A Journey Into the Land of Dreams

He's Not Your Family

My husband had gone on a week-long trip to Wisconsin to visit some family. Everyone else had gone but I had to stay home to watch the dogs because nobody else said they would. I had wanted to go, but the dogs were important to take care of. So, my husband agreed to let me have a friend stay the week and he was ok with my friend, Ken staying over.
Ken was always very respectful of my marriage and had never made any moves to disrespect my husband so he was trusted. He was capable of sharing a bed with me without trying anything, so that's what was arranged. He made sure i was at work on time and he played with the dogs while I was at work.
It was Wednesday night and I had gotten home after a long shift and Ken had already fed the dogs again and put them in their kennels for the night with plenty of water and pads in case they needed to use the restroom while we were sleeping. He had also prepared dinner and I was hungry.
After that, I got a call from my sister, saying they were bringing my nephew down and my mom had come with her. They were almost here! I began frantically cleaning up as quickly as I could and then I heard a knock at the door. My mom, sister, and nephew were here!!! I opened the door and showered them with hugs and kisses, especially my nephew.
They came in and we all sat on the couch, catching up. My mom asked about my husband and I let her know he was on a trip to Wisconsin. I introduced Ken and we continued talking. Finally it was time for bed, so my mom, sister, and nephew headed out.
I was off work the next day, so I hung out with my family all day. We had breakfast at IHOP, and then did some shopping. Since my birthday passed last week, my mom got me some new clothes and things like that. My grandmother had sent her down with some money for me from her and my grandfather, which always annoys me a little bit because they're always giving away money and I don't like taking their money.
I tucked it away in my wallet until I found something I wanted. I wound up with a lava lamp, because those were my favorite lamps. I snapped a picture and sent it to my grandparents and texted thank you. Then, we went to lunch. My mom insisted on buying and we had Slim Chickens.
After lunch, we figured we would all catch a movie so we went and saw Inside Out 2! I had been wanting to see that movie for a long time, and it was appropriate for my nephew since he was only 2. The movie came to a close, so we went back to my house.
At my house, we played some board games and chatted some more. My dad got brought up and he was doing pretty well. He couldn't make the trip because his work wouldn't let him take off. I was a little sad but I understood.
Finally, we decided it was time for dinner, so we left again and chose Olive Garden. I had my usual meal with a diet coke and my mom had ordered a salad. My sister got what she usually ordered with lemonade. My nephew had a kids meal with Dr pepper.
After dinner, we headed out to take a walk by the lake, and Ken decided to come along with us. After that, we headed back to my house and I got curious and started doing some family research.
When I got into it, I found out something that absolutely broke my heart. I wasn't their family. I looked at my mother. She told me I had been adopted. And my sister joined in and said. "Yeah, he's not really your nephew."
"What do you mean?" I said, sadly.
"He's not your nephew." She smirked.
"He's not my family?" I shut down.
"Nope." My sister smirked wider.
My mom looked at me and half smiled apologetically. She told me that I in fact was adopted and that they're not actually my family biologically. She made it a point to say that I was family and that my nephew was my family but not really.
It was all hard to take in. I felt like I had been lied to my entire life and had believed they were my only family and that my nephew was my nephew. I put on a brave face and pretended like everything was all ok.  I didn't want the evening to spoil and I was already so thankful for the day we had shared together.
Finally, my mom and sister left with my nephew. I just turned to Ken and broke down. I wasn't sure what to do. He pulled me in and just held me there. I cried for at least two hours until it was time for bed.
I laid down in bed and Ken called my husband to let him know what had happened this evening. He said he would be home as fast as he could. Then, Ken crawled into bed and held me for as long as I needed. I fell asleep with my eyes still dripping tears all over the pillowcase and all over Ken's shirt. He didn't mind. I was hurting. I was shocked. My family... wasn't my family. My nephew that I had loved for two years straight, wasn't my nephew. He would always be my nephew in my heart, but on paper, we were not family.