Have Hope

Fight or Flight

While our parents bustled around to get the table set with silverware and food, they told us to just sit and relax.

I appreciated it, but it's hard to relax with my brother glaring deep into Andrew's soul as Andrew continuously shifts uncomfortably in his seat.

The image itself gave me flashbacks of when we were in high school, and Brennan practically raised me since my parents didn't live at home, and Drew would come over to eat dinner with my brother and I. We'd chat and joke around with each other casually while usually eating a box of pizza. None of us liked to cook much.

One thing really can change everything, though. Clearly.

This situation couldn't be any more awkward and terrible. I am not cut out to kill an awkward situation.

Luckily, my mom picked up the pace and within the next three minutes, everything was set out on the table and our families were joined around us.

Unfortunately, it only brought the awkwardness down a single notch.

The parents talked amongst themselves, which wasn't anything new to Brennan or I. Like I've said, my family kept in touch with Craig and Shea even after Andrew left. They've been around.

Andrew was the only one in a completely foreign situation, seeing as he hasn't sat and had a dinner with my family and his in at least 18 months.

"Are you glad to be back, Andrew?" My dad asked him before taking a sip of his glass of ice water. Andrew was practically shaking in his bones because he was so unprepared to be put in this type of situation.

"More than glad," he confirmed. He was visibly more nervous now than he was the first time he met my parents.

My eyes glanced over at Brennan to see how he was doing. Leah said he could snap at any given moment, so I had to make sure to keep an eye on him.

"What's your plan now that you are home?" Wow, Dad is not wasting any time to beat around the bush here. Andrew looked at me, and then at Brennan, clearly being able to tell Brennan is already annoyed despite Andrew only speaking three words since we sat down.

"Um," he licked his lips nervously. "To get my life back on track, ya know. Get a job, get an apartment, and slowly get to know my — Hope." Something tells me he almost said my daughter, but caught himself. And it's a good thing, too. Who knows how Brennan would've reacted to that. "I've been gone for a long time and ruined a lot of relationships by being gone and making the decisions I made, but I plan to fix them."

I couldn't help the smile urging its way on to my face, but I didn't want anyone else to see it so I pretended to wipe my face so that my napkin would cover my grin.

Brennan and I didn't seem to be on the same page though.

"Are you all really fucking buying into this?" He exclaimed, standing up abruptly. "The guy shouldn't be allowed to leave for a year and a half and come back and let back in so damn easily."