The Safety Pin Affair

t e n - they're in the friend stage

you say you don't want me,
i think you're a l i a r . . .

▪️▫️▪️

"Vicky! Can you go get the board games, my love?"

I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment at my mothers request, then picked up my glass and swallowed down the remainder of my drink. A pungent mix of cranberry juice, Southern Comfort, and lime zest called a Scarlet O'Hara. Strong and tangy, but delicious.

"Yes," I droned from the kitchen table.

"You know where they are?" She asked as I stood up from my seat.

"Yes," I sang again. "In the basement."

"Thank you, dear!" She called back. I shot her a smile before I disappeared out of the room and went to the door to go down to the basement.

I turned on the lights and descended the stairs, taking in the familiar sight before me. Shivering from the bitter cold, I wrapped my arms around myself and headed for the shelves with all the board games on them.

I wasn't sure which ones she wanted me to get because she didn't specify, but I was just going to grab the ones I liked anyway. It's still pretty early and I don't really want to go to bed yet, so I might as well join in on the board game fun.

My parents and I are currently at my grandparents house for Thanksgiving weekend with a few other family members of mine. They live about two hours from us in some desolate farm town where your nearest neighbors are a few acres away. It's a nice getaway and the scenery is amazing because they live on top of this ridiculous hill, but right now it's freezing outside and it won't stop snowing.

Seriously. It's Saturday night now and it started snowing Thursday morning – it's been on and off since then. So we've all been locked in the house, trying to pass the time by playing board games and drinking.

It's my mom's parents house, so not only are we here, but also my mom's sister and her three kids, my mom's brother and his two kids, along with his two dogs. It's been a freaking circus here since we arrived Wednesday night.

I grabbed a couple boxes and stacked them on top of each other, making sure they weren't going to fall over as I slowly walked back to the staircase. Then I carefully made it up all the stairs, turned out the light with my elbow, and dropped the games on the table in the living room.

My mom, my grandmother, a few of my cousins and my aunts are all in the living room together on the floor, trying to decide on what game to play while my dad, my grandfather and my uncles are in the sun-room watching football or something. And of course, the dogs are running around aimlessly, getting attention from anyone they can.

"Mom, when can I get one of those drinks?" Tessa, my twelve-year-old cousin, asked my Aunt Lilian as my grandmother handed me another one of her signature cocktails.

"When you're Victoria's age," Aunt Lilian chuckled, tossing her blonde hair over her shoulder.

"You say that about everything," Tessa huffed and crossed her arms.

My grandmother nudged my arm with a smirk, then plopped down on the couch with a sigh. "Okay, so what are we playing?" She asked us all.