A Christmas Secret

Chapter Two

        No one talked as the step monster set the table. I spent most of the “family” dinners sitting in silence. I didn’t have anything to say to them. I didn’t want to entertain the gremlins by pretending I cared about how hard they thought their day at school was. Fractions, they groaned. All they did was complain about school or talk about how gross the boys were at their school. If only they knew that boys got grosser as they grew up for all new reasons. Somehow the step monster kept smiling and nodding like an excited bobble head. I should have eaten at Nate’s so I wouldn’t have to force down the disgusting mush she called food. Luckily my dad had made some spaghetti or I would have starved or ended up in the hospital.

        “Are you going to the Winter Ball?” My dad asked. Winter Ball was a dance that was put on in City Hall every year. It was basically like going to prom in a room the size of a two football fields. In the middle, they always set up a tree filled where people could donate presents to displaced families. The step monster seemed somewhat scared like I was the embarrassing one in the family.

        “Yes, I think I might have to be the Santa.” I shrugged. The mayor had said something to my boss about needing a few of the workers from the mall to dress up and sing. Obviously I’d have to go and entertain kids. I didn’t mind though. I wasn’t going to have a date anyway. I’ve gone to the ball with Nate since we were in eighth grade. Even though I loved it, I started to feel like an overplayed rerun.

“What about Nate?” he asked.

“I’m not sure.” I shrugged. The step monster’s eye went back and forth between my father and I. The conversation sifted as one of the gremlins made a random outburst. I didn’t mind. I didn’t want them or their maker knowing anything about me or my plans.

        One of them was scarfing down the ham their maker had cooked, not that I would call what she did cooking. Don’t get me wrong, cooking is not the woman’s job in the family. It firmly believe both gender should cook but she doesn't understand that. For some reason she is having trouble letting my dad take over the cooking. Yet here she was practicing for the Christmas dinner that she would ultimately mess up, burn, or under cook. Last year I had made a valiant effort to finish at least half of my plate. I wasn’t going to make the same mistake this year. It sounds harsh but I can’t pretend like my dad can. He almost made it seem like he didn’t miss my mom’s cooking or the way she decorated during the holidays. My dad coughed loudly after trying to eat a particularly grey looking piece of meat. I’m not sure when eating dinner turned into a mini episode of Fear Factor.

Once I finished the majority of the spaghetti my dad made, I had to sit and watch them eat. It didn’t take long since the gremlins basically scarfed down everything in sight. 

“Do you want to help us decorate the tree?” The step monster asked fully knowing I would say no. I stared at her silently until my dad spoke up.

        “We’re also watching the Grinch.” He added. Even that couldn't make me spend time with them. One year my mom got me a Grinch stuffed animal that I brought everwhere and another year she got me Grinch pajamas. I still had both in the back of my closet even now.

        “It’ll be fun.” One of the blue eyed devils said to me. She would almost be cute if she wasn’t the spawn of Satan. Not only did she have to get her way all the time, she cried at every time someone tried to discipline her. She basically spent all of Christmas crying while the other gremlin opened and played with both their toys. My dad looked at me hopefully like it would make his year if I said yes. I mouthed a “no” to my dad as the step monster turned to put something away.

        “We could use some of the ornaments from your room if you wanted.” My dad dared to say. I glared at him. The gremlins squealed and jumped up and down. Last Christmas, I had made the mistake to let them look at the tree in my room. They broke two ornaments.