Eight hours ago

"Uh, Seth, you can let go of me now."

Grinning sheepishly, he pulls away. "Sorry, got carried away." He steps back and sees KY beside me. "Hey," he says, surprised coloring the tone of his voice.

KY only nods at him, and then turns to his mother. "Where are Granny and Lala?" he asks.

"They went to Hawaii to celebrate their 50th anniversary," Mrs. Swift answers. "That reminds me. Give them a call, they're worried about you."

"Sure," he says, already dialling on his phone. "What about Aunt Veronica?"

"She'll celebrate the holiday with Aunt Xyrielle," Seth says. "Rain has a new baby!" He sounds excited with the news, but KY only stares at him coolly.

I sigh. Why does he have to be so cold?

 "Come on," Seth says, grabbing my arm. "Let's not waste Aunt Sophia's time in cooking."

Mrs. Swift smiles. "Go ahead," she says. "I'll call you when it's ready."

Before I can say goodbye, Seth already pushes me out of the door. He leads me out of the house, and onto the backyard.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I ask, "What was that?"

"What?" Seth asks nonchalantly.

"What's going on with you and KY?" I press.

"Nothing," he says evasively. "Let's not talk about my cousin, alright?"

The unreadable expression on his face makes me stop from asking him questions.

I've never been in an awkward silence with Seth before, and I don't want to experience it, ever.

After a while, he nudges me with his elbow. "I'm glad you're here," he says, going back to his normal self, "but why did Kyle bring you?"

I thought he didn't want to talk about his cousin?

Oh, well.

"He didn't want me to stay alone in the—"

"I missed you."

I glance up from my shoes and grin at him. "You too!"

He pinches my cheeks. "No, you don't."

Pushing his hands away, I say, "I do!"

"Prove it!"

I frown. "What do you want me to do?"

Before he can respond, a hand falls down on my shoulder, making me jump in surprise.

Turning around, I see Andre grinning at me. "Hey, Brielle."

"Hi," I say. He's really good at surprising me.

"I don't want to ruin the moment," he says, scratching the back of his neck, "but can I borrow Seth for a sec?"

"Sure," I say.

Seth frowns at his dad.

"It will only take a while," Andre says.

"It's alright," I tell Seth. "We can talk later. I'm gonna head back inside. Mrs. Swift might need an extra hand."

I give a quick wave at them and walk back to the kitchen.

Mrs. Swift is alone.

I wonder where KY is.

Stop it, your world doesn't revolve around him.

Maybe he's at Lance's. He mentioned they're neighbors.

"Brielle." Mrs. Swift looks surprise to see me standing behind her. "I thought you're with Seth?"

I shake my head. "Do you need my help?"

There are a lot of plates on the table.

"Can you slice the cheese?"

"Okay," I say.

She hands me a knife, and we work silently. I don't mind though, I missed this, being in the kitchen with another person.

When I was studying, I cooked with my classmates.

Back at the house, I'm all alone because they guys are too busy jamming to help me.

After, I give the sliced cheese to Mrs. Swift.

"Thank you," she says. "I've been meaning to ask. . ." she trails off while getting the turkey from the oven.

"Yeah?"

"How long have you liked my son?"

"Excuse me?"

She puts the tray on the table and smiles at me. "You like him, don't you?"

I bite my lip. "How did you know?" I ask. "Am I obvious?"

"I saw the way you looked at him."

I swallow hard. "Like what?"

"I'm hungry," Andre says, barging in the kitchen. "How many more minutes?"

I blink. Is Andre already finished with whatever needs to be done with Seth's help? It's real quick.

"Almost," Mrs. Swift says. "Brielle, can you put the side dishes in the dining room?"

"Sure."

I take the cranberry sauce on one hand while I hold on to the mashed potatoes on the other. Andre carries the green bean casserole, and the cornbread.

Mrs. Swift takes the pumpkin pie.

Driana prepares the table and the utensils. We give the trays and plates to her and she arranges them on their proper places. Seth told me her mother took up interior designing in college.

"Everything's settled," Driana says. "Andre, call them, and tell them it's time to eat."

Andre grins. "Finally!"

Driana turns to me as her husband walks out of the room. Mrs. Swifts goes back to the kitchen to get the main course.

"I really am glad that Kyle brought you here," Driana says. "It's been a while."

I don't understand, so I just smile and nod at her. Maybe she still thinks I'm dating her nephew.

When they arrive, I wait for them to take their seats because I don't know where I'm supposed to sit.

KY looks like he's taken a bath. He's wearing a different set of clothes now.

"Why are you standing?" asks Seth. "I saved a chair for you!"

It's between him and his mother, and across from Stella. "Thanks," I say gratefully.

Andre is about to take a scoop from the green bean casserole when Driana stops him. "You forgot to say grace before the meal," she says, frowning at him.

Andre grins, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "Forgive me, Love, I'm too hungry to think."

Seth mutters something under his breath.

"What?" I ask curiously.

Before he can answer, Mrs. Swift starts to lead the prayer.

After, Mr. Swift pops open the bottle of wine, and gives everyone a glass, except Stella.

She complains, but her mom reminds her that she's too young to drink. I feel guilty because I'm not legal either. It won't hurt though, because I'm the only one who knows.

Mrs. Swift cuts the turkey, and everyone starts eating. I get everything, it all looks delicious, and it makes me want to drool just by staring at them.

"Let's begin with Brielle first," Mr. Swift says, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Uh."

I put down my fork, and purse my lips.

Someone kicks me under the table.

Seth.

"What am I supposed to do?" I whisper at him.

"Tell the list of things you're thankful for."

I clear my throat.

Easy.

"I thank KY for inviting me. Also, Mr. and Mrs. Swift for the warm welcome." I pause and smile at them.

Mr. Swift says, "Cut the formality. Call me dad!"

I can feel the blush creeping in, so I quickly continue, "I thank Andre for not treating me a stranger—"

"Special mention," Andre says amusedly.

"—And Seth, Driana, and Stella. Thank you."

I don't want to spend a lot of time talking because I'm too excited to eat.

And then its KY's turns. After everyone gets to speak (Seth has a note, which makes everyone laugh), the adults tell stories about when they were young.

Really, I'm grateful to be with them right at this moment. I do not feel left alone. They let me in their conversation, as if I really am a part of their family.

"I can still remember Andre's expression when I saw him with Driana for the first time," Mr. Swift says, grinning. "Scaredy cat."

"I was not," Andre denies smoothly.

"Wait," Seth says, choking on his food. "You were in a secret relationship with Mom?" 

"We had to keep it a secret to your uncle," Driana says. "We thought he wouldn't like his best friend dating his twin."

Seth grins. "That's wicked!"

The adults reminisce about their teenage lives, and I don't mind. I like hearing stories from people. It might be weird, but it makes me happy.

"Remember when Sophia lived in our house for a couple of weeks?" Andre says, "Drake pretended that we had to study together so that he could stay in the room across from her."

Mr. Swift clears his throat. "Sophia had to tutor me."

Mrs. Swifts smiles, and touches the necklace she's wearing; the same one I saw on her birthday.

Driana scoffs, "Yeah, right." And then she adds, "Remember that time when we went to her room to see her open our gifts?"

"I gave you all of Taylor Swift's albums," Andre says, pointing his fork at Mrs. Swift.

"To vex me," she responds not unkindly.

I'm curious, so I ask, "Who's Taylor Swift?"

Andre spits the water he's drinking.

Mr. Swift bursts out laughing, while his wife hands Andre a box of tissue.

Glancing around the table, I see they all have mixed expressions on their faces; Seth is trying not to laugh, KY's mouth twitches upward, fighting off a smile, Stella looks bored, like she heard a corny joke.

When Andre finally recovers, he frowns at me and says, "You really don't know her?"

"I don't," I say a bit uncomfortably. "Should I?" I mean, is she a part of the family?

To my surprise, he laughs; the kind where you want to join because it's contagious. But I don't know the joke, so I continue to just stare at him.

"Oh, dear," Driana says, shaking her head.

Red alert; dumb things are getting out of my mouth. I need to stop talking.

"Taylor Swift is a famous singer in their generation," Seth says, gesturing at his parents.

"She's still—"

"Brielle doesn't even know her," Stella interjects, rolling her eyes.

Andre clears his throat. "Let me introduce her to you," he says amusedly. "Sophia Taylor Swift." He points his forefinger at Mrs. Swift's direction. "That's where Sophia got her name."

"From Taylor Swift?" I ask incredulously.

"Basically," he says, giving me a wink. "Ow!" he looks around the table. "Who kicked me?"

"Dad," Seth says dryly. "Stop it, it's creepy."

Andre leans over and ruffles Seth's hair. "Don't worry, Son, I won't embarrass you to this lovely lady."

Someone snorts. My mind is too busy to guess who.

"Is there something going on between Brielle and Seth that we don't know about?" Mr. Swift asks, glancing between Seth and me.

Mrs. Swift tilts her head to the side. "Are you hiding something from us?" she looks at her son.

KY just shrugs.

I inwardly roll my eyes. Is it such a hassle to respond to his mom's question? And I didn't expect him to be silent during this dinner with his family. I thought he would at least join in the conversation.

The only time he spoke was when they asked him about his band. He gave one word reply; it wouldn't take a genius to figure that he didn't want to talk about it.

"What about Kyle and Brielle?" Seth chimes in.

"They're dating," Mrs. Swift states.

Wait, what?

Mrs. Swift must have misunderstood me earlier. I swear, I didn't say anything about dating her son.

"No, they're not," Seth says flatly.

Mr. Swift puts down his knife and gives me a level stare.

This is getting awkward by the minute. I raise my glass and am about to drink when he asks, "Have you two kissed?"

I choke on my wine.

"Dad, that's gross!" Stella says, sounding like she tastes bile.

Driana rubs my back comfortingly. I keep on coughing.

"What kiss?" Seth asks incredulously. "I thought you weren't an item!"

"Not?" Mr. Swift asks, turning at us. "You didn't deny that you're together the first time we asked."

Where did Mr. Swift got the idea that KY and I are on kissing terms?!

"You're not my son's girlfriend?" Mrs. Swift chimes in.

KY taps the table with his hand. "Look," he says in his usually bored tone. "It doesn't matter. And it's not like I can tell you about my personal life." All of us are watching him as he pauses and drinks his wine. "To answer your question, we haven't kissed."

I gulp.

We did kiss though, you just don't know it.

"Brielle and I aren't together," he adds. "I only let you think that so you can leave me alone."

Stella scoffs. "I knew it!"

"Charlie said happy thanksgiving," Seth says without preamble.

I didn't notice at first that all the conversations stopped after Seth spoke. I don't who Charlie is; maybe he's a relative, so I keep on eating so that I won't have to talk. The food is delicious. Mrs. Swift is a good cook. I can't stop taking a bite of everything.

After a couple of seconds, I realize the silence isn't comfortable. I slowly glance up from my plate and of course, look at KY first.

I know he's been angry at me before, but the way he glares at Seth right now makes me cringe. His eyes are not directed at me, but I'm afraid of him.

If looks could kill, Seth would be dead by now.

KY drops his knife with a loud crash on his plate and stands up from his seat.

"Screw you!" he shouts at Seth before leaving the room.

I'm surprise the door didn't get unhinged from the frame after he left.

Silence, a deafening silence after a loud battle cry.

That's the first sentence that came to my mind. I'm still shocked at KY's outburst; especially when it's not directed at me. I know he has many different personalities, but the way he acted just a couple of minutes ago. . . I don't ever want to see him like that again.

"Happy thanksgiving," Andre mutters.

Mr. Swift rubs his eyes. For a second, he looks tired, and weary.

The only thing I can do right now is observe. My mind is too messed up to have a decent thought.

"This was supposed to be a celebration," Mrs. Swifts says softly, looking down at the table.

"I'm sorry," Seth says, "that was a low blow."

*****

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