Llemons

Dinner Disaster

I was beginning to think that this was a bad idea.

Ten minutes into dinner and it had been eerily silent. When conversation did start up, it was either my mom asking something nosy about Brandon, or my dad and Kolden saying something to everyone but Brandon. I felt like I would rip my hair out if I had to endure one second longer of this awkwardness.

"So Brandon," my mom clucked, "are you going to audition for Lyha's show?"

Brandon flashed her a dazzling smile, his dimples deeply kissing his cheeks. "Nah. I'm more of a behind the scenes guy."

"Well that's too bad," she continued, practically fluttering her eyelashes at him. "I was hoping you could convince Lyah to finally audition."

"Well that's something I'm trying to convince her to do anyway. I think it's foolish to not take some of the opportunity she's been given."

I glared at him from the corner of my eye and muttered, "You know why I can't."

"No, I know why you won't. And I still think that's a shitty excuse."

My mom coughed and nearly choked on her food and my dad's fork clattered loudly on his plate. Kolden put his head down to hide his smirk and I rubbed my hand against my forehead.

"Brandon, honey...at dinner in this house...we like to leave that kind of...colorful language outside."

"Yeah," my dad finally chimed in. "Outside and far away from here. Kinda like where you should be."

"Dad," I growled, shooting him a warning glare.

"No your dad's right, Lyah. I'm so sorry Mrs. Whitmoore. It's just...sometimes I get so passionate about these things I can't help myself."

My mom put a hand on her heart and my dad rolled his eyes. Unfortunately, I agreed with my dad on this one. "So what are your interests in school?" She continued.

I scrunched my eyes shut, hoping he would lie and that the lie wouldn't have anything to do with partying hard and smoking pot. "Well I like to dally in a bunch of different things. Football, music, art"--

Now it was my turn to choke on my food. Brandon absent-mindedly patted my back, and I tried to discreetly glare at him, telepathically asking what the hell he was doing. My dad noticed his hand on me, and I scooted away from him as subtly as I could. He seemed to not get the hint or simply chose not to care, and scooted closer.

"Wow. Lyah didn't tell us that you were so into a different variety of things," my mom intoned looking at me pointedly.

"He's a man of mystery," I answered with a nervous chuckle, half meaning it and wondering if he really was into all those things.

"Well hopefully not too mysterious," my dad grumbled. "I say a man that has too many secrets is hardly a man at all. It takes a real man to tell the honest truth about things."

"Well we all have our secrets," Brandon challenged, a defiant look in his eyes. "I think the ability to keep those secrets at the cost of not hurting others is part of many things that show the measure of a true man."

My dad caught on to his challenging tone, and sat up straighter in his chair. "A secret is a secret, and to not share that secret, would make you a liar..."

"Dad," I growled in warning.

"Hypothetically speaking," he added ruefully.

Brandon shook his head, blatantly disagreeing. "No. Some secrets are meant to be kept. No matter what the cost."