So Happy Together

The best Christmas ever

   A day had passed and you had heard nothing from ben. You wondered if he was still on campus or if he was just staying with his uncle until it was time to come back. It's not that you cared, it's that something told you to be worried about the guy. He seemed so defensive. You talked to Elaine about it over the phone. She told you not to worry about him, that he was just another rich kid asshole like everyone else at the school. She also took the time to try and lure you to her house for the week. You happily informed her you wouldn't be spending christmas alone anymore.

"See i know your grandpa wouldn't leave you hanging," she said over the phone, "i just wish you would get over it and call your parents to see what they're doing."

Your parents. You did try. They didn't bother to call back, not even send a text back. You didn't have the heart to tell her though.

"My parents are actually in Russia for some business so it's hard to get a hold of them, but my pop pop did say he's having people over christmas day, you want me to see if you can come?"

"I don't think my parents will let me. We usually do our gift exchange the day after remember?"

"Shit that's right, I forgot. My bad, maybe you can still come over to his house for the exchange."

"Yeah id love to see him again, besides I haven't seen him since the thing"

The thing being your grandma's funeral. Mama and pop pop were the idea of what love is. They met young and were together right until her last breath. You were there too. You loved them both to death. They raised you more than your actual parents did so when mama died, you were heartbroken. You stayed with pop pop about 2 weeks after. He drove you to class everyday and picked you up after. You guys spent every moment together for a month after the funeral. The day you said goodbye to her was also the last day you saw your parents. They didn't stay long. Claimed they had a flight. That's when you decided you were done trying to connect with them.

"yeah , i'm sure he misses you. You're basically his other grandchild."

You heard someone over the phone call her name. "Hey I've gotta go dinner time. Talk tomorrow?"

"Of course, have fun. Say hi to mom for me!"

"You know i will! Love you, bye" she shouted as she hung up.

You wondered what it was like eating dinner like a real family.

A couple days passed and it was finally Christmas eve. You woke up earlier than normal, showered, and got dressed. You played some music while you packed a bag for the night and next day. You looked out your window and saw Ben walking across campus. Probably headed to his uncle's office. You decided to ignore him and kept packing. 20 minutes later you finally get a call from your pop pop telling you he's down stairs waiting. You have a car. You know you could just drive, but you love that he still insists on getting you. You lock your dorm and run downstairs when you run into a wall you were positive was never there before.

You took a step back and saw the wall was in fact Ben. He turned around and looked at you with an unreadable face. Was he mad? Annoyed? What's with this dude in the first place? He opened his mouth to say something before he shook his head and walked off. After the awkward encounter you skipped out the doors and over to the old truck you were all too familiar with. To put it lightly your family was loaded. Your pop pop especially, but he still found it wasteful to buy a new car when he has one that still works. Even though he's had it since your dad was a kid.

You threw your bag in the bed and swung the door open.

"Hello there," you heard your grandpa say. It was his classic greeting."I've been looking forward to this since our conversation on the phone."