Old Me

68 - All the Small Things

After Sabbath lunch and everyone had gone, my parents and I had a long conversation. I finally got to know what had been said between my dad and Michael. They explained that they didn't judge him for the things that he did in his past, but they wanted to make it clear that they would remember well how much he had hurt me before. They were being protective but finally respecting the fact that I was an adult and could make my own decisions. It was a relief to know that they weren't against us being together, at least not completely. They were still petrified that I was going to get pregnant and wanted to make sure that I was never alone with him. If they only knew. My dad had asked Mikey to come for Thanksgiving dinner, and knowing my dad it was more of a command than an invitation, but I was glad that I would have another excuse to see him for a whole day. 

He was going to come over around nine to help with preparing the meal. We divided up the dishes between our families since we only had two ovens and couldn't prepare everything. My dad was in charge of the turkey and my mom and I made the pies. The rest of the family brought the side dishes and drinks. 

I had planned to wake up bright and early but I was still getting used to the time change; it hadn't yet been a week that I was back home. Instead, I was awoken by Cat screaming in my ear that Mikey was downstairs waiting for me. I wasn't even annoyed about Cat's wakeup call because I couldn't wait to go down and see him. I quickly brushed my teeth and washed my face, before throwing on some sweats and a bra. I adjusted my messy bun and bounded down the stairs.

"Morning," I sang happily as I took in the sight of Michael sitting at the kitchen island with a mug.

"Morning, tesoro," my mom said from the pantry as she handed Cat various ingredients to place on the counter. 

"G'morning," Mikey smiled as he looked me up and down and winked.

I blushed, grabbed a bowl from the cupboard, and placed it on the counter facing Mikey. 

"You hungry?" I asked as I pulled out a spoon from the drawer.

"No, I ate before," he said, taking a sip of what I could now see was coffee.

I nodded and asked my mom to hand me the cereal box next to her. 

"So, what are we making first?" I asked her as I continued making my cereal.

"Hmm," she stood staring at the pantry for a moment, "I think we can multitask. I can make the crusts and you guys can prepare the fillings?"

"Sounds good," I nodded as I sat down beside Mikey to eat my breakfast.

"Have you ever celebrated Thanksgiving before?" I asked Mikey. 

"Uh, yeah," he smiled, "while I was living with Cal. I usually go there every year."

"That makes sense," I nodded as I chewed, "what's your favorite dish?"

"Hmm," he paused in thought, playing with his initialed ring on his finger, "probably sweet potato pie."

"Really?" I asked scrunching up my face, "Yuck, I don't like sweet potato pie. My favorite part is the stuffing and cranberry sauce."

"What can I say, I've got a sweet tooth," he chuckled sliding his hand up my thigh. 

I gave him a "look" and he simply smirked before returning his hand to the counter.

"Mikey, you want to start opening these cans for me," my mom asked as she sorted through the ingredients on the counter. 

"Yeah," he said happily, hopping up from his seat at the counter giving me a better view of him. 

He was wearing a pair of skinny jeans and a hoodie. His hair was slicked back, making his eyebrow piercing stand out. I noticed that he had changed it to a gold cross and anchor.