everglow (13rw)

Chapter 5

Clay

My parents were strict about weekends. All four of us needed to be present during breakfast. If we want to sleep more, then we could just sleep after that. Breakfast were very sacred in our family, Justin got used to it when he became a member of our home.

I was not a morning person. My dad used to always tell me how grumpy I act and look every morning. Justin was the morning person out of all of us.

Today, Justin decided to take over the kitchen. My parents were on the table drinking coffee. The light from outside made my eyes squint as I approach the dining table.

"Good morning," My mom greeted. I sat beside her. How could they act so cheerful in the morning. "Why can't you be like Justin? Look at him."

I glanced at Justin. He just finished flipping the last batch of pancake. He served a plate of pancakes, bacon and egg on the table.

"Smells so good," My dad exclaimed. "Good job Justin."

"Thanks sir." Justin responded shyly. He sat in front of me. He was wearing one of my old gray plain shirt that I gave him, it was a little tight on his body because I was thinner than him.

"I was just telling Clay how he should be more like you," My mom praised Justin. Hearing those words from my mom didnt exactly made my morning better. "Please teach him how to wake up early and how to cook."

I used to be an only child so hearing my parents compare me to Justin was new. It was not pleasant. If only they would look, they would see how annoyed I was. Thankfully, Justin was always looking.

"Clay's actually good at alot of things too," Justin defended me. "He's always been a good influence to our friends, especially to me."

Okay, hearing Justin stand up for me in front of my parents made my morning a little less miserable.

My mom nodded and smiled at Justin. She was just being a typical mom. She just wanted what was best for me and for me to change for the better, but her comparison left a sour taste in my mouth as we eat breakfast.

I was busy digging down on the stack of pancake on my plate, when I felt a foot under the table kick my leg. I looked at Justin, I already knew it was him. My parents were too busy eating to notice that their sons were passing a secret messages under the dining table.

Are you okay? Justin mouthed. He looked upset.

Yeah. I mouthed back.

Are you sure? He widened his eyes. I didnt get to respond because our parents started a topic that included the both of us.

"Clay," My mom took a bite of the bacon. "Your dad and I reserved two seats on this new restaurant." She showed me the place on her phone. It looked fancy.

"Your father and I can no longer go because I have an important appointment next weekend," She continued. "We called if we could cancel the reservation and they said they dont do refunds. So I renamed the reservation to your name, you can bring your girlfriend."

"What's her name again?" My dad asked. My dad still havent met Ani. I still havent brought her home.

"Ani." Speaking of Ani, she didnt respond to my text last night asking her how was the party.

"Yeah Ani, I've only seen her in pictures," My dad pointed out, which was true. "You got to bring her home, Clay. How about you Justin? Are you seeing anyone?"

"No, sir." Justin answered sheepishly while scratching the back of his neck.

"A good looking man like you?" My dad joked. Justin was good looking, he could get any girl he wanted in school if he really tried.