Delicate Hearts

Chapter 10: New Traditions

Copyright 2013 © Rosesareforever

Delicate Hearts

Chapter 10

'New Traditions'

According to Gabriella today was the start of a new tradition, a ritual that would be honored throughout the years. Jasmine honestly didn’t know whether to be happy or saddened by the fact that she needed to start a new tradition in the first place. Her grandmother and she had had the perfect annual celebration. Guess it was time to leave the past behind and move forward, no matter how difficult it was.

“Jasmine? Lucy and her mother have arrived!” Gabriella called out from the hallway.

“I’m coming!” Jasmine shouted back as she dried her hands with the kitchen towel. She’d just finished preparing the pumpkin pie. Miraculously, she didn’t have any trouble remembering the recipe. Everything had worked out fine without any fiascos happening. Not to brag or anything, but it was the best pumpkin pie she’d seen in a very long time.

As she entered the hall, Jasmine was immediately enveloped in a warm hug. “Thank you so much for inviting us!” Lucy exclaimed excitedly as she squeezed Jasmine to death. Someone seemed happy to see her, Jasmine thought with a smile, as she tried to unwrap herself from Lucy’s tight embrace.

“The more the merrier,” Gabriella proclaimed, with her ever so friendly smile, as she shook hands with Lucy’s mom Helene. The woman couldn’t be much taller than five foot two and had the same maroon colored hair as her daughter. They could easily claim to be sisters, the resemblance was that strong.

“Nice to meet you, ma’am,” Jasmine said politely as she shook Helene’s hand. It was the first time she had ever seen her. In the past, Jasmine always tried to steer clear of the people that would make leaving California that much harder on her. This meant she’d refused to go to Lucy’s house and meet her family.

Eventually she just had to give in. Constantly turning down the chance to meet her mother was hurting Lucy. Everyone made mistakes, Jasmine’s biggest one was believing she could stay unattached from her new home. Even when she had been stubbornly shutting people out, they’d still found a way into her life. It was inventible she made new friends and started caring about her new family.

“Please call me Helene, dear. Ma’am makes me feel so old,” the woman answered with a smile, showing off the same dimples as Lucy.

“Please join us in the dining room,” Gabriella proposed as she pointed in the right direction. Helene and Lucy smiled and followed the woman to the correct room.

Gabriella had been busy all day preparing everything for the festivities, acting like a true lunatic. Jasmine had never seen the woman so stressed out. She’d been minutes away from having a severe panic attack when Frank told her he couldn’t find the decoration box in the attic.  

To make matters worse, Gabriella couldn’t cook even if her life depended on it. She’d burned most of the food. Fortunately, Jasmine had always been an excellent cook and had been able to save some of their dinner. She honestly didn’t understand why Gabriella could chose today of all days to give Grace the day off.

“I’ll get Nathan and Lucas,” Jasmine interrupted, turning toward the staircase. Gabriella nodded, seemingly a bit unsure. She was still worried about her eldest son and his aggressive behavior. No matter how many times Jasmine told her she had no problem dealing with Lucas, the poor woman stayed concerned. It would take time before Gabriella started trusting her son around other people, especially Jasmine.

Once upstairs, Jasmine decided to look for Nathan first. He’d keep Lucy company while she tried to convince Lucas to join the family downstairs. She knew it wasn’t going to be a picnic to coax him down. He had frequently insinuated he wasn’t planning on spending time with his family members during Thanksgiving. Knowing Lucas, he would probably rather hang out with his biker friends.