Another Door Opens

5. Unconventional ideas about love.

- EDEN -

I lost track of how many deep breaths I forced my body to take before entering through the doorway of my grandparents’ house, let alone within the first five minutes of my being there.

The extra oxygen helped initially at tempering my anxiety, but I’m not so sure it’s having any positive effect now whatsoever.

Penn and I walked inside, not bothering to stop and wait to be invited in through the open front door, and were immediately met with radio silence, the likes of which you see in movies and television when someone has stumbled into a conversation that people were having about them. No one but me would have seen or heard Penn’s low chuckle under his breath, no doubt finding this not at all surprising considering the reception he’s received from a large majority of our family over the years.

My niece, Piper, Elodie’s daughter, took one look at me from her seat in my grandfather’s lap before she raced over to me and wrapped her arms around my waist. “AUNTY EDEN!”

“Hello to you too, my angel,” I said, leaning down to pick her up, her curly blonde hair somehow reaching half way down her back already despite her being only seven years old. She's arguably one of my favourite things about Byron Bay, and definitely my favourite thing about my sister right now.

"Aunty Eden, where's Trey? Why isn't he here with you?" Piper asked. It's an innocent question, and she's too young to know the weight of it so I can't hold it against her. But still, I wish she’d given me at least a couple minutes to warm up to this loaded question, especially with everyone else around watching and waiting for my answer.

“Trey is still in Melbourne. He didn't come on the plane with me and I don't think you're going to see him anymore," I said knowing full well everyone around was listening in to how I'd reply. Piper, ever inquisitive and the most frequent user of the word 'why' I've ever known, asked for the reason she wasn't going to see Trey again. "It's a bit tricky to explain, Pip, but Trey and I had some problems and so he's not going to be my boyfriend anymore."

"Why?"

"Well, sometimes our feelings change as we get older, and so we decide that some people aren't good for us anymore and we have to say goodbye."

I barely heard Piper's next "But why?" over the sound of my sister's scoff at my answer.

Ignoring Elodie, I continued to try to find an answer suitable for a seven year old to help her understand breaking up with someone. "You know how you had your favourite teddy Chester when you were little, and you used to carry him everywhere and you loved him so much? And then one day you decided you were a big girl and you didn't need to have Chester with you all the time, and you were so brave and gave Chester to another little kid who wanted him? You were sad for a little while and you miss him every now and then, but you're still happy?" She nodded, remembering the stuffed toy I bought her for her third birthday. "It's the same with Trey and I."

Piper was cut off by Elodie, who swooped in with a not at all believable excuse that my mother wanted to see her and didn’t even bother to acknowledge me in any way shape or form. No kiss on the cheek, no hug. Not a ‘hello, sister,’ or even a wayward glance at my face. Nothing at all, which, while unsurprising, is incredibly disappointing. I didn’t expect anything more, to be perfectly honest. But it still hurts to see your lowest expectations of your own family met right before your very eyes.

Penn put an encouraging arm around my shoulders and walked us both further into the house to where my grandparents were sitting at the dining table with what could only be described as some of the most miserable smiles I’ve ever seen. “Happy birthday, old man,” Penn said to my grandfather, letting go of me and instead embracing him in a hug. He didn’t even bother offering the same gesture to my grandmother when he greeted her hello. I doubt she’d have returned it, even if he had. She’s not the most warm of people, preferring instead to sit back and steer the ship by barking instructions at everyone else to do her bidding.