Chasing the Boy

Chapter Sixteen

I was home by ten o'clock. I didn't have any plans, which was pretty pathetic for a Friday night. Even worse, I didn't want any. The only thing I felt up to was dragging my sorry butt inside, plopping it down on the sofa, watching the Psych marathon and opening up a gallon of Brigham's chocolate ice cream. The ice cream was my mom's and although she guarded every precious scoop with her life, I thought she might understand that a requisite to any pity party was ice cream.

Pulling into my driveway, I looked at my house. Surprisingly, light glowed from every window. I wondered if my parents knew the house was completely lit up as they were extremely adamant about not wasting electricity. They were extremely adamant about not wasting anything: heat, electricity, water, and leftovers, among other things.

I opened the front door and stepped into a whirlwind of activity. My father stood at the stove, flipping pancakes on one pan and making western omelets on another. My dad was a huge fan of breakfast for dinner. I didn't mind – I loved the way the kitchen smelled. Besides, if I couldn't drown my sorrows in ice cream, then a puddle of buttery maple syrup would do the trick.

Ryan and Joey, who had become a bit of a fixture at our house lately, were in the family room, working on the DVD player. I think we were the only family left that owned one, but my father refused to get rid of anything. It had been busted for a couple of days and neither my mother nor my father was technically savvy enough to fix it. My dad's usual remedy for fixing anything was duct tape and he was forbidden to go anywhere near the television.

I watched my brother laughing and having a good time. Just two weeks ago he'd been passed out on our neighbor's front lawn and already he was off punishment. I wondered how he had evaded being more severely penalized for his drunken exploit. If that had been me, I, no doubt, would have been locked in my room for a year. It wasn't fair – when you were the oldest and a girl, rules and regulations were much harsher.

I turned back to the kitchen as Ava bustled in. She was wearing her comfy clothes – sweats and slippers – and toting the board game Clue under her arm. Pancakes, DVD's, board games – this was turning into an old fashioned family night.

"Oh, good," she said when she saw me. "You're home. Here." She handed me the game. "Set that up on the table, will you?" She turned before I could answer and joined my father at the stove, watching his pancake flipping technique.

"Where's Mom?" I asked, opening up the box and pulling the board out. I put the red piece in my pocket – my sister and I always fought about who got to be Ms. Scarlet.

"She's upstairs, folding towels," she informed me. She didn't take her eyes off my father's motions – she was soaking it all in. "Dad," she said. "It's time to flip the omelet."

"Thanks, Ava," he said, turning his attention to the other pan.

I looked at the table, and decided to set up after we ate. I informed Ava, and she agreed that it was the best idea. So much for a night of self-pity and comfort food. I smiled, not altogether upset by the change of events. It had been a long time since we'd had family night and it would be good for my ego – I always kicked ass at Clue. No one could ever beat me. I glanced out at the family room and watched as Joey, who was lying on the floor, fooled around with some wires that ran from the DVD player to the television.

"Hey," I yelled. "Do you know what you're doing out there, Einstein?" I walked over and leaned against the wall, watching.

Joey picked up his red head and glanced at me. He saw I was joking around and smiled. I think it was the first time I'd seen him smile - it completely changed his face. He was usually so serious looking and so quiet, but his smile was big and genuine - it nearly split his face in half. He looked like he might not be that bad to hang out with when he smiled like that. Good, I thought, since he was going to be playing Clue with us.