Alan's Story

Chapter 3

Alan arrived at Conner's house at 5:50Pm as was his custom to arrive early. He parked along the side of the street near the driveway. He readied himself, doing his very utmost to wear a smile and hide his fear, and slowly approached the front door of the nice suburban house. He rang the doorbell and a couple seconds later it was answered by Conner. There was clear excitement painted on his face as he said, "Hey Alan! Come on in! Great to have you."

Alan walked through the threshold to see a beautifully decorated interior. Family pictures and paintings of amazing scenery adorned the walls, and old style but well maintained furniture lined the hallway. It was clear almost immediately that this family was wealthy. The home looked so warm and inviting and comfortable that Alan felt a kind of happiness begin to swirl within him. A sense of optimism was building as well and Alan started to really believe that this was going to be an enjoyable evening. "Come on in and I'll introduce you to the family," Conner said as Alan removed his shoes.

He followed Conner down the hallway to the kitchen where he saw two women. The older one he safely assumed was Conner's mother. She had blonde hair hanging to her shoulders and looked very well kept wearing a giant grin across her face. And then there was the younger woman. This Alan assumed to be Conner's younger sister. Like her mother, she was extremely beautiful, her blonde hair just a bit shorter than shoulder length. Almost immediately Alan began to feel something inside which he could not describe. His eyes met hers for just a brief moment before he turned away so as not to stare. "Alan, this is my mom. Her name is Barbara," said Conner extending his arm in the direction of his mother.

"Hi Alan. Pleasure to meet you. Conner has spoken of you quite a lot. You can call me Barb by the way," said Barb.

A little bewildered that Conner had spoken about him to his family Alan replied, "It's nice to meet you too Barb," and he extended his hand to shake her's.

"And this is my sister, Laura," said Conner.

Alan's eyes met Laura's once again and he didn't want to pull them away. Trying to avoid making the situation awkward he quickly extended his hand and said, "Hi Laura. Very nice to meet you."

She shook his hand very quickly and said, "Likewise," grinning ever so slightly.

"Dads not here right now. He runs an oil rig off the gulf coast of Texas. He's usually away for about a month at a time. Sorry you couldn't meet him," said Conner.

"Oil rig, wow! Thats quite a job," said Alan.

"Well boys, dinner is ready so Conner give Alan a plate and you two can serve yourselves," said Barb.

Barb had made a huge turkey dinner complete with mashed potatoes, carrots, and stuffing. Alan had not had such a delicious meal as this since he left home. Following Conner's lead, he filled his plate and joined him outside on the deck. There was a large glass top patio table with several padded chairs around it. Alan sat down at the table and as promised, Conner brought out some cold beer. They sat for quite a while discussing small mundane things.