When Snowflakes Fall | Completed

Chapter 4 | Family Dinner

HAYDEN WILSON

A BLONDE WOMAN SIPS on her margarita while she watches me wipe down the wooden counters. She traces the rim of her glass with a finger and she seductively bites her lip. Not today. I inwardly groan.

For the past six years, I've worked at Turquoise pour pub. We're famous for having blue-colored drinks and karaoke on Fridays. Watching drunk people try to sing is one of the best things about this job.

My ex-girlfriend's dad, Jim, owns the bar. He gave me a job shortly after Bexley left Oregon without a trace. She never told me that she was leaving and I found out the hard way. Some days were harder than others, but the days that I did feel good, I would cry myself to sleep. Even my good days are hard.

I don't hate Bexley for leaving Oregon and me. But I wish that I would know why she left. Her younger sister, Chrissy, is getting married later this month and I was invited to attend her wedding. A huge part of me hopes that Bexley will be there. And if she is, maybe I'll finally get answers.

"Hayden," the blonde woman calls me over and I put the rag that I was using to wipe down the counters on the top of a bottle of cleaning spray.

"What can I do for you?" I lean against the counter, my arms crossed over my chest. The lights above are bright, making her eyes look almost gray.

"You can do a lot of things for me," she says, biting her lip and leaning towards me, the smell of alcohol on her breath.

Let her down easily, Hayden.

"Right, well, you're drunk and I'm not interested," I remove her hand from my arm and watch as her smile drops.

"Why doesn't anyone want me?" She slumps back, placing her head on her palm. "Am I not pretty enough, is that it?" She whispers, taking another sip of her margarita.

"Trust me, you're beautiful, but I'm not looking for anything serious. And you'll find someone eventually."

"You think so?" She tilts her head, looking at me in question.

"Yes," I take her drink and dump it out in the sink behind me. "I'm cutting you off."

"Fine," she frowns and reaches for her purse. Pulling out a ten-dollar bill, she slaps it on the counter and slides off of her stool. "Goodnight, Hayden."

"Walk home safe!" I shout before she walks out of the bar. A few of the other customers look at me in annoyance and I apologize before going back to work.

❄︎

"Hayden Nash Wilson, what did I tell you about coming over without calling first?" My mother scolds me as she pushes my father away and fixes her hair. I cringe while I look at her smudged lipstick.

I need bleach, now.

"Sorry, ma."

She waves me off before pulling me into a hug. Her brown hair rests on her shoulders when she pulls away and looks up at me. "Did you get taller?"

"No, ma. You shrunk," I chuckle and my father laughs from behind my mother. My mother stands at five foot three while I stand at six foot six. I got my height from my father, who is a little taller than me.

"He's right, honey," my father says before getting a glare sent his way. His blue eyes grow wide and he kisses her on the head. My mother may be short, but she is terrifying when she's angry. She and plastic spatulas are best friends. My brother and I are like the spatulas cousins.

Throughout our childhood, we would get in trouble almost every day, followed by an angry mother and throbbing behinds.

"Thanks for backing me up," she grumbles before walking to the kitchen. "You two are so alike and I have to put up with it."

"Yeah, you're stuck with us, but you love us," I help her set the kitchen table and spread out the plates. It's been a little while since I've visited my parents, but I do call almost every day. They live in Perry, but I'm always busy with work and other things that happen to come up.

"Unfortunately," she mumbles teasingly, her brown eyes flickering between my father and me. "Alright, let's eat."

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