Unpredictable Change

Part 22-"I thought so too until I found him kissing a girl in his office."

Chapter 22

"I recently watched the commercial you did in Russia, and I'm really proud of you."
"Thank you, Greg," I respond, grinning from ear to ear.
"And your Instagram is flooded with likes and comments," Ariana adds. I look confused as I turn to her. "You don't know? You've posted about 10 videos and pictures wishing people happy holidays."
"Don't mind her. She knows! She doesn't handle her social media accounts. Her agent does all the work," Sophie interjects, avoiding eye contact. She and Alex have been acting very weird since they got here.
"Are we going to spend the whole of Christmas Eve talking about Kylie and her pathetic job?" Jenny lashes out.
"We'd be talking about you if you had made up your mind on what you want to do. You've been in college for eight years already," I snort at Grandma Lisa's words.
"It's Harry who is spoiling her. If it were up to me, she would have dropped out of school already. She keeps changing courses every semester. I've told her already, no boyfriends till she finally gets her life together. She will forever remain a virgin."
"Hahahaha." I let out a loud hysterical laugh. I think the laugh is infectious because everyone at the table is laughing, even Laura.
"You don't really believe your daughter is a virgin. Do you?" Julia asks, and we all laugh again.
"She's 26, aunt!" Justin adds.
"But I'm definitely sure Laura is a virgin. She's a good girl," Jeremiah eyes Laura mockingly.
"No, I'm not. I've slept with Justin before, remember?" The place suddenly goes quiet. The laughter ceases.
"No, we don't!" Justin, Jeremiah, Sophie, and Christine reply in unison. I couldn't be more proud to have my friends here. After that unpleasant and nasty comment from Laura, we all eat our food in silence.
"Mom! Who is a virgin?" The silence is broken by Diane's question. We all look at Christine, waiting for her answer.
"Uh, a virgin is someone who doesn't eat a lot of fats and thick oils. Just like your aunt Kylie."
"No! Your mom is wrong. I am not a virgin. That means I eat a lot of fat." I interject. I don't know if lying to Diane about such things is the best, but all I know is that's how Christine wants to raise her, so we'll all respect that. We are so lost in the conversation that we didn't realize it's already midnight until we see the first fireworks in the sky. Everyone immediately starts singing Happy Birthday to me instead of the usual Merry Christmas on the 25th. I didn't even know that a cake had been baked for me with a big 27 on it. I can't believe I'm 27 already. Three years more, and I'll be in my 30s. I don't have to explain how this celebration will go, right? Because you all can guess what will happen. I'll just be loaded with gifts and a whole lot.
****
The older people retire to bed, leaving us to talk deep into the night. It's been a really hectic day, and I can't believe tomorrow will be just like today. I want to stay with the rest until the next morning, but my eyes won't let me. It's bailing on me, and I can hardly keep them open. I excuse myself to bed, leaving Justin and the others alone in the garden, but not before giving Laura a threatening look. I trust Justin completely, but I can't say the same about this viper called Laura. Immediately my body hits the bed, I fall into a deep slumber.
***
"Can you tell your friend to stop crying? She's going to use up all the tissues," Jenny yells. The most dramatic part of Christmas Day dinner is over, and I'm glad Grandma Lisa didn't bombard me with work like she did yesterday. We are all watching television in the living room when Sophie suddenly bursts into tears. Not sure what she's crying about, but I'm just handing her tissues like the good friend that I am. I'm proud of her because this is the longest time she has ever kept something from us. And I know the time is finally up for her to tell us the weird vibe that is going on between her and Alex.
"So dramatic!" Laura mumbles under her breath. I don't know where Justin, Jeremiah, and Alex are because they decided not to watch the movie with us. Grandma had managed to drag Greg and the rest to church. I had no idea she was that religious, but at least we escaped her before. We had dinner early because of her church commitments. I pull Sophie from the sofa and run outside with her. Christine is closely following behind.
"Alex cheated on me." I don't think I heard what she said. Which Alex is she talking about?
"What? Which Alex? The Alex I know adores you." I exclaim.
"I thought so too until I found him kissing a girl in his office." Both Christine and I gasp loudly. For a second, we're lost and don't even have the right words to comfort her. "I didn't want him to meet my family this Christmas, and I didn't want to meet his either, not until we solve this. That is why we came earlier than planned. We only came here because of you. We aren't together." I sigh, and we both pull her in for a hug. It must be hard on her, considering how much she adores and loves Alex. I can't imagine what she must be feeling.