Never Let Me Go

The Dinner

Derrick wasn't lying.

I've never met anyone nicer than Mr. and Mrs. Kaepernick. When Maya and I finally walked into the house, we were met with the all too amusing sight of Colin getting scolded by his mother. Surprisingly, it wasn't over him marrying me. It was over him leaving me and the rest of us outside. He was already clearly embarrassed, but when he saw me, his face reddened even more.

Anyway, moving on to his amazing family. Neither his mom or dad greeted Kay, Maya or I with a handshake. Instead, they pulled us into friendly hugs. It was a little uncomfortable at first, but after realizing it was just their personality, I was genuinely touched.

Not even twenty minutes after meeting them, we were on a first name basis.  Everything was going absolutely wonderful, with the exception of Lindsay who had been in Colin's face ever since his arrival. I really don't like that woman. She's beyond fake and I honestly don't see how Colin is so oblivious to that. Everyone sees it.

After about thirty minutes, the sound of someone entering the house halted everyone's conversations. A middle aged, pudgy and, rather unattractive Caucasian man entered. He didn't enter alone though. Following behind him was a woman, who I instantly recognized as Colin's mother. The relation between the two is undeniable. They have, pretty much, the exact same facial features. When she smiles, it's especially noticeable. He is definitely her son.

Already acquainted with majority of the Kaepernick's, her greeting with them is short and to the point. With the same polite brevity, she introduces herself to the rest of us. I honestly have nothing bad to say about the woman. Truth be told, I actually feel a little guilty for what I told Colin to do. I find it hard to believe the kind woman is only out to use the son she, regretfully, gave away all those years ago.

Heidi, his mother, shed a few tears when it finally came time to meet Colin. Although trying his damn hardest to maintain a neutral mien, I could see he was a little jolted about seeing her too. The two excused themselves and went to go talk in another room for about ten minutes, before returning.

After that, everything continued to go rather smoothly. That was, until, it came time for dinner to actually start and the questions began rolling out.

Flashback

"Arianna," Teresa, Colin's adopted mother, addresses me. I quip my eyebrow as a means of acknowledging her. "I know you mentioned that you're currently enrolled in school. Actually, I suppose my question is aimed towards all of you ladies. What exactly are all of you studying?"

I glance at Maya, mentally asking her to go first, "We'll our academic....achievements, if you will, are a little different than your average college student."

"We all received our Associates Degree in high school. I majored in Performing Arts, Maya majored in Fashion Design, and Arianna majored in Speech and Theater."

"So now," I join in. "We're finishing up our bachelors. Maya will receive her B.S in Apparel Design, Kay will have a B.A. in Music and I will have my B.F.A in drama." I finish with a deep inhale. I look around nervously, noticing no one is saying anything.

Shit.

Silence is never a good sign.

"Well, I for one, am very impressed with all of you." Rick, Colin's father, says with a fascinated smile. "You young ladies should be extremely proud of yourselves."

"I know I am," Kay muses, smiling broadly.

Maya playfully shakes her head at Kay, "Thank you sir."

"It certainly hasn't been easy though," I add on, playing with my salad. I've never been a big fan of anything that's green and, allegedly, edible.

"So do all of you want to go into show business or something?" Lindsay questions, trying to play innocent. "I mean, that's the vibe I'm getting considering the subjects you all are studying in."