Page 56 of Good Time Boyfriend
Addison:Then they can deal with me.
Paisley:I like Addison. She’s a good friend.
Addison:I love that you texted that in our group chat knowing I would see it.
Paisley:I do what I can. Now seriously, you can do this. You’re strong. Stronger than you even give yourself credit for. Make sure your family remembers that.
For some reason I blinked away tears, before saying my goodbyes and checking a few emails. I needed to work on the side dish I was bringing for the night, just a quick green bean casserole with bacon. My mother loved it, and it had been my father’s favorite dish on Thanksgiving. The rest of the family loved it as well, but in my head, it was part of my dad.
Maybe that was part of my problem. I was constantly trying to bring him back in my memories. To make sure I didn’t forget him. To make sure he always knew I would never forget him. Maybe putting up that wall made everyone so eager to tear it down to be with me.
I needed to be better. I needed to stop being so selfish. And I needed to stand up for myself.
So I would.
And I had to hope I didn’t screw up.
* * *
Dinner at my family’s house was always an event. We didn’t always have all of us there, since finding a day of the month when every single person was off work, in town, and not doing any of the thousands of things that we do as humans was almost impossible. However, tonight, all of my siblings, their spouses, and kids would be there.
So of course, tonight would be the best and only time to deal.
I would not freak out.
I hoped.
“What’s wrong?” Maureen asked as soon as she looked at me.
My eldest stepsister, and one of my greatest friends in the world, hugged me. “You seem stressed. Is it work? Heath? The weather?”
“Maureen, darling, please give your sister a moment to breathe. You’re overwhelming her.”
My mom nudged Maureen away before bringing me in for a hug. “And I see you brought the casserole! Thank you so much.”
Elizabeth took it from my hands as Andy took his turn to hug me and kissed me on the forehead. Paige slid through and kissed me on my cheek while Lee took my other cheek.
When the stepsibs were done, their spouses came in, each hugging me in turn, the kids swarming me when it was their turn. At one point I held an infant that I was pretty sure was Lee’s, but then I realized it might have been Andy’s.
I swear we all needed name tags, and I was part of the family.
And then my half-siblings, Russ, Kennedy, Virginia, Heather, and Justice, each hugged me in turn, before updating me all at once about their latest issues in school, sports, and something about a video game that had just released.
And, thankfully, I knew what they were talking about, because I tried to keep up to date with everybody’s lives, so I sat down with them and listened as they explained the new tokens that were going to ruin the update of the game.
“You don’t understand. They went through all of this with the $29.99 price of a game, where each of us has to buy our own versions instead of just playing as a different character.”
I nodded as Russ explained the game to me.
“So, each of us paid for our own versions of the game, and we have to play on different consoles, or we overwrite each other.”
“Well, that sounds a little greedy,” I grumbled, thinking about the sheer cost of it.
“Thankfully, we found a way around that by playing on the cloud on different games. But still, it’s a little confusing, and I’m always afraid I’m going to overwrite something,” Virginia said.
“But that’s not even the worst part. Now they’re going to charge you for tokens to get things that you want even after the game. It’s all just a money grab, and I hate it.”
“Me too.” Justice agreed with Heather, as they both folded their arms over their chest exactly like I did.
