Butterflies

Dinner

*I edited this chapter a bit because I thought there could be more to it. Hope you enjoy and I'll update soon!*

As we made our way down to the first floor, the smell of grilled chicken and cooked vegetables filled the room. We took a seat together on the couch and I laid with my legs resting on his lap. Most of the other adults were in there too, talking about the kids and how nice it was that everyone was together. As the room fell silent, Shawn's uncle, Sam, turned the attention onto me. 

"So Rachel, what do you do?" he asked. Both Shawn and I smiled, knowing this question was going to pop up eventually.

"I'm a dental hygienist at Finn's Dental." I said, getting surprised faces from several people in the room. His mom walked in, immediately joining the conversation. 

"She's an awesome dental hygienist. I know Aaliyah loves her." she chimed. I smiled at her compliment and felt Shawn give my leg a squeeze. He seemed to be happy that everyone was very pleased with me. 

"What got you into dentistry?" Shawn's aunt asked. 

"My dad, actually. He was a dentist and ever since I was little, I would go to his office and hang out there, watching him. Seeing how much he helped people really influenced my decision. When he passed, I knew I wanted to continue where he left off. So, I went to school and studied hard and now I'm here, doing exactly that." I smiled. We all chatted for a few minutes about college and my experience with dental school until it was announced that dinner was ready. Everyone gathered around the large table and took a seat, Shawn and I sitting towards the middle.

"Do you ever get to work on that tough guy?" Uncle Sam asked, gesturing to Shawn. We both laughed, thinking of all the stories we could share. 

"Actually, I do. He's my favorite person to have at the clinic." I said. With that, I began telling everyone the story of Shawn's surgery to have his wisdom teeth taken out. The whole table was laughing, including Shawn who's face had turned pink. 

"The thing is," he began. "I don't remember saying any of that stuff. My manager told me all about it and I just can't believe that I was that loud." he chuckled. 

"You were pretty loopy so I wasn't that surprised. It was cute though." I smiled. We continued eating and about half an hour later, everyone had finished and was now dispersed throughout the house, doing various things. I helped clean up the dishes while Shawn kept the kids busy. By eight o'clock, we both had ended up back in our room, completely exhausted. 

"You going to shower?" he asked, seeing the stack of towels in the cabinet. I nodded my head yes and he reached in, pulling one out for the each of us. After turning on the hot water, I hopped into the shower while Shawn shaved his face at the sink. Minutes later, we switched and I began my nightly routine to get ready for bed. As he stepped out of the shower, tying the towel around his waist, he wrapped his arms around me, getting my shirt wet. 

"Babe!" I laughed. He changed into some clothes and together, we brushed our teeth in front of the mirror. As we both finally laid in bed, we heard a light tap at the door. 

"Come in" he called. The door creaked open to reveal Caleb, Shawn's six year old cousin, wearing his Dinosaur pajamas. He had a sad expression on his face. Once Shawn saw him, he immediately sat up. "What's the matter, buddy?" he asked. 

"Everyone else won't let me play with them. They said they have too many players for the game. Can I stay here because they are being mean?" he said in a sorrowful tone. Shawn's tensed arms relaxed and a smile came to his face. 

"Yeah, of course. Come hop in" he said. Caleb then closed the door and jumped into bed, where we each made room for him in between us. He laid on his stomach and hugged the pillow, with his little legs extended as far as they could go. Shawn and I both rubbed his back and watched as his eyes began to slowly close. Soon enough, the sound of his light breathing was steady and we knew he had fallen asleep. Shawn lightly pulled the blanket over him and looked at me with a grin on his face. 

"He's out cold." Shawn whispered. We spent the remaining of the night talking quietly to avoid waking him up. "You really opened up today with my family. You know, you don't have to talk about your dad if you aren't ready" he said, reaching over to grab my hand. 

"I know. I just felt proud talking about him like that. He truly was the kindest person I've ever met." I replied with a smile. 

"Well I'm proud of you" he grinned. "Now, tell me some stories about him. I'm sure you've got a few good ones." With that, I started talking about the time my father dressed up as a prince to pick me up from school. 

"I think it was on my sixth birthday. I wore my Cinderella dress to school and by the end of the day, there he was, ready to be my Prince Charming." I smiled. "He always did stuff like that. Always made sure I was happy." 

"He sounds like a really good man." Shawn said. 

"Oh, he was." I grinned. With that, we turned off the lights and pulled the covers up. "Goodnight, Shawn." I said.

"Goodnight, Rachel. I love you." he replied.