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I frowned at the coffee table between us, the one that I just built. “I don't know why she would complain like that.”
Mom shrugged. “She was the best we could do.”
My agitation returned tenfold. “Why did you leave me with her at all? Why couldn't you have just taken me with you? Didn't you want me?”
Dad appeared with a plate of pancakes and a plate of bacon. He set both on the coffee table and then went back to the kitchen to grab more food. When he returned, he was carrying a bottle of syrup and a few empty coffee cups to be filled.
He glanced between my mother and me and then nodded as if he understood what was going on. “Right. Aunt Gerta. We should talk about that.
I stared at him. “What exactly should we talk about?”
He used the spatula as a pointer. “She didn't do a very good job taking care of you. She drank the whole time and forced you to clean. Then she has the gall to complain about it.”
I chortled bitterly. “You're the one who left me here.”
Mom leaned forward. “Yes, we did leave you here. We just weren't ready to take care of you. We had to get our wiggles out.”
I shook my head. “If doing cocaine is getting your wiggles out, then I guess you know a lot about it. Go off, then.”
Dad lowered his arms at his sides and bowed his head to me. “I truly am sorry for leaving you like that, but it was better than you seeing us doing those things on the road. We didn't want you to be exposed to our lifestyle, and we weren't ready to give it up. What would you have had us do instead?”
I sat back for a second with my hands resting on my knees, trying to level with him like a man. I was about to become a father. I was about to become somebody who would take care of a child like me. I would be in the same position soon. But I wasn't addicted to drugs. I didn't smoke, and I wasn't reckless. At least I didn't think I was reckless.
I looked at my mate, who was sitting next to my mother, with the softest expression. She was giving me such a sweet look, a soft smile that told me to be as forgiving as I was just judging. The fact that I could read her at all felt like a blessing. Inside of her, life was growing. I had to be a good example before that life was formed into existence.
“You do seem like you're doing better,” I admitted. “Did you say three years?”
My father nodded. “I'm coming up on an anniversary soon.”
I stood up and held out my hand. “Then I'm very proud of you, Dad. That's a big deal.”
Dad stood flabbergasted for a second. He shut his mouth, scratched his temple with the spatula, and then shook my hand firmly. A second later, he yanked me into a hug that seemed to last for ages.
A culmination of emotions exploded in my chest. Everything seemed to dissipate, all the resentment flowing into the background where it wouldn't exist anymore. All of it got siphoned out of the room. None of the usual tension remained, and I felt like I could truly breathe again. Then I realized another pair of arms had joined us and then another. Both Faye and my mother were hugging us.
All four of us stood together like a family. Like a real family.
It inspired me to step back to wipe my face to look at each of them. “We should host a barbecue.”
Faye chuckled. “That quick, huh?”
“Yes, that quick, and you should invite your parents and your brother.”
Her face drooped. “I don't know about my parents right now.”
“They welcomed you, didn't they? I thought everything was good in that department.”
“I thought you were going to handle them.”
I took her into the kitchen, where we couldn't be heard. My parents respected the space. I held Faye tenderly. “What’s going on?”
“I actually overheard my mother saying that she pretty much faked my homecoming.”
I stiffened with shock. “ I don't like the sound of that.”
She nodded. “I didn't like the sound of it either. That's why I just kind of got…” she trailed off and rubbed her elbow. “I don't know. I guess withdrawn.”
I nodded. “If we host a barbecue and they're invited, then they must behave. They'll have to keep up appearances, either way.”
