Blue Plaid

Patience

In which Tyson learns that the best things take time.

//

It was amazing how easily Stella's family came to feel like my own. I didn't even have to ask Suzanna if I could help. As soon as Stella and I reentered the kitchen, she handed me a knife and told me to get to chopping the onions that she needed for the roasted vegetable platter she was making while Stella sat on the granite counter top and swung her legs and kept us company, but kept out of trouble.

We talked as if we'd known each other our entire lives. Stella and I told Suzanna about how we dressed Cooper up as a dinosaur for Halloween and took him trick or treating around our apartment building, but he was much more fascinated by the shiny door knockers than getting candy. In exchange, Suzanna told me about how for Stella's first Halloween, she was dressed up like a pumpkin and she ate so much candy that she ended up passing out.

Reese and Roy were generally occupied by the football game, but they came into the kitchen every now and then to get drinks and sneak bites of the food while Suzanna wasn't looking and they'd update me on the score. I didn't really understand American football, but I appreciated them wanting to keep me in the loop because it made me feel like I wasn't just another guest.

With my help, the cooking was finished after just two hours and once the dishes were all neatly covered in plastic wrap and sitting on the counter waiting to be heated when the remainder of the guests arrived later that evening, I sat in the lounge room with Roy and Reese and drank beer and kept an eye out for Cooper, who was contently occupied with his toy cars on the floor, as I told them about Australia while Stella went to get showered and changed.

She returned after forty-five minutes, looking stunning as usual in a navy cocktail dress, and I drained the last bits of my beer before I dropped one eye in a wink, smirking happily when I saw her cheeks tint just a tiny bit redder, and went to go get ready as well.

I put my best foot forward on my mission to impress as many members of Stella's family as possible. I showered thoroughly and shaved even though it wasn't really necessary because I could hardly grow facial hair and forewent my usual attire of ripped t-shirts or worn out flannels for a crisp light blue button up that I paired with my signature black jeans and shiniest boots.

It turned out my nerves weren't necessary when it came to her extended family and family friends either, because they all just treated me like I had always been part of the family. Stella's parents didn't introduce me as their daughter's friend, instead just saying my name and assuming people already knew who I was and the most amazing part was that even if this was the truth, none of them had any judgments when it came to our nontraditional family.

I ate as much as I could possibly handle, gorging myself on turkey and corn casserole and green bean casserole and stuffing and cranberry sauce until I could fully appreciate why Stella loved this holiday so much and by the time the last guest had left and Stella's aunt and uncle and cousins had decided to crash for the night and Cooper was sound asleep in the crib Stella's parents had set up in their bedroom, I decided that I had never been so happy in my life.

"Oh, Stel, don't worry about that. I'll take care of it in the morning."

I looked up from where I had collapsed on the couch in the lounge room to see Stella trying to wash the dishes in the kitchen sink, but being stopped by her mother, who was insisting it could be done at a later time. Immediately feeling guilty for not offering to do that as well, I pushed myself to my feet as fast as I possibly could and ambled over to see if I could persuade Suzanna to allow me to help.

Suzanna shot me a glare that made me stop in my tracks as I approached, turning her gaze back to her daughter, her eyes lighting with an epiphany as she spoke. "Stella, why don't you go show Tyson around the neighborhood?"