Chapter 18 #3
All three of them shouted a different name. He stepped out, and all three of them pulled him into a group hug. I opened the door and walked around to the front of the truck.
“Ohhhh… I see why you’ve been hidin’ her,” the female said.
“Stop,” Quinn said. “Zay, meet Beau.” The shorter male stepped forward and reached his hand out.
“And Graham,” Quinn said. He stepped up and shook my hand, too.
“Last but not least, the lovely Delilah,” Quinn said. She grabbed me and pulled me into a hug. My arms locked to my sides for a second before I reached around and patted her back.
“Sorry, I’m a hugger,” Delilah said.
“It’s okay,” I muttered.
I followed them inside. Once the door was opened, the noise from inside spilled outside. I looked around, and there were people everywhere—adults and children alike. They all stared at me as I entered.
“Everyone, this is Zalayuh. Please be nice,” Quinn announced.
“And I quite like her, so y’all best behave,” Lina said, coming from the kitchen.
I turned and smiled at her. “Merry Christmas, Lina.”
“Merry Christmas, sweetheart,” she said, “you want to come help in the kitchen? Quinn can catch up with his family. Some of them haven’t seen him in far too long,” she said. He looked over at me and nodded subtly.
“Sure,” I said, then followed her into the kitchen.
There was another woman in the kitchen, standing at the sink, peeling potatoes.
“Zalayuh, this is my sister, Iris. Iris, this is Zalayuh, Quinn’s friend,” she said.
“Hi,” I said. “What can I help with?”
“You can peel those sweet potatoes there,” Iris replied.
I walked over to the counter where the bag of sweet potatoes was. Lina handed me a potato peeler, and I started peeling them. Iris peeled the russet potatoes. Lina was working on a cheese sauce for Macaroni and Cheese. The smell of the ham filled the air in the kitchen.
We stayed in the kitchen for a few hours.
It was nice to cook, and it kept my mind busy.
Lina and Iris did most of the talking. I mostly listened.
Once everything was done, we carried the food to the dining table.
All the children were ushered in and fed at a smaller table.
We all squeezed around the table. Quinn sat next to me.
He flashed me a smile, little dimples showing.
I dropped my eyes onto the empty plate. Those dimples were a weakness—my weakness.
Once we all gathered around, Iris’s husband said a prayer, blessing our food.
Then we started passing dishes around to add food to our plates.
There was ham, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, cornbread dressing, collard greens, baked macaroni and cheese, green bean casserole, and buttermilk biscuits.
I put a small amount of each thing on my plate.
“It’s been nice to see you, Quinn. You should definitely bring your beautiful girlfrie—”
I choked on my food, slapped my hand across my mouth, making sure I didn’t spit it out. Quinn also choked, but not as dramatically as I did.
“Not... we're not a couple,” Quinn stammered out.
“You stare at her like you love her,” Graham muttered. Not low enough, the entire table turned their heads to him.
“Graham,” Lina warned.
“Sorry, Titi,” Graham said, dropping his head.
“How’s Raphael doing, Quinn?” Iris asked.
“He’s up his uncle's… yeah… not appropriate supper conversation. He’s doing fine, Auntie, I think,” he replied.
“And Callie?” Iris asked.
“She’s doing well. I talked to her a week ago,” he said.
“Why don’t you move here for good?” Delilah asked.
“I have obligations back home… we both do,” he said, glancing at me.
“Take care of them and come back to your family. Your real family is here,” Delilah said.
“It’s more complicated than that,” Quinn said.
“Because of her or something else?” Delilah pressed.
“Both,” he said, then he dropped his eyes to his plate. His cheeks flushed with reddish-brown color.
“Oh… I see,” Delilah said.
“Y’all thought I was bullshitting,” Graham said.
I sat there looking between everyone, putting food in my mouth, taking everything in. The kids behind us chattered as they clattered their silverware onto their plates. At the end of the table, there was a side conversation that couldn’t really be heard from this end.
“So, Zalayuh, how many siblings do you have?” Sarabeth—another cousin—asked.
“I have a brother, Paxton, and a sister, Aspen,” I said.
“Are they older or younger?” Sarabeth asked.
“Paxton is one year older, and Aspen is six years old,” I told her.
“How about we get some dessert?” Lina asked, as if she knew it was time to change the topic.
“That sounds great, Titi,” Quinn said.
As people finished, they carried their plates to the kitchen and washed them. Some people got dessert and wandered around the house eating it. Others opted to eat it later, claiming to be stuffed. There were little groups around the house catching up.
“Are you ready to go?” Quinn whispered.
“Sure,” I said.
Quinn went around telling everyone goodbye. Lina gave me a tight hug before we went out the door. The drive home was quiet between us. I thought about the things said and left unsaid.