I hear a knock at the door. I put my book down and look at the clock. Two-thirty exactly. It must be Charlie.
I open the door and find not only Charlie, but a German Shepherd. “Daniel! Good to see you. Hope you don’t mind I brought Duke here to dinner. With the holidays and all, my normal sitter couldn’t take him.”
“Depends. Who or what is Duke named after?”
Charlie laughs. “Not the basketball team. It’s going to sound weird but he’s…named after a mayonnaise I grew up on.”
“Fine by me. C’mon in Duke.” Duke licks my hand before running into the condo.
“Duke!” I hear Mom yell from the kitchen. I hear the shuffle of paws on tile, followed by a quick bark.
“Duke loves your mom,” Charlie says, hoisting a bag of gifts into the condo. “I think he might see her as the weakest link for treats.”
As Charlie makes his way into the condo, I notice Sydney coming up the walkway. When her eyes reach mine, she takes off into a sprint and envelopes me in a big hug.
“Good to see you too,” I say, breaking the embrace. “Busy day?”
“Like you wouldn’t believe. We had so many preorders for the bakery. The shop was utter chaos, but you know how it is. Thanks again for letting us close the shop early so I could come for dinner.”
“Hey,” I say, moving to the side so she can enter the condo, “you’re the boss now. You make the rules.”
“Yeah, right.”
Sydney opens her tote bag and pulls out an assortment of cheeses and other charcuterie board items. Mom must have tasked her with it, as I now notice the empty board sitting on the coffee table. As Sydney finishes the board, she notices Duke staring at it. The board is relocated to the kitchen counter.
We all move to the dining room table to snack on the items Sydney brought, catching up on what’s going on in town. I bring everyone up to speed on my classes at Trinity, highlighting what’s different from teaching them compared to CCSU. I tell them about meeting Irene McAllister, and how disappointing she was in comparison to the books she wrote.
“She just seems like someone who’s living her life. Just because she raised two kids doesn’t mean the responsibility of Hughie should fall on her.”
I look towards Sydney. “I agree, in a way. But she just essentially dropped Hughie in Niall’s lap, and expected him to pick up the slack.”
“Hughie seems like a great kid, though.” Charlie says, grabbing a piece of gouda.
“I love Hughie. He actually brought more insightful conversation to my classes than half my students. I think there’s just this expectation that everyone wants kids, and Niall may have been choosing to live his life sans kids. And now it’s forced upon him, and he’ll look like a prick if he gives any pushback.”
Mom reaches her hand across the table and places it on mine. “But do you know he feels that way? Or are you making assumptions?”
I sigh. “I think that’s the point Mom. No one, not even me, really asked if he was okay with all this.”
The table goes quiet for a bit, Mom retreating back to the kitchen. Soon enough dishes start making their way from the kitchen and onto the table.
Mom has prepared quite the feast, the prime rib being the star of the show. There are potatoes two ways (mashed and roasted), homemade mac and cheese, a variety of vegetables, and Mom’s homemade garlic knots.
Dinner’s relatively quiet, outside of compliments to Mom’s cooking, the sounds of forks scraping on plates. I had suggested we use paper plates to make cleanup easier, but I got scolded and was told we use real plates on holidays.
By the time dinner is finished the sun is starting to make it’s descent. Everyone is sitting back, either at the table or in the living room. The sounds of the Christmas football game coming from the TV in the living room. Charlie and Duke are curled up on the couch intensely watching the game. Mom and Sydney are cleaning up in the kitchen, leaving me alone at the table.
I think about all the times Michael and I hosted and sat around this exact table, playing Cards Against Humanity over a couple bottles of wine. The epic game of Flip Cup that almost broke up Lisa and Will years before their wedding. The many nights Niall, Michael, and I brainstormed ideas on new bakes and how to improve our respective shops.
The ghosts of this condo are becoming too much, the walls feeling like they’re closing in. I need to get some air.
“I’m going for a walk,” I say, standing from the table.
“Everything okay sweetie?”
“Yeah Mom. Just need a minute.” She gives me a small smile. I walk across the room and head out the front door.
***
