Skinny Boy ✔

Chapter 29: merry Christmas, I guess

I rested my head next to the cold car window, my forehead thudding against it whenever we hit a bump. As we exited the freeway and neared the residential roads, potholes began to litter the road ahead. I gave in and straightened my neck, taking the time to put another song on my phone. I'd been sitting in silence for the most part, and could use the distraction right about now. Besides, I was bored. The drive to my grandparents' house was longer than I'd last remembered it being. 

Don't get me wrong, I was grateful to finally get out of the house after being on lock-down the past couple days, and I was happy to see my grandparents, and the rest of my extended family. But part of me wished I could have stayed home from the trip, and spent all day working out while everyone else was gone. That wasn't really an option, though. I mean, what was I supposed to do? Ask my parents if I could stay home and hit the gym while grounded? Granted, I did entertain the idea of pretending to be sick so I could stay behind, but that died with all the other possibilities when it occurred to me that they wouldn't leave me home alone for Christmas of all things. They would only call everyone up, explain the situation, and stay back home with me. 

Darn you, nice and considerate family. 

"Are we almost there?" Jamie groaned, squirming and contorting his body in what I assumed to be a stretch. 

At least I'm not the only one feeling it. 

"Almost," dad mumbled. 

Five more minutes of driving, and we were piling out of the vehicle as quickly as we could without slipping on the new sheet of snow. "It's about time," Jamie said, joining the rest of us as we lunged for our luggage in the trunk. My grandparents lived at higher altitudes, meaning it was colder when we piled out of the vehicle than it was when we got in forty minutes earlier. 

Haley, who'd gotten to come home from college for the holidays, was the last to get out of the vehicle. She squinted her makeup-painted eyes at the glowing sky, stepped down onto the ground, and slipped. Being the closest to her, I reflexively reached out and steadied her before she neared the ground. 

"Whoa," she said, eyes wide and hand to her beating chest. "Thanks, dude." 

"Yeah," I said, picking up the bag I'd dropped. 

After grabbing her own bag, Haley walked up next to me, put her hand flat against her head, and leveled it next to mine. "I think you've grown," she pointed out. 

I nodded. She was right; the last time we saw each other, we were only an inch or two apart, and now, I had about two more inches on her. 

"Not all men are tall," Jamie said as we all came to a stop at the front door. He look directly at me when he added with a smirk, "And not all tall people are men." 

Okay, ouch. That hurt more than I wanted to admit. 

There was no need for a comeback this time, though, because dad had me covered. He knocked on the door, looked over at Jamie, and said, "Please, at least pretend to be normal this time." 

A painful, inhuman snort came out of my nose. He looked about ready to take a swing at me, but before he could take any action, the door opened. Warmth swooped from inside, though I think we dragged most of the cold inside with us when grandpa lead us in. 

The warmth of the heater and excited welcomes enveloped the moment the door shut behind us. "Come on in! Kick off your shoes--and the snow on 'em--get all warmed up!" We slowly peeled off our coats and boots, tossing them on or next to the chair that everyone seemed to use as a coat rack. "Just the normal sleeping arrangements, I assume?"