~* Robin's First Thanksgiving *~ “That’s not silly at all,” she answered, sitting on the sofa beside me. “I’m kind of jealous. Mom wanted to have more kids, but with the complications from both me and Bryce they decided two was plenty. I always wanted a little sister to coddle,” she giggled. “I just wanted to warn you that Uncle Charlie’s here,” she added in a low whisper. “Who’s Uncle Charlie?” I asked hesitantly. “The one who…” “Yeah, that one,” she sighed. “He’s not happy about it, but Aunt Susan finally talked some sense into him. Oh crap, here he comes now,” she cursed under her breath.

---

Our Girl Scout meeting actually made a lot of progress. Talk of taking our annual field trip at a ski resort generated quite a lot of excitement even among the younger girls, and though pretty much everyone giggled when Jennifer told them I’d never seen snow before this month, it was all in fun.

This trip wouldn’t just be for my benefit. Among our troop, only Jennifer, Allison, and Tracey had ever done any real skiing, and even then only Jennifer could ski or snowboard at anything approaching a professional level.

Later that afternoon, after putting Friday homework behind us, we crashed on the Jones’ sofa. I sat on the floor beside Nicole, who had her feet dangling daintily over the top of the sofa, sat upside-down with her head next to mine, stealing the occasional nuzzle while devouring a bag of jelly beans.

Allison had her guitar and some electronic device with an LCD screen and little green LED lights on it, and Jennifer, closest to me, stared disinterestedly at a book. It was one of those slow Sunday afternoons. Finally, Jennifer exhaled.

“So Robin, what did Angela want?” she glanced at me, setting her book aside.

“Mmm?” I glanced up at her and blinked. “Oh! Right, yeah, she asked if I could babysit Amanda again tomorrow night. She’s such a cute kid,” I laughed.

“Yeah, she is. I hope you and Nikki adopt someday. You’d make a great Mom,” she responded with a sly smile. Just then, Allison fingered a chord on her guitar and strummed. Jennifer grimaced at her. “Your ‘A’ chord needs some work, dear.”

Allison laughed, sticking her tongue out. “Hush you.” She grinned. “I think I’m going to have to restring it. These old ones just can’t hold a tune like they used to.” She carefully leaned over the side of the sofa to place it back in its case, turning back to us. “Um, guys, can I ask you a serious question?”

I perked up at that, and Nicole wiggled, leaning up enough to look at her. “Of course. What’s up?”

“Am I … pretty?” She sounded hesitant, even reluctant. I wanted to laugh because it sounded so ridiculous, but she seemed so serious that I managed to suppress it. I smiled as I reached up and across Jennifer’s lap to squeeze Allison’s hand.

“You’re beautiful, Ally.”

Jennifer nodded in agreement, wrapping an arm around her. “What she said. Why? Did someone say something?”

Allison quickly shook her head. “No, it’s nothing like that. It’s just,” she sighed, nuzzling closer to Jennifer and placing her head on her shoulder. “I thought Mark wanted to go out with me, but every time I try to talk to him, he’s always got some excuse to be somewhere else. I’m starting to think I should just give up on it.”

Nicole tapped my shoulder. “Robin, help me up?” she asked. I smiled as I stood, giving her my hand to pull herself up. She spun with a surprisingly delicate grace, only barely bumping into Jennifer as she swung her legs down and sat upright, immediately turning to face Jennifer and Allison. I sat again, this time on the floor by Allison.

“Ally, Mark is a guy,” she stated matter-of-factly. Allison laughed.

“Yeah, I noticed,” she responded dryly, causing Jennifer to crack a giggle as Nicole rolled her eyes.

“No, I mean, just because he doesn’t show his feelings, it doesn’t mean he doesn’t have them. Remember how it basically took Robin’s full support for me to admit to you that I like girls?”

Allison nodded. “You were so terrified that our friendship would change.” She smiled fondly down at me. “I guess it did change though, for the better.”

“Exactly. I was terrified. Mark knows you like him. He likes you too. In fact he thinks you’re gorgeous, but that’s part of his problem.”

Allison leaned forward, giving Nicole an uncertain stare. “How so?”

She giggled. “He thinks you’re way out of his league. I’ve tried to tell him you like him too, but he’s scared, and too stubborn to admit it.”

Jennifer smiled to herself. I knew that look. “Think of it in basketball terms, Ally. When the other team has the ball, what’s your number one priority?”

“Um,” she paused in thought. “To steal the ball?”

Jennifer giggled. “Okay, what’s the OTHER thing? You don’t want the other team to score, right?” Allison nodded in response, but it was clear by her expression she couldn’t see where Jennifer’s analogy was going, so she continued. “You’re reacting to the other team.”

She stared for a moment before recognition dawned. “Oh! In other words, the ball’s in my court, right?”

Jennifer patted her head patronizingly, but giggled. “Just teasing,” she added, “But yeah, exactly. He hasn’t been responding to the subtle hints,”

“Even the ones I’ve been throwing at him,” I inserted.

“Then you’re going to have to be more direct. Ally, you know how we used to tease you about being too assertive?”

Her gaze fell right on me, causing me to giggle. “I remember you saying that about yourself once. Jen’s right. This is one time where it’s okay to be yourself, to be a little assertive. You should kiss him and see what happens.”

“What?! No way! I mean, I-”

“You’ve never kissed a boy,” Jennifer stated matter-of-factly. “And that’s okay. Before Josh I hadn’t either. I kissed a girl once, but that’s different.”

Nicole’s jaw dropped. “Wait, what?!”

Jennifer giggled, her cheeks turning just a hint of rosy. “It was a Girl Scout camp thing, and it was totally innocent. Well, mostly innocent. I was thirteen and neither of us had ever kissed someone, so we decided to see what it felt like.”

“And?” Nicole asked impatiently.

“And… It felt kind of weird honestly — no offense,” she added with a wry smile. Nicole shrugged and smiled back.

“None taken. I’m just kind of in shock to hear you of all people say something like that. Anyway, Ally, look on the bright side. Your first kiss will be with someone you like. My first real kiss was with Jason. It tasted like cigarettes,” she whined.

“That was the REAL reason I never let him kiss me again. The whole ‘secretly like girls’ thing was just a bonus.” She giggled, causing the rest of us to start giggling as well. Laughter is contagious.

“Thanks,” Allison sighed whimsically as she settled back again. I felt her hand absentmindedly stroking my hair and smiled, giving her leg a light pat in response. “You guys are the best.”

~oOo~

With Thanksgiving fast-approaching, I had a lot on my plate. Babysitting Amanda on Monday, another basketball game Tuesday, meeting Nicole’s relatives Wednesday, and helping them prepare thanksgiving dinner for the following day all weighed heavily on my mind, but most of all the thought of meeting Nicole’s family. I found it hard to focus in class, and more than once Mrs. Ellis called my name to bring me back to reality.

When she finished her lecture, she approached my desk and offered me her hand. “C’mon, let’s go for a walk.”

“A walk?” I echoed with surprise. Though she had worn jeans and a cute peach top with white sneakers today, I’d decided to go a little dressy with an ankle-length dark floral skirt and a dark brown knit sweater matched to the base tones, as well as my three inch clog heels, so I knew she didn’t mean for me to walk TOO far. Still I stood, giving Allison a glance.

Allison smiled reassuringly at the unspoken request to get my things if the bell rang, and I turned to follow my English teacher/newspaper staff advisor. She held the door open for me to step through, closing it behind her. She motioned toward the open hall and offered me a friendly smile as we walked side-by-side. I couldn’t help noticing we were heading in the direction of the teachers’ lounge.

“So how are you doing?” she asked simply. I rolled my shoulders just a little, offering her a nervous smile. I’d never been pulled out of class like this before.

“I’m okay, I guess. I’m sorry I wasn’t paying attention in class. It’s just there’s a lot going on this week.”

She frowned a little. “The column isn’t too much for you is it? You know you don’t have to write it every week if you need a break any time,” she offered sincerely.

“No, it’s nothing like that. It’s just,” I hesitated, and she smiled sympathetically. As I suspected she would, she stopped at the teachers’ lounge, opening the door. She held it open expectantly, and I bit my bottom lip, stepping through.

The lounge wasn’t at all what I expected, but then, I didn’t know what to expect. Even in high school, the teachers’ lounge was like no-man’s-land for a student. Looking around though, it felt pretty Spartan. Several very uncomfortable-looking chairs lined one wall, with a folding table and more uncomfortable chairs at the center. A long folding table with three computers sat against the other wall, and two vending machines and a soda machine sat beside a long counter, where a coffee pot rested.

Mrs. Ellis approached the machines, fishing out a crisp dollar bill. “Can I get you something sweetie?” she asked over her shoulder.

I shook my head. “No, thank you. This is really not what I was expecting.”

She laughed. “When I was a kid I used to try and sneak a peek at the teacher’s lounge when someone would go in. When I first started student-teaching, it felt very odd being in here.” After retrieving her diet soda, she approached, sitting in one of the uncomfortable chairs. After straightening my skirt I sat beside her, shifting to face her.

“So what’s going on? I don’t mind you having trouble paying attention once in awhile because I know you’re a good student, and you’ll just read up on what you missed later, but if I recall correctly you have Phys. Ed. next. I don’t want you to get a broken nose from an errant basketball.” She grinned.

I laughed. “Yeah, I guess you’ve got a point there. It’s… Well, I think the big thing I’m worried about is Thanksgiving.” I went on to tell her the whole story about how my holiday plans came about, how Nicole’s dad’s minor heart attack meant her mom’s entire family, save one uncle, would be coming here instead. Perceptive as always, she immediately asked.

“What about that one uncle?”

I exhaled, shifting my gaze. “He’s… not coming because of me.”

“Oh Robin,” she offered softly. “What happened?”

I turned back to look at her, and I could see both sincerity and concern on her face. I felt instantly at-ease with telling her everything. “Someone let it slip that Nicole was dating a girl, and he flipped out. It’s really hurting her because he was her favorite uncle until now. She said he always seemed very laid-back.”

“How does that make you feel? If you don’t mind my asking?” she asked gently. I rolled my shoulders.

“I don’t mind. I talked to my therapist about this last Saturday, but my feelings haven’t changed much. I feel like I’m caught in the middle. On the one hand I want to be with Nikki and her family, and I want to experience a real Thanksgiving. My mom’s family disowned us before I was even born.”

“And on the other hand?”

“And on the other hand, it feels like I’m intruding, but Nikki practically shouted at me when I told her I didn’t have to come. She thought I meant that she’d choose him over me, but what I meant was that if it would make things easier for her. She still wants me there, though. I guess I’m just scared. What if the rest of her family feels the same way?”

“Hmm,” she answered. She only now seemed to remember her diet soda, opening it and taking a slow, deliberate sip. Finally, she smiled thoughtfully. “I’ve never had Nikki as a student before this year, but I read her file in preparation for having you as one, and I’ve seen her around the school in the past.” She paused and chuckled to herself. “I was terrified of having any friend of hers in my class at first.”

“Terrified? Of me?” I asked in utter disbelief. This got her to outright laugh as she nodded.

“Yes. Teachers talk, dear. Nicole had a reputation for being,” she paused, searching for the right word. “Witty.” She grinned.

“Ah, and because of who her parents are, I bet that made the situation more delicate?”

“Exactly. Nothing could have prepared me for actually meeting you though. The other teachers have said much the same thing of her. I probably shouldn’t even be telling you this, but we’re very proud of how far she’s come since last year. Now I can’t say how much of that is your influence,” she paused, flashing me that cute grin of hers, “But I can say that her uncle is being an idiot, if you’ll pardon my French.”

Idiot was the harshest thing I’d ever heard Mrs. Ellis say about anyone. I had to smile at that. I reached out to pull her into a hug, and though it caught her off-guard, she smiled back.

“Thanks, Mrs. Ellis. I so needed that.”

“You’re welcome Robin. Don’t worry so much about what others think. You said Nicole wants you there with her family for Thanksgiving. I’ll wager they haven’t seen much of her since last year, well before all this.”

She stood, approaching the door. My backside was about to fall asleep in the rigid chair, so I stood to quickly follow her. “Give them a chance to get to know you and they’ll see the bright, confident young woman I’ve come to love having in my classroom.”

“There you are!” Allison chimed as I returned to my seat. “Is everything okay?”

I smiled brightly in response. “Yeah. Mrs. Ellis just wanted to talk.”

“And?” she shot back expectantly. I laughed.

“And I’ll tell you about it when there are less prying eyes around,” I answered, glancing at the gathering of students that had leaned our way to eavesdrop. Allison giggled.

“Fair enough,” she mused with an odd, cheerful lilt in her voice.

“Mostly she just wanted to know if I was okay though. It helped, but like I said, I’ll fill you in later.” I paused. She was still grinning. Come to think of it, she’d been grinning all day.

“Um, Ally? Did you talk to Mark this morning?”

She simply giggled in response.

~oOo~

Allison was conspicuously absent at lunch that day, although Lisa and Trent did join us. Lisa had the most ridiculous, adorable grin on her face that I’d ever seen, and Trent seemed to be doing better, though that could have to do with meeting deadlines ahead of schedule even despite losing Elaine for a couple of days.

Babysitting for Amanda was a joy as well. I found myself more than once wishing I could babysit for the Greers more often, but I knew my schedule just wouldn’t allow it right now. Still I’d have to make some time, maybe the Sunday after Thanksgiving, to come over for a visit and give Angela and her husband a couple of hours to do as they pleased.

Wednesday arrived far too quickly for my taste. I spent the night at Nicole’s, my first night to actually stay over in the gargantuan manor. Not only had Nicole’s mother’s family learned that Nicole and I were dating, but they also somehow found out that I loved to cook. Imagine my surprise when not Nicole, but Gina offered for me to spend the night, so I could be up early to get started on preparations.

Of course most of the cooking would be handled Thursday morning, but there were a few things that required work ahead of time. The Morgans, as I’ve said in the past, were down-to-earth people. The only reason a personal chef even became part of the staff was to keep Bob’s diet in line, though even he had a family to think of, so Gina insisted he take the holiday off to be with them, with pay, and let us handle everything.

As I stirred awake, I couldn’t help feeling as though someone were watching me. Nicole convinced her parents that we’d behave enough to let me stay in the guest room next door to her bedroom, a beautifully-decorated affair with heavy emphasis on warm, rosy colors. Nicole often jokingly called it ‘the pink room’, but I kind of liked it. It wasn’t so much pink either, as soft, muted rose.

“Morning cutie,” her voice cooed as she, still in her pajamas, leaned down to kiss my forehead. I smiled and squeezed her hand as I turned my head away to yawn, to avoid assaulting her with morning breath. I sat up and immediately wrapped her in a hug.

“Morning, vampire,” I teased. “How long have you been there?”

She laughed. “Just a few seconds. Mom asked me to come see if you were up yet. I didn’t wake you did I?” she asked, suddenly concerned, but I shook my head quickly.

“No. I was dreaming about being chased.”

“Uh oh,” she frowned. “Is it the dream again? I mean, the one about … ‘him’?”

I shuddered, and then smiled. “No, this was,” I paused, “Promise you won’t laugh?”

She nodded quickly. “I promise.”

“I was being chased by a giant turkey.”

She blinked, cracking a smile as she held her breath, trying with every ounce of strength not to go back on her word. Finally I rolled my eyes and laughed. “Oh, go ahead. It is sort of funny.” At that, she cracked up giggling. Gina poked her head in the room.

“Is everything alright in here?” she asked, eyeing me oddly. I laughed.

“Yes ma’am. I was just telling Nikki about this weird dream I had. I was being chased by a giant turkey. I mean, like a real, live, forty foot tall turkey.”

Gina’s face contorted as though even she had to fight a giggle. She cleared her throat. “I’ll start breakfast shortly if either of you want to help. My brother Paul phoned ahead that they’d be arriving this morning ahead of the rest of the family. He says he’s bringing a surprise.”

Nicole and I looked at each other, Nicole returning her gaze to her mother a moment later. “What kind of surprise?” she asked.

“The edible kind,” Gina responded. I swear she was grinning at me as she turned to leave. Nicole shifted to look back at me.

“Is it me, or was my mom grinning at you when she said that?”

“Your mom’s family is Italian right?” I asked. Nicole nodded.

“Yeah. Second generation Italian-American.”

“So,” I paused, causing her to laugh.

“You’re wondering what’s on the menu right?”

I nodded. “I didn’t want to sound offensive. I’ve just never had a big family dinner before,” I offered. Nicole’s warm smile put me immediately at ease even as she stood, pulling me out of bed and right into another hug.

“It’s okay. You’re as much a Morgan now as I am — adopted, y’know?” she added with a broad grin. “Basically we usually do traditional turkey and all that stuff, but my mom’s family loves to eat, and there’s a LOT of them, but you seem to do pretty well in crowds.”

“Last Thanksgiving Mom and I actually just had some of her bachelor colleagues over,” I laughed. “It can’t be any worse than having a bunch of unmarried nurses gabbing about stuff I have no business hearing about.”

“Oh gawd,” she answered, shaking her head. “Anyway, the bathroom’s all yours if you want to get a shower first. I’m just gonna get dressed and go see if Mom needs help.”

Even though I’d be meeting Nicole’s family today I just couldn’t bring myself to ‘dress up’ for the occasion. They needed to meet the real me, and not some fashion doll with perfect hair and makeup and all that.

Of course, I’d pester Nicole about what to wear for tomorrow too, but for today I’d brought with me a pair of tight jeans and my favorite top — the pink t-shirt red knit camisole combo that Nicole mentioned she liked once. I liked it too. It was casual, but kind of girly too.

The three of us spent most of the early morning just gathering our ingredients for the day. In addition to getting some of the desserts out of the way first, we’d also have two meals to think about as well.

Bob and Gina wouldn’t think of letting anyone stay in a hotel while they had empty guest rooms to fill, though I wondered, with all this talk of how many would be coming, both whether they’d have enough room, and how on earth they all got together in a smaller house in years past.

A rich, strong cinnamon smell permeated the kitchen even at its size, as I pulled the first apple pie from the oven. Gina had gone to answer the door, and Nicole left shortly before that to relieve herself, leaving just me and the cooking. I suddenly heard a stout male voice behind me.

“Nikki, is that you?” he sounded surprised. I smiled as I glanced back over my shoulder to find a tall, lanky man in a heavy coat, carrying a dark blue baseball cap. “Oh, I guess you must be Robin? Sorry about that,” he laughed lightly as he approached.

“Oh that’s okay,” I answered as I dusted the flour off my hands and onto my apron, offering my hand as he stepped closer. “You must be her uncle? Nice to meet you.”

He seemed equally surprised by my greeting. He studied me for a moment as he shook my hand. I could see, now that he was right in front of me, that his thinning brown hair lay messily, probably from wearing that ball cap. As he nodded, he answered.

“Yes, Paul Pinicci. My dad had an odd sense of humor like that,” he added. Though he had a somewhat joking tone, his expression seemed frozen in a mix of shock and uncertainty.

“Uncle Paul!” Nicole bellowed happily. He suddenly looked up at her as she raced across the tile floor, and his shock shifted even further. It probably didn’t help that Nicole had worn her Girl Scouts of America t-shirt and faded jeans today.

“Nikki? Little Nikki? You girls are trying to put me in my grave aren’t you?” he laughed, wrapping her in a hug as she neared, throwing her arms around him. She grinned.

“I guess you met Robin then?”

He shifted his gaze between the two of us and nodded. “She’s, um… Not what I expected,” he laughed, adding. “But I mean that in a good way. Honestly none of us knew what to expect. I’m sorry about how Charlie reacted,” he added more soberly.

Nicole’s face fell. “What the hell was his problem anyway? He’s never acted like that before.”

He nodded. “I honestly don’t know. We had a long talk though, and those feelings are definitely coming from somewhere, but I made him promise not to ruin Thanksgiving over it.” He paused and smiled at both of us, placing a hand on each of our shoulders. “It’s your life, not his. Now, come on, your aunt Mary wants to see you, and your cousins.”

“Bryce and Amber are here too?” she asked excitedly, causing him to laugh.

“Amber almost didn’t make it. Flu hit her like a truck last week, but she’s better now.”

Removing my apron, I neatly folded it and set it on the counter next to the mixing bowl and turned to follow Nicole and her uncle out into the den. I was introduced to Mary, a middle-aged woman with copper red hair, her seventeen year old daughter Amber, and Bryce, their fourteen year old son. What followed was a repeat performance of the kitchen, complete with being told once again that I wasn’t what they were expecting.

Finally, I had to ask. “If you don’t mind my asking, what were you guys expecting?”

Amber fidgeted with a length of her auburn hair while her brother cleared his throat. “Well Nikki’s kind of always been rebellious.” Amber elbowed him in the ribs and glared. “Ow!” he grunted, glaring at her. “It’s true!”

Nicole laughed. “Oh now I get it. I’m sorry I didn’t keep you guys all updated on what’s been happening in my life. I’m not the girl I used to be though.” She smiled as she intertwined her fingers with mine, tilting her head to rest on my shoulder.

“Robin’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. That’s why I wanted her here. She’s never had a big family dinner like this.”

Amber’s jaw dropped. “Never? Like, not for anything?”

I shook my head. “Never. It’s a long story, but basically it’s just been me and my mom until I moved here.”

“Where’d you move here from?” Bryce asked curiously. I glanced at Nicole, and she grinned back at me, nodding.

“San Francisco,” I answered, half-expecting the same sort of reaction I’d gotten back at camp.

Bryce and Amber stared at each other, and then back at me. Bryce started to say something, but Mary gave them a motherly glare, standing to approach us.

“Well, Robin, it sounds like you have made quite the impact on Nikki. Let me be the first to welcome you to the family, so to speak.” She smiled as she wrapped me in a comforting hug. All the fear and apprehension I’d felt melted away in that instant. I felt like I belonged. I smiled a little as she stepped back again.

“Thanks. That means so much to me. With how Nikki’s other uncle reacted I… wasn’t really sure if this was such a good idea.”

Amber rolled her eyes. “Oh please, he’ll get over it, and if he doesn’t, his loss. You seem pretty cool to me.”

“I guess I should get back to the kitchen, if you guys need anything.”

Mary eyed me with surprise. “You cook too?”

Nicole giggled. “Robin’s an awesome cook, but like she said, no big family dinners, so she’s never gotten to really exercise those skills like this. Oh that reminds me!” she spun on her heels to face Paul again.

“What was that big surprise Mom was talking about?”

“Mom?” he asked, glancing at Gina. Gina grinned quite proudly as she nodded. “Uh, right! Mary, do you have the picture?”

She nodded, producing a small four-by-six color photo of Paul standing on a small fishing boat. In his hands was quite possibly the largest fish I’d ever seen. Nicole and I stared in amazement at the gigantic beast.

“I nearly set a new lake record with that beast. Don’t get me wrong; turkey’s still on the menu, but I figured since everyone’s coming here for Thanksgiving, I’d bring a little bit of home with us.” He smiled proudly. “Anyway, I’ll let you ladies get back to cooking. I need to get our luggage in. Bob could I get you to help me with my car too?”

I missed the rest of the car conversation, as Nicole and I had already started back for the kitchen. Mary and Gina stayed behind to chat for a moment, and I could only assume Bryce had gone with the men to handle the luggage and whatever was wrong with Paul’s car.

I’d no sooner tied my apron into place when Amber giggled to herself. “I still can’t get over how different you are Nikki. How come you never called or wrote?”

Nicole smiled sheepishly as she leaned against the side of the breakfast bar opposite the cooking utensils. I may have been a great cook, and Nicole a fantastic mechanic, but neither of us dared intrude on the others’ Zen space, as we jokingly called it. Nicole hated cooking.

“Honestly? Time just kinda got away from me. With Robin it’s been like one adventure after another.”

“No kidding. Girl Scouts?” she answered with a chiding smile. Nicole laughed.

“Oh shush. It was fun! Plus it got us away from Alpine Springs for awhile.”

I listened as the cousins caught up, losing myself in my work. Nicole caught Amber up on everything that had been happening since June, up until the mention of the big Halloween party.

“Shut up!” Amber squealed. “You seriously got Heedless Despair to play?!”

Nicole laughed. “Yeah. Their bassist gave me her old bass for my birthday. I’ll show it to you later. The whole band signed it.”

“That is SO cool!” she gushed.

“Hey, I’ll be back in a second. I’m going to go ask what’s up with your dad’s car. There’s sodas and stuff in the fridge if you want something to drink,” she added, turning to head for the door.

Amber nodded as she watched Nicole leave and glanced over at the near kitchen door as though expecting their mothers to walk in at any moment. Satisfied, she stepped closer, leaning on the bar. I had just set a bowl down on the bar to crack a couple of eggs, when she bit her lip, staring at me.

“So, can I ask you something really personal?” she asked nervously. I looked up at her and smiled.

“Sure,” I responded warmly as I cracked the first egg, reaching for the second.

“Have you guys ever, um, y’know?” I nearly dropped my egg, staring in surprise back at her. She gasped. “Oh, ew, no! I meant have you kissed yet?” She turned beet read, and I just had to giggle.

“Oh!” I replied, my own cheeks starting to burn. “Sorry. Yeah, we’ve kissed. We’ve been going steady for months.”

“What’s it like to kiss a girl?”

“Well, I’m probably the wrong person to ask that. I’ve never kissed a guy. With Nikki though, it’s special. It’s a personal and very endearing exchange with someone who’s at once my girlfriend and my best friend.”

She sighed whimsically. “That’s so sweet.”

“For what it’s worth,” I added, “I actually just found out one of my best friends kissed another girl when she was thirteen, and she has a steady boyfriend now.” I chuckled inwardly remembering Nicole’s reaction to Jennifer’s declaration. “She said it felt weird.”

“Oh,” she answered simply, but smiled after a moment. “I guess that sounds pretty weird coming from someone you just met. I’m sorry. It’s just, I’m still kind of in shock at seeing Nikki like this, y’know, happy. The thought of asking her felt even weirder.”

I shrugged. “It’s fine, really. I don’t mind talking about our relationship. The entire school knows we’re dating.”

“Seriously?” she asked, surprised. I nodded.

“Yeah. Most kids just don’t care. Or they’re afraid of my mad Kung Fu skills,” I joked, causing her to laugh.

“I like you. Do me a favor and make Nikki stay in touch more though? I like this new her too. I want to get to know you both a little better if that’s alright.”

“Sure it is,” Nicole answered from the side, causing us both to jump. She grinned. “Sorry; didn’t mean to sneak up on ya. Robin, Mom says she and Aunt Mary can take over for a little while if you and Amber want to come hang out; Bryce too if he doesn’t mind a bunch of giggly girls.”

Amber laughed. “Meh, he’ll get over it.”

~oOo~

Throughout the rest of the day I met more of Nicole’s mother’s family; five brothers and three sisters in total, each with no less than two kids, ranging from Amber at seventeen all the way down to the youngest, little Teresa Anne at six months. I began to see why Gina wanted so badly to adopt, as the only sibling with no kids of her own.

My heart ached for her, as I realized what that meant about her prospects for grandchildren, though she of all people would at least better understand if Nicole and I chose to adopt, assuming we were still together when we were ready for that.

Thankfully dress for dinner Thursday was casual, though I decided to at least wear a skirt today, opting to wear my floral skirt again. When I wasn’t busying myself in the kitchen, I found myself mingling with various aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Nora, Teresa’s mother, approached me with the baby in her arms. She smiled. “Nikki told me you’ve never held a baby before.” I smiled nervously as I nodded. I could see where this was going. She continued. “She’s a little fussy from the trip, but I need to use the restroom. Would you mind?”

“I, um,” I started, but nodded. “Sure, if you could tell me what to do?”

She smiled brightly, and after a few moments’ instruction, I suddenly found myself holding the little bundle of joy, wrapped snugly in her powder pink blanket. I quickly found myself a place to sit as I watched her sleepily giggle. Before I knew it, she was fast asleep.

I heard Amber giggle off to the side and glanced up to see her grinning back at me, digital camera in-hand. After a quick snap, she approached.

“You’re a natural,” she teased. My cheeks burned as I smiled back at her.

“She’s so beautiful. I’ve never … Well, I’d never been good with kids until Girl Scout camp. There’s this one little girl, Amanda. It sounds silly I know, but I’ve really taken to her. I babysit for her sometimes now.”

“That’s not silly at all,” she answered, sitting on the sofa beside me. “I’m kind of jealous. Mom wanted to have more kids, but with the complications from both me and Bryce they decided two was plenty. I always wanted a little sister to coddle,” she giggled.

“I just wanted to warn you that Uncle Charlie’s here,” she added in a low whisper.

“Who’s Uncle Charlie?” I asked hesitantly. “The one who…”

“Yeah, that one,” she sighed. “He’s not happy about it, but Aunt Susan finally talked some sense into him. Oh crap, here he comes now,” she cursed under her breath.

I glanced up to see a tall, moderately portly man with neatly trimmed hair approached us. He nodded to Amber, who returned the nod. He then glanced down at me.

“I don’t recognize you. Are you from Bob’s side?” he asked rather gently for someone who I just knew was going to cause a scene. I shook my head.

“No, I’m… Well, I’m one of Nikki’s friends,” I half-lied. His face contorted, but not into a scowl. It was a look of confusion. Finally he stepped closer and sat down on the sofa beside me.

“Just tell me one thing,” he offered softly. I nodded.

“Sure, what is it?”

“Is this really what she wants? This isn’t some rebellious teenager thing is it?”

I shook my head. “No sir. For what it’s worth, Nikki hurt a lot because of it. She ached to stop hiding and just be herself, and I can empathize because I went through the same thing. It’s like … Well, my therapist says that it’s like anything else that has to do with our brains.”

He seemed to perk up at that comment. “How’s that?”

“Well, do you know any left-handed people?” I asked. He almost laughed as he held up his left hand.

“You could say that.”

I smiled as I nodded. “Did anyone ever force you to use your right hand?”

“Heh heh, ohhh yeah.” he answered with an amused smile. “Drove my teachers crazy back in the day because I flat-out refused to use my right hand. To this day I can barely stand to do anything with it.”

“Your brain’s hard-wired to be left-handed,” I answered simply. “Gender and sexuality are basically the same. I don’t think anyone fully understands it yet, but it’s basically the same thing.”

“So… you’re saying that being, well, you know, is because of your brain?”

“Exactly. Like I said, it’s just like being left or right-handed. And forcing someone to ‘act’ straight is the same thing as forcing a left-handed person to use their right hand, only it’s not ‘just’ uncomfortable. Being in a relationship with someone you’re not attracted to is painful.”

He frowned at that, slowly nodding. “I… I guess I never thought about it like that. When I heard Nikki was dating a girl, I just sort of lost it. I thought she was just doing it for attention. She’s my favorite niece,” he paused, leaning forward to smile at Amber, “No offense meant.”

Amber laughed. “None taken. You and Nikki have been close for awhile now.”

“I just wanted what’s best for her, but now… I ah, I think I owe her an apology. Excuse me girls,” he offered sheepishly as he stood to leave us.

As if on cue, Nora returned. She grinned as I stood to return her baby to her. “So how did it go?”

“How did …” I paused. She winked at me.

“Sorry for the trickery sweetheart, but I thought if my brother saw you with Teresa he’d keep his foot where it belongs on the ground, and not in his mouth.” She paused, staring down at the baby. “She’s asleep? Well I certainly wasn’t expecting that,” she added with a grin.

~oOo~

Just before dinner, I pulled out my laptop, set up the video chat program, and greeted Ash’s family. It was a much smaller affair than what we were having here, and more than once an aunt or cousin would stop to see who I was talking to. I’d grin, pull them over into the shot, and introduce them to Mom or whichever of Ash’s family I happened to be chatting with.

Dinner was, in a word, fantastic. I knew from taste-testing some of the dishes we had prepared that it would be good, but it wasn’t just the food, or the fact that I got to exchange recipes with every one of Nicole’s aunts, and two of her uncles, that made the whole affair special.

I thought I was going to cry when, after they brought out the turkey to the huge dining hall table, Charlie stood and asked me to say Grace.

All my life I wondered what it would be like to have a big family, if things might have gone differently for me. Would I have told someone I really wanted to be a girl? I can’t answer that, but I can say, at least, that I didn’t have to wonder what it felt like to belong.