As Long as There’s Turkey

Leah's heart had been pounding since they left the Island of Manhattan. No, it had been pounding since they left the Upper East Side. Maybe even since she left her apartment. Gabe had met her by the Subway with a small backpack sitting high up on his back the way her mom had always nagged her to wear hers when she was in high school and let the bag sag and bounce on her bottom. It may not have been good for her lower back, but it was the right move for her popularity. She'd always assumed she'd just deal with her back later when she was old like everyone else did.

She had a small duffel bag over her shoulder, which she had regretted since she'd reached the corner of her block. It made her shoulder ache (residual pains from high school?) and it hit her leg with every step. "Let me get that," Gabe offered and he grabbed her bag. If only he had met her at the apartment, he could have carried the thing the entire four blocks to the Subway! The walk had never seemed so long before.

But Gabe wasn't coming around her apartment much anymore. They still hung out almost daily and he sometimes walked her home, but they were spending more time at his place or out enjoying city life. It may have been for the best, Leah thought, since she was pretty sure her roommate was depressed. Door slamming became more frequent and violent. Dishes were rarely cleaned or put away. Trash often found its way to the floor and got lost before reaching the can. It wasn't comfortable for anyone there. Not Gabe, who preferred not to hole up in Leah's bedroom. Not Leah, who hated navigating the trash and inspecting every plate and fork before use. And she couldn't imagine it was pleasant for Marissa either, who obviously had a lot of issues if she was letting herself go so fast. Leah had already given up her fantasies of bestfriendom with her roommate and was now patiently waiting out her lease while clamping her mouth shut anytime someone mentioned where she would live next year.

Would she and Gabe be ready to move in together? Would he be interested in finding a new place with her? Or would she move into his cramped bachelor pad? She hadn't said anything about this daydream to Gabe, even though she was dying for answers. Secretly planning her escape was the only thing that made being in her apartment bearable, which is why she too didn't mind spending more time at Gabe's.

At his apartment, they could play music loudly. They could eat in their underwear in the kitchen. Sex could be loud and spontaneous, and happen anywhere in the one-room apartment. They could almost reach the fridge from the bed. Of course, his apartment also had cracked ceilings that Leah often imagined would fall down on them and one of the hinges on the oven was rusting, so it shrieked every time the door was opened and closed and sometimes refused to cooperate when they were cooking, letting all the heat out instead of baking whatever was inside. But these were fixable. Also avoidable if they would just pool their budget and get a better place. She'd suggest it in a few months, she told herself. It was still early. They'd only been together a of couple months. She still had way too much time on her lease.

They took the Subway to Penn Station where they would catch a train upstate. Leah's mom would pick them up from the station and drive them to the home her parents had bought when her mom was pregnant with Shira. They'd bought the house thinking they would one day need lots of bedrooms for kids and house guests, but today it was just her parents and empty bedrooms.

As the train pulled farther from Manhattan, Leah found herself getting more and more nervous. She tried to imagine what would happen when her mom met Gabe. All she could see was an explosion. The minute her mom found out he wasn't Jewish, her head would explode and gush all over the new curtains that an interior designer from the synagogue had recently helped her pick out.

Since she'd confirmed to her mom that Gabe was coming for Thanksgiving, she had been bombarded with questions. Her mom found every excuse to call or text needing urgent information: Is Gabe allergic to anything? What does he like for breakfast? Should I buy bagels from Kaplan's? We always have too much cranberry sauce, but I'm thinking I should make a double recipe in case Gabe likes it I don't want to run out. What do you think? No, nothing special, don't worry, and I'm sure it'll be fine. Leah tried to be nice when answering, but she was already stressed enough about this meeting.

She thought back to the time her parents met Asher. They had been so excited! He was from her Jewish youth group! His name was Asher! Which was sort of Israeli even, right? Her mom had brought bagels and rugalach from her favorite bakery and had laid out an entire spread for the meeting. Asher had come over and smiled awkwardly as her parents stood with such anticipation in front of the door. Her father held out his hand and Leah cringed as she noticed Asher's weak handshake. Her cheeks burned when her mom asked Asher about his college plans and he shrugged that they had time. (He was a junior then! Of course they had time, plenty of time, but everyone knew you couldn't say that in front of parents! If parents—especially Jewish parents—asked about future plans, you had to discuss where you were applying, what master's program you were interested in, and what were your career prospects! Apparently Asher had none of those, and not even so much as a fake plan to give her parents!)

They sat in the kitchen and ate bagels and rugalach while her parents continued asking questions about his parents, his school, and their youth group. Asher answered everything with one word and barely looked her parents in the eyes while he ate two bagels and more rugalach than Leah could count. (She'd eaten only half of a bagel and one rugalach.) When he left, he kissed her goodbye in front of her parents and told them it was nice to meet them. Leah was sure her parents hated him. But her mom had given her a big squeeze.

"He's so sweet, darling! And cute! Well, he's just wonderful!" It was then that Leah realized that her parents only cared about one thing. Nothing else mattered. They loved Asher. They invited him to every family event and he would come. His mom hugged him and embroidered a pillowcase for him with the Theodor Herzl quote "If you will it, it is no dream" when he left for college.

Her mom cried when Leah told her they broke up. Actual tears. "I hope you're making the right decision," she said as though Leah had just given up on a huge opportunity. Leah consoled her mom and reminded her that she was going to move to New York City, the city with the highest number of Jews in the world. Surely, she'd meet someone new. Someone better. Someone who could shake her father's hand with fortitude and discuss his ambitions with more than a shrug.

Leah knew Gabe could do those things. She hadn't yet mentioned to her mom that he wasn't Jewish. Maybe it wouldn't come up. Maybe they'd get through the holiday without anyone mentioning Judaism or the lack thereof. Yeah right.

Leah wished the train would go on forever. It could just continue whirling down the tracks next to the almost naked autumn trees where orange and red leaves coated the ground. She and Gabe could just continue holding hands and talking about New York and the books they were reading and the restaurants they wanted to try. The train really didn't need to stop. Things couldn't get any better.

But sadly, the train pulled into the station and Leah already saw her mom's car waiting by the exit. Gabe grabbed their bags and they walked to the platform where the cool air seemed to bite their faces. It was always colder upstate away from sidewalk vents blowing steam from the Subway and the heaters working overtime to warm every small indoor space. Leah led Gabe to her mom's car where she could see her mom waving from inside. It was too cold to get out for a hug .

Gabe popped the trunk, placed the bags inside, and got into the backseat while Leah got in front. Her mom greeted her and reached over for a sideways hug. Then, she turned around and reached a hand out to Gabe. "I'm Savannah!" She belted. "It's so wonderful to finally meet you! And we so appreciate you coming to our family for Thanksgiving! I know it can be hard missing your own family traditions, but we hope you will feel right at home with us. If there is anything we can do to make it more like your family's Thanksgiving, please let me know!"

"Well, as long as there is a Turkey, I'm sure it will be fine." Gabe smiled and firmly grasped Savannah's hand.

"Well, we have that! It's already in the oven and will be ready by four!" Savannah laughed and gave her daughter a wink. "Seatbelts on?" She started to pull out of the parking lot. "So Gabe, tell me about what you do? Leah has been so secretive!"

Gabe chuckled and started talking about his job at the hedge fund. He politely explained what he did and what it meant to be a hedge fund in a way that didn't sound pretentious or condescending should she not know what a hedge fund was. (It's an investment firm that bets against its own investments. That way, if an investment fails, they still make money.)

They got to Leah's house without any hiccups or mentions of religion. When they pulled into the driveway, Leah felt like she was seeing the place for the first time through Gabe's eyes. It was a white wooden house with a picket fence and a perfectly manicured lawn. Three steps with potted plants on their sides led to the amber front door. To Leah, it looked warm and inviting, and she hoped that Gabe saw it the same way.

He carried their bags inside where it smelled like Thanksgiving. There were yams drenched in sugar, cranberries popping on the stove, and turkey crisping in the oven. Leah loved the smells. Her dad was in the kitchen, reading the newspaper and snacking on some of the extra stuffing that hadn't fit in the turkey. He looked up when they walked in. With food in his mouth, he hugged Leah and then he swallowed and cleared his throat to shake Gabe's hand. Another strong handshake, man-to-man. Leah was proud.

"I was just about to catch the game before dinner," her dad commented. "Want to join?"

Leah knew Gabe wasn't a football fan. She wasn't even sure Gabe would have understood what her dad was referring to, and she felt obliged to save him.

"Cowboys playing today?" Gabe asked, as though he'd been following the sport's entire season.

"Yup, but they have no chance against the Raider. "

Gabe nodded. He seemed like he'd surely invested some thought in this and had to agree. "I'll just take our bags to the room and then meet you back here?"

"I'll pop you a beer." Success! Leah could see that her father was smitten with Gabe. Who wouldn't be? He was simply perfect! Her parents would realize that long before they learned of his one small blemish.

Leah showed Gabe to her old bedroom that hadn't been touched since she graduated high school. "Just in case," her mom would say when Leah asked why they didn't just turn the room into an office or gym or whatever else empty nesters needed those days. While Leah was sure she would never be moving back home, it was reassuring to have her bedroom waiting for her. Her creaky bed with the sheets and pillows she'd picked out in ninth grade was still there. The same as it was when she'd slept on it with Asher, but she tried not to think about that.

"Cute room." Gabe studied the walls that were covered in magazine clippings, pictures, and paraphernalia from her old youth group. "What's Echad?" He noticed a big sign with the name of her old BBG chapter on it.

"My youth group. It means number one." She tried to sound nonchalant, like it wasn't a big deal when it actually was. She remembered her last BBYO convention, how she cried and talked about how much Echad had meant to her. How she'd always be a sister and how proud she was to hand the chapter over to the younger generation. It was impossible to explain to someone who hadn't experienced BBYO what Echad had meant to her. Her chapter was her family. It was the most important thing she had. It brought her purpose, gave her ambition, taught her about her potential, and rewarded her for her achievements. She loved Echad and she loved BBYO. To her, it was more than just the number one.

"Cool." He continued looking around as though unaffected by the Echad sign. Leah wanted him to understand what it meant to her, she wanted him to feel what she felt when she looked at that sign, but he just moved on and started studying the books on her bookshelf. She had the entire Gossip Girl series, Nancy Drew books from her younger days, and a whole list of embarrassing young adult novels about high school love and kissing.

"Why don't we go get that beer." She drew his attention back to the doorway. He kissed her and followed her back to the living room, where her dad had opened up three beers and a bag of chips, which her mom was reprimanding him for since dinner was in a few hours and he didn't need any snacks before then. Leah grabbed a beer and went to help her mom in the kitchen while Gabe watched the game with her dad .

"He seems very nice," Savannah commented to her daughter. "Did he grow up reform? He seems a little more reform."

Leah hadn't prepared any answers for questions like this. But just then, the door clicked and screeched open. "Hey! I'm home!" Shira yelled from the foyer. Leah ran to go meet her sister and threw her arms around her in the biggest hug. "Is he here?" Shira whispered in her ear. Leah nodded and her face flushed with happiness. "And they don't know yet?" Leah pursed her lips and continued with her ignorant smile as though they could get through the holiday without her parents finding out.