Twenty-Three

Steve

The day flew by. We played game after game and Garrett got along well with everyone. A few other relatives stopped by and they played a few rounds but when it was time for Garrett to leave to go to his own family, I wasn’t ready for him to go. After saying goodbye to everyone and vowing to kick my dad’s ass next year, I walked him out to the car to drive him back to his house.

“Thanks for inviting me, I really had a good time,” he said as soon as we were inside the car.

“I’m so happy. I wasn’t sure how it would work out, but I think everyone got along really well.”

“Your family is so nice. I love that they have game day for Thanksgiving.”

“We’ll be playing into the night so if you get done early stop by,” I said, and hoped he would.

“I’ll see how late I end up staying. I swear my body knows it’s not working today or tomorrow and has decided it’s just done. I could go to bed already,” he said, and closed his eyes as he rested his head against the seat. “Are you coming over tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I’d like to. Did you still want to go shop?” I asked and hoped he’d changed his mind. He’d mentioned it a few times, but I knew he didn’t need to shop for any other gifts.

“Not if I can avoid it. Let’s just shop online if we have to,” he said with a grin.

“I love how you think.” I pulled into the driveway of his house and turned the motor off when he didn’t make any move to get out.

“Can I ask you something?” he said, and by his tone I knew it was something serious.

“Sure, is everything okay?”

He turned then to face me. “Oh yes, sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you. I just wanted to ask if your parents know why you haven’t wanted to celebrate Christmas? It’s just that they seem so nice. I can’t imagine them not wondering why things changed.”

“We’ve talked about it before. But I think I let it go on too long. They think it’s all settled and I’m just not a Christmas person. And honestly, I’ve come to realize it’s all me. You saw how they are. They would never want to hurt me or Dale. It was a hard time in our lives, and for some reason it stuck with me.” It was hard to admit it, but harder still to let it keep festering and finding a reason to deny my family a nice Christmas because one time, years ago, I’d been hurt.

“Would talking to them help?” Garrett asked.

I thought about it for a moment longer and considered his words. “No, I think I needed to work it out in my own head. Talking to you about it feels like a weight has been lifted.”

“I’m happy for you then, all that matters is you’re happy,” he said and leaned across the seat to kiss me. “I better go, or I’ll end up staying here with you all night.”

“Would that be so bad?” I whispered.

“Not for me. But unfortunately, my mom would feel very differently if I didn’t show up and believe me when I say she’s not beyond driving over here and looking for me.”

“You better go before I end up staying,” I said, and he kissed me once more before getting out of the car.

“See you tomorrow,” he said.

I waved and waited as he hurried inside. The thought of staying in my empty house weighed heavy on me, and I knew if I stayed here any longer, he’d notice when he came back out to go to his parents’. I started the car and drove back to my parents’, and for the next few hours forced myself to focus on them and enjoy my time. Because he was right, they were good people, and this was a nice way to spend the day.

Finally, at six o’clock I couldn’t take it anymore. I didn’t think Garrett would be home, but I wanted to drive by his house to check. He’d sent a few texts with pictures of their dinner and his relatives, but he hadn’t mentioned when he planned to be home. “I think I’ll be heading out,” I said, and Dale rolled her eyes.

“You mean you think you’ll be going to Garrett’s house,” she said and laughed.

“Possibly.”

“He’s very nice,” she whispered. “I know Mom and Dad thought he was great. Except for the fact that he’s crazy competitive.”

“Yeah, he did warn me,” I said and barked out a laugh.

“He’s very nice, not bad to look at, and his enchiladas were delicious,” Mom said.

“Mom!”

“What? It’s true, isn’t it?” she said to me with a pat on the cheek and a wink.

“Yeah, it is. I think I’ll stop by and see if he’s at his house before I go home.”

“I think that’s a good idea,” Mom said.

I had just pulled up to his house when his car pulled into the driveway. He smiled and waved to me before getting out of his car and rushing over. “I was hoping you’d show up. Come on inside.” He handed me Teddy, before unpacking a couple of bags from the back of the car.

“I didn’t think you’d be back here already. I was just stopping by to check before I went home.”

“Come inside. We ate and I kept falling asleep. Mom told me to go home and go to bed but not before she gave me a week’s worth of leftovers,” he said and held up one of the bags that I now knew were packed with food.

“I might have packed an overnight bag,” I admitted and hoped he didn’t mind.

“Good, because you’re not leaving until at least tomorrow night,” he said, not missing a beat, and hurried over to unlock his door. I set Teddy down as soon as I was inside, and he went right to his bed. “He’s worn out, he can only handle being passed around for so long.”

“What about you? Are you still tired?” I asked and stepped close enough to loop my finger in his belt loop.

“I think I can stay awake a while longer,” he said, and leaned in to kiss me.

“Good, because I need to work off some of the food I ate today, and I have a perfect way to do it.” He laughed at that and grabbed my hand.

“Come on then, no time like the present,” he said as he pulled me along to his room.