By early afternoon, the Ambros household was preparing Thanksgiving dinner. Isaac's mother and sister were busy in the kitchen cooking up a storm. Laura's fiancé, Jacob, sat in the living room with Isaac and his father, watching football and chatting about work and school.
As for Lexi, she helped Isaac's mother out wherever she could. She set the table as instructed and made sure that enough hot pads were on the dining room table. She also got out the proper serving dishes for all the food.
"This all smells delicious," she remarked as she saw Laura check potatoes and turnip boiling in separate pots.
"Hope you like turnip," Laura said with a laugh. "It's Mom's favourite."
"I love turnip!" Lexi exclaimed. She then looked at Isaac's mother, who was checking the timer on the stove. "Can I help with anything else?"
"Just put the dinner rolls in that brown wicker basket, but make sure to line it with a napkin first," she ordered.
Lexi carried out the task, setting the basket of rolls away from the chaos. "Anything else I can help out with, Lana?"
"Nope, we're good," Isaac's mother stated in a flat voice.
"There's not a lot of room for three people in the kitchen," Laura chimed in. She grinned at Lexi. "Besides, you're our guest— relax."
"Oh, uh...okay then," Lexi replied before excusing herself to the living room.
Lana's probably just stressed out over making dinner, she thought as she claimed an empty chair. She stared at the TV without paying much attention to the football game.
She then glanced around the living room. Isaac was gone while his father sat on a light grey leather recliner, engrossed in the TV. Jacob sat beside him on the black leather couch, also occupied in the game.
"You alright?"
Lexi jumped, only to relax when she saw Isaac beside her. "I'm good."
"Sorry to scare you again," he remarked with a laugh.
"You're forgiven."
About an hour later, dinner was served. A large turkey sat in the middle of the table looking golden and juicy. There were also mashed potatoes, mashed turnip, peas, and dinner rolls. Two white ceramic gravy boats sat on opposite ends. A glass dish of butter and a small plastic container full of cranberries were also on the table.
"This all looks great," Lexi remarked.
"It sure does!" Jacob exclaimed. "I'm starved!"
"Jacob, please," Laura said, rolling her eyes. "Sorry about him."
"Don't worry about it," Isaac laughed.
Thanksgiving dinner went off without a hitch. Everyone filled their plates with enough food to keep them full well into tomorrow morning. People chatted about the football game playing on TV, as well as about their respective lives. It was a heart-warming dinner that left everyone's hearts and stomachs full. A few people enjoyed a slice of pumpkin pie afterwards to cap off a tasty and successful Thanksgiving dinner.
After dinner ended and the table had been cleared, Isaac and his mother ended up doing dishes. Isaac dried everything and made sure to put it away in its proper place. Everyone else had returned to the living room to chat and relax.
"Thanks again for dinner, Mom," he said. "It was good."
"I'm glad," his mother replied in a soft voice.
"Is something wrong?" Isaac asked. "You've been kinda quiet since I came here."
His mother stopped washing a pot and gave him a hard stare. "It's about Lexi."
Oh, great, he thought. "What do you mean?"
"I've been thinking a lot about her," his mother began, "and I'm worried about your relationship."
"Why? Everything's fine between us."
"Aren't you worried that you'll have to support Lexi after graduation? Assuming you two even stay together, that is."
Isaac's jaw dropped as his mother resumed washing the pot in her hands. "What? No, that's not gonna happen, Mom."
"How do you know that?"
"I...I don't," Isaac admitted. "But Lexi's working at Barnes & Noble and plans to for now. It's not like she's wasting her life away."
His mother snorted. "I see."
"Mom, I love her," Isaac said in a firm yet low voice. "I support her and her dreams, no matter what. She knows what she's doing. She's not stupid, Mom."
"I don't like Lexi."
"Seriously?"
"Your father does, but I don't," his mother added.
Isaac scoffed. "Well, I still love her, Mom. I can't make you like her, but you need to respect my relationship anyways."
"I wish you had tried to make things work with Cassie," his mother began.
"Enough," Isaac snapped. "I'm with Lexi now, okay? I'm not gonna break up with her or do anything like that."
With the dishes finally done, Isaac hung up the damp kitchen towel and left the kitchen without saying another word. He couldn't believe that she had trashed his girlfriend despite how nice she was to his parents.
I know Mom's looking out for me, but she didn't have to be so rude about it, he thought as he entered the living room.
He spotted Lexi curled up on the couch alone. Jacob and Laura sat on a light grey leather loveseat while his father sat in his favourite recliner.
"You alright?" he whispered once he took a seat beside his girlfriend.
"I'm fine."
Isaac frowned. "Are you sure?"
"I'm fine," Lexi repeated. "Just tired, that's all."
Despite her words, something seemed off about her demeanour. Isaac noted that she didn't seem to pay attention to anyone or anything. She stared at the TV aimlessly. It was clear that while she was looking in that direction, she wasn't absorbing the football game playing on the screen.
Maybe she is tired, Isaac thought. I hope she's okay, though.
***
The next morning, Isaac woke up to see if Lexi would be interested in taking another walk around his neighbourhood. He enjoyed the one they had gone on yesterday so much that he wanted to do it again. He carefully crept down the basement stairs to see if she was awake or still asleep.
What he didn't expect to find was Lexi lying in bed, sobbing softly. Her back was facing him, but it was evident that she was crying. He rushed to her side as several worst-case scenarios ran through his mind.
"Lexi?"
She turned around to face him, tears streaking her fair-skinned face. She wiped them away with one hand before sitting up in bed.
"Lexi, what's wrong?" Isaac asked. He rubbed her back to calm her down.
"I heard everything your mom said after dinner."
Isaac's heart dropped to his stomach. "You did?"
Lexi nodded slowly. "I heard every single word. About her thinking you'll have to support me, how she doesn't like me...all of it."
"Babe, I'm so sorry," Isaac said as he pulled her into a tight hug.
He could hear Lexi sob into his chest, which only increased his already building rage. The last thing he had expected from this visit was for his mother to trash his girlfriend behind her back. He was still in a foul mood over that exchange. But knowing that Lexi had overheard it broke his heart.
"I wasn't trying to eavesdrop," she explained while pulled away. "I was just gonna grab a glass of water, that's it. But then I heard everything, and...I just walked away."
"Lexi, I'm so sorry you had to hear that," Isaac said. He paused to kiss her forehead. "I feel awful."
"It's not your fault, Isaac," Lexi replied. "But I'm not gonna lie— I'm fuming."
"So am I," Isaac declared. "You didn't deserve any of that bullshit."
Lexi nodded through her tears. "I love you; I do. I wish your mother did too."
"Me too," Isaac responded, tucking a strand of her chestnut blonde hair behind her ear.
"Thank you for standing up for me, by the way."
"Of course. You deserve it, babe."
"I might leave early."
"Wait, really?"
Lexi bit her lip and nodded. "I'm sorry, but...I don't know if I wanna stay after that."
The admission crushed Isaac. He didn't blame his girlfriend for feeling this way, but he still didn't want her to leave early. Spending time with her was what he had looked forward to. Then again, he wasn't about to make her stay in an uncomfortable situation.
"I support whatever decision you make," he finally said.
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure, babe."
Lexi nuzzled her head into his chest. "I'm sorry."
"You have nothing to apologize for, okay? I mean it," Isaac stated firmly.
"If you insist," Lexi said in a weak voice before unleashing a fresh batch of tears.
God, why did this weekend have to go to hell? This fucking sucks, Isaac thought as he continued to comfort his crying girlfriend.
***
Despite the events that had gone down that morning, Isaac still managed to convince Lexi to go on another walk with him to One More Bean. They snagged a seat inside and chatted about anything but last night. He managed to make her laugh a little, which brought a smile to his face. Hanging out at One More Bean allowed them to spend time together without having to be around Isaac's parents. Neither he nor Lexi was keen on chatting with them again.
By early afternoon, everyone was chatting in the living room. Laura was sitting on a regular chair while Isaac and Lexi shared the love seat. Isaac's parents stayed on the couch. Jacob had left a couple of hours ago, as he had a nursing shift that afternoon.
"When do you go back to work?" Lexi asked, looking at Laura.
"Not 'til tomorrow morning," Laura replied with a grim expression. "I love my job, don't get me wrong. But I'm enjoying my time off."
"I bet," Lexi laughed. "I have my first shift back at Barnes & Noble on Monday. It's a closing shift, which I prefer. But yeah, I like some time off too."
Isaac's mother raised her eyebrows but didn't say anything. Isaac bit his lip to keep his thoughts to himself.
"So, what's the plan after graduation?" Laura asked nonchalantly.
Isaac winced. Why did you have to ask that, Laura?
Lexi grinned at the question. "Right now, the plan is to continue to work at Barnes & Noble. I'm gonna go full-time there if I don't get a publishing deal when school's over. I finally got signed to a literary agent before Thanksgiving, and she'll be pitching my manuscript to publication houses soon. Most likely after the holidays, I'd say."
"I didn't know you got a literary agent," Isaac piped up.
"Oh, I thought I told you," Lexi remarked. "I'm sorry. Yeah, that happened last week. She called me during class, and I met her in person the next morning. Her name's Mandy Hall, and she works for Write House Agency in Manhattan. She's really nice and helpful."
"Is it official?" Laura asked.
"Yeah, I've signed a contract and everything," Lexi replied with a large smile. "Now, all I do is wait and see if someone will pick up my book. That's all I can do now."
"And what if that doesn't happen?" Isaac's mother asked.
Isaac frowned. "Mom, please."
"I'll have to write another book to have my agent pitch to publications," Lexi replied.
"And what if that doesn't work out?" Isaac's mother pressed. "Will you have to live off Mommy and Daddy?"
"Mom!" Isaac scolded.
Lexi's blue-green eyes hardened. "No, that won't happen."
"Are you sure?" Isaac's mother questioned.
"What's your problem?" Lexi inquired, her voice gaining a new edge.
"My problem," Isaac's mother said, "is that you're chasing a pipe dream without any regard for the future. This is just a stupid dream that you'll never actually achieve. Why don't you look into getting a real job like everyone else?"
"MOM!" Isaac shouted at the top of his lungs. "What are you doing?!"
"Isaac, enough!" his father snapped.
Lexi bit her lip before storming off to the basement. Isaac followed close behind.
"Lexi, I'm sorry," he began.
"Don't," she said softly. "I'm leaving."
"Babe, please don't," Isaac begged.
"I've already ordered a Greyhound ticket, and I have to leave now if I wanna make it to the station on time," Lexi revealed.
"What??? Seriously?"
"I told you I didn't wanna stick around, didn't I?"
"I...I didn't know you did this."
"I'm sorry, Isaac," Lexi said in a sombre voice, "but I'm not gonna let your family talk to me like that. I appreciate you standing up for me, I do. But I think I should leave. I'm sorry for causing problems."
"Lexi, please—"
But Lexi ignored him as she grabbed her luggage and trudged upstairs. She threw her coat and shoes on just as her Uber approached the house.
"Thank you for the visit," she called out before exiting.
Isaac didn't bother chasing after her; he knew that his effort would be in vain. He stood at the front door in the bitter cold as he watched Lexi's Uber drive away. As soon as it turned off his street, he went back inside and slammed the door. His hands were balled up in tight fists and he had a nasty scowl on his face.
"Did she leave?" Isaac's mother asked.
"Yep. Are you happy now?"
"Don't talk back to me, young man!"
"How can I not, Mom?" Isaac countered. "You had to go and ruin what was a great holiday weekend! You know, Lexi heard everything you said about her while we were doing dishes."
His mother went pale. "She did?"
"Yeah. She wasn't trying to, but she did. So— are you happy now?"
"Isaac, your mother has good intentions," his father chimed in.
"I don't care what those 'good intentions' were," Isaac sneered, going so far as to add air quotes. "That doesn't fix anything!"
"She's just worried."
"That's true," his mother added.
Laura suddenly appeared at the front entrance with a disappointed frown. "Really?"
"Why'd you have to ask that damn question, Laura?" Isaac asked.
"I didn't know about what happened last night, Isaac," she insisted, raising her hands in protest. "If I did, I wouldn't have brought it up in the first place."
Isaac bit his tongue and sighed. He couldn't bring himself to be angry with Laura; she wasn't the type to hurt anyone's feelings on purpose. She also never spoke badly about anyone behind their back, including Lexi. If she didn't like someone or had a problem with them, she would say so right to their face.
"I just don't get why you're giving Lexi a hard time," Laura went on. "She's a nice girl, and she's always good to Isaac. I get along with her too. She tried to help us out so much while visiting. Mom, you saw how much she offered to help yesterday. And then you had to go and berate her like a child— and she's not."
"You like her?" Isaac asked. He knew the answer to his question, but he needed to hear it straight from her mouth.
"I do," Laura replied with a sincere nod. "Like I said, she's good to Isaac and they seem to be a happy couple. At least, from what I've seen and heard from Isaac. So...what's the big deal?"
Isaac's mother sighed. "I just want what's best for Isaac. Is that so bad?"
"No," Isaac said, "but it's bad to be rude to Lexi when she's always treated you and Dad with kindness and respect. She makes me really happy, you know? I love her so much."
"Besides," Laura piped up, "it seems like she's got a good head on her shoulders. She has a plan and seems to know what she wants. When she was talking about all that stuff, it sounded so cool! Yeah, things might not work out the first time, but that's life. She seems to get that."
Isaac's parents exchanged shameful looks. Isaac sighed in an attempt to collect himself.
"I'm sorry," his mother said in a low voice.
"Don't apologize to me— apologize to Lexi," he replied. "She's the one you hurt the most. If anyone deserves an apology, it's her. When we drive back to Buffalo tomorrow, you need to apologize to her. And you need to mean it too; no half-hearted crap."
"I will," his mother vowed, her eyes teary. "I promise."