When (he)arts Prevail

27

As promised to her parents millions of times, Kaylee went to have lunch with them on Saturday. She had been feeling good lately, with a good mindset, so she figured she could handle them for an afternoon.

Even after all this time, Kaylee still struggled to maintain a healthy relationship with them. She wondered if things would ever become like they used to be before Nate— before Nate left them. It's not like their connection was ever a strong one before, but Kaylee was an adult now, so when things didn't go the way she wanted she could no longer slam the door shut in their faces and isolate herself for days.

She just didn't know what to do now. Her brother usually helped make things alright and break the ice when everything went sour, but now Kaylee was on her own. She felt so much pressure to be the perfect daughter and she knew deep down she never would be. Not to their eyes.

Kaylee battled with herself the entire drive towards where once was her home, wanting nothing more than to turn the car around and skip lunch. But she didn't.

When her mother opened the door, apron still wrapped around her waist, Kaylee knew the food was not yet ready. She decided to help out her mother finishing it and taking whatever was necessary to the table, hopeful it would relax her while she did so. She also took the opportunity to catch up on her mother and how she was faring, making sure the conversation was about her mother and not herself. Kaylee didn't speak much to her. Most of the times she talked to her father, whom she was much closer to, so she figured it would be nice to work on that.

Kaylee's mother closed the lid on a pot and turned around, taking the first long look at her daughter. She placed her hands on Kaylee's arms, smiling.

"You look good, honey," she commented. "Happier."

Kaylee offered back a small smile. That was a change. "Well, I'm feeling good, I guess."

"That's good, sweetie." She paused, eyes still fixed on Kaylee, until an eyebrow rose. "Is there a new boy around?" She teased after a moment and Kaylee fought not to roll her eyes. Maybe not so new.

"No, mom, I'm just—" Kaylee stopped, shaking her head. There was no point trying to explain if this is what her mother had instantly assumed. "There's no boy."

"Not even Sebastian?"

At that Kaylee's brow knitted into the frown she could no longer hold back and she stepped back, her mother's arms falling from her. "Why Sebastian? We're over for months now."

"Maybe you had gotten back together. I really thought for a while he was the one."

She only thought that because she didn't know Kaylee at all. Sebastian would never be it. Well, looking back now, it was easy for Kaylee to perfectly see why it would never work. Maybe not so much when she was actually with him.

"Nope."

"You'll find someone eventually."

"Maybe. Do I actually have to, though?" She said it more to herself, but the look on her mother's face was of pure disappointment.

"Well, I mean. It's not good to be alone all the time."

"I'm not alone all the time. I have friends, you know?"

Kaylee's mother turned around to the stove, stirring the food in the pot. "They all have their lives, they can't be hanging out with you all the time. Look at Mike. He's going to be a father; Alyssa has that new boyfriend, Matt, is it?"

"It's Mateo," Kaylee mumbled. "And I have other friends."

"I'm just worried for you, that's all."

"You don't have to, Mom."

"What're you worried about?" Kaylee's father asked as he entered the kitchen, coming to stay next to Kaylee and wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "Hey, Kayls," her father greeted her. He and Brian were the only ones who called her by that nickname.

"Me being single," Kaylee replied.

"Nonsense. I absolutely vouch for this. You should stay single forever."

Trust her father to cut the tension. Kaylee smiled at that. "Of course you would say that."

"I'm the only man you need," he smiled, kissing her temple.

"Right?" She knew he was obviously joking but Kaylee was grateful for it at that moment. She snaked her arm around her father's waist and leaned into him. Her relationship with her mother might not be ideal, but she had her father to make up for. She would always be his little girl no matter what.

Her mother scoffed at both of us and turned off the stove. "Come on, lunch is ready."

"Well, if everything fails, you still have Brian," Kaylee's father added as they all headed for the dining room. "He's single, right? He's a good guy."

Kaylee's eyes widened at her father's comment. "Uh—"

"If he's single there must be a reason," Kaylee's mother cut in. "And probably not a good one."

"My God, Mom, seriously?"

"Usually they have some psychological issues or can't handle relationships. Not good."

Kaylee felt like laughing. First at her father's suggestion and then her mother's theory. If Brian had psychological issues, she didn't want to know what other guys had. Brian was the most emotionally intelligent and stable man she had ever known.

Despite the shaky beginning, the rest of the meal went by smoothly. It was the first time Kaylee didn't feel like tugging at her hair or running off to the hills. It felt nice to be able to have normal conversations with her parents, laugh at mundane topics or discuss whatever was going on in the country and in the world. It wasn't about her. It wasn't about Nate. It was just... normal.

At least until she mentioned she had resumed her photography and design works. Lunch was already over and the table had been cleared of all the plates and cutlery, so they had moved to the couches. And Kaylee was now faced with both her parents staring at her like she had grown another pair of ears.

"I don't know why you're making those faces. It's a hobby." Not quite, but they didn't need to know that at this stage.

"Well... if it makes you happy," her father commented, with a shrug of his shoulders.

"It's just like surfing," she added.

She didn't want to fight. Not today. Not because of this; something that made her so happy and fulfilled. She wouldn't let them ruin it for her.

"I thought it was in the past, that's all, honey."

What her mother would never understand was that photography and design were never just a phase, or a whim. It wasn't a piece of cloth that had gone out of fashion or a song that people only listened to in the Summer. Kaylee had been so close to make a dramatic change in her life five years ago in order to pursue her dreams. It was part of her. She might have distanced herself from it these last years, but only because it hurt so much to think on everything she had lost.She should be saying exactly this to them. To her parents. But they wouldn't listen. They never did. Not really.

So Kaylee simply sighed and replied only with, "I guess not."