Right. We as in Bo and me.
We both glance to our side when we hear Bo laughing, Nash raising him up in the air as he enters the living room.
“He sure is good with him.” Gail seems pleased by that. “Wasn’t expecting it, to be honest. I’m happy Zac made this request. Also, that Nash seems to be staying longer. Handling his responsibilities and stepping up.”
Her words draw an unexpected bewilderment from me. “You mean with Bo.” My statement comes out weak, because really, I’m prying into where her mind is at.
“Sure, dear.” She folds the napkin over the bread.
“I should probably go check on Bo,” I mention. Mostly because I need to adjust to her comment, wondering what thoughts are brewing in her head.
Circling around the kitchen island, I mosey on over to Nash and begin to coo with Bo as I snatch his foot. “There’s my little turkey. Ready for your first Thanksgiving?”
“He is. I already had him check the football schedule for today and hockey schedule for tomorrow,” Nash explains as he props Bo on his hip.
Lowering my voice, I have to ask. “How is it going with your dad?”
Nash sighs. “Not so bad. We make small talk over sports.”
“Good. Your mom seems fine, so perhaps dinner will go by like a breeze.”
He laughs under his breath. “Miracles do happen on holidays.”
The next few minutes, I leave Nash to watch Bo, and Ireturn to the kitchen to help. Sliding a casserole dish out of the oven, I inhale a whiff of sweet potatoes with marshmallow now melted on top. “Yum. Sweet goodness on a source of a healthy superfood.”
“Alright, dear, I think we are ready to head to the table. Oh…” She snaps her fingers into the air. “Forgot to grab the highchair from the garage.”
“No worries. Nash already set it up.”
Gail does it again, she stalls for a millisecond before continuing her task. I don’t think about it, as I have oven gloves on and am desperate to get this dish to the dining table. We both scurry back and forth, ensuring our dinner is complete.
Sitting with Nash on one side and Bo on the other, I’m not sure that I feel protected.
“Let me just get Bo sorted before we start dinner,” I note to everyone at the table. Nash’s dad is swirling scotch in his glass, and his mom is pouring wine and doesn’t seem to mind the slight delay.
“Okay, so are we trying the green bean casserole or already giving up that Bo won’t eat it?” Nash’s eyes scan the array of food options, and he begins to add a few items onto Bo’s plate. “We can try a little bit of the sweet potato casserole, right? Marshmallow won’t kill him.” He glances quickly to my side. “For sure, we’re going to mush some stuffing and mashed potato.”
“Yeah, exactly.”
But then I see our audience sitting across the table.
“You two really have a tempo with one another,” Gail says somberly, but there is a twinkle in her eye that’s maybe hopeful.
I side-eye Nash and see that he’s sinking into the magnitudeof the next few hours. The heavy feeling that doesn’t seem as though it will fade.
A secret floating around us.
“Uh, a toast before dinner, or will we just dive on in and eat this turkey big enough for twenty people?” Nash’s fingers skim the wine glass in front of him.
“A toast sounds like a very good place to start.” My father-in-law, Walter, holds up his glass. Following suit, I hold my glass up. “To family. For those we miss and those that are here.” His voice trembles, and everyone bows their heads, probably trying to hide the crack in our hearts. “He would have wanted us to enjoy this day. For Zac.”
It’s a long few seconds that break when our shining light saves us; my son decided that now is the right moment to throw a little sweet potato, which causes all of our faces to soften. “He seems in agreement. Cheers,” my father adds.
We all take a sip, and when dishes begin to be passed around, I’m grateful that an overload of calories will keep conversation neutral.
“You know, I think the Spinners and Pittsburg will have a good match tomorrow on the ice,” Walter begins.
“Really? Maybe. The Spinners’ new coach is more promising than last season, I guess.” It’s nice seeing Nash and his dad interact in this way.
