"Mom, I we-.."

"Sweetie, you don't have to explain it to me. You two are in love, and you don't want anybody to know," she said with an excited smile.

"Mrs. Mason, that's-..."

"True. You're great at guessing, Mom. Please don't tell anybody," Brent said, pratically begging his mother.

"No problem, honey. I can keep a secret or two," she said, nodding het head. "Also, I kinda ship you two together."

My cheeks turned a light pink. I looked away, praying that they didn't see me blushing.

"I'm going to leave now, but keep it PG," she said before leaving.

"Mom!" Brent whined in embarrassment.

I looked back up, and I giggled at Brent, who was also blushing.

"Sorry about my mother," he apologized.

"Don't be. She is wonderful," I said.

"Yeah she is, but it sucks when my father and her go on business trips all over the world," he replied, losing his smile.

Before I could say anything Nick barged in the kitchen with an excited look in his eyes.

"Finally!! The time I have been waiting for 364 days!! It's time to stuff our faces with all the food we want!!" He yelled, clearly exicted about eating.

"Nick, no yelling in the house," Lisa scolded him, walking into the kitchen.

"Is Nichole coming over later?" Elliot asked Nick.

"Nah. She's visting her grandparents on her dad's side until Saturday," he replied.

Everybody was in the kitchen, probably to help Lisa with the food. One by one pots began to disappear from the kitchen and to the dining room.

I helped Lisa with the plates and glasses. Ten minutes later, everything was set up on the dining room table.

I sat down on the right side by the end, and Anna darted to the seat next to me. Brent was coming to sit by me, but another person beat him to it.

Xavier.

"Too slow, little brother," he remarked, while Brent shot daggers at his head.

The only seat left was across from me, and Brent took it without a second thought.

It's was Ross at the end of the table, Lisa on the left of him, then Anna's parents beside her. Then Bella, Elliot, Gaberial, and Brent were following next. While Martha and James were sitting right to Ross. Vanessa was sitting next to her mother, then Gavin, Xavier, me, and Anna.

Everybody started to pass around food, and I filled my plate up with turkey, green beans, corn, yams, a roll, and squash.

"Before we dig into this delicious food prepared by my beautiful wife and sister, I want to make a toast," Ross said, standing up with his glass of water.

"I want to thank everybody for coming. It's always great to reunite with family and friends," he started, making everybody smile.

"Next, I want say that I'm thankful that everybody is in great health and safe. I know that some times are overwhelming, but we always make it through," he continued, looking around the table.

"The last thing I want to say is that I'm very thankful that Campbell stepped in our lives," he said, looking directly at me.

"You are the sweetest and brightest girl, and I want you to know that you are loved here. So, toast to friends, family, and having new people step in our lives," Ross finished his speech.

"Cheers!" Everybody said with big smiles.

"Dig in, everybody!" Ross exclaimed.

"You don't have to tell me twice," Nick said, digging in his food.

I started to eat my green beans when somebody kicked me underneath the table. I looked around, but everybody was in their own conversations.

I frowned, and I continued to eat in peace. Well, until, Xavier opened his mouth.

"Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?" He asked with a smirk.

I looked at him. "No, because I dugged myself out of hell."

I saw out of the corner of my eye, Brent listening to our conversation. He looked angry, maybe jealousy.

Why would he be jealous?

Oh. Only because his brother is using pick up lines in you.

"Fiesty. I like it," Xavier said with a chuckle, bringing me back to reality.

I took a sip of my water, not paying him any attention.

"Elliot, what colleges are you looking into?" Mrs. Smith asked Elliot, who was eating quietly.

"Um, I applied to Yale, Stanford University, and many more," he replied, looking at Mr. Smith.

Anna was silent, but I did see her looking at him with longing eyes. She misses him.

"Those are some great schools. Are you going to be lawyer?" He asked.

"Yes sir. I want to go into law like my mother."

"You have a bright future ahead of you," Mr. Smith told Elliot, before eating his mashed potatoes.

Elliot nodded before going silent again.

I was half way finished with my food when another kick hit me. I looked at Brent, who was hiding a small smile.

"Two can play at that game," I mumbled, kicking him baccm gentle.

He looked amused that I kicked him. I smiled, and Anna was looking at me.

"Well, Campbell, is extremly smart. Must be a gift from her parents," Ross said, grabbing everybody's attention.

"More like a gift from God," Bella replied.

"What do you mean, Bella?" Lisa asked her.

"No disrepect, but nobody smart would leave their daughter behind," she replied.

"They were actually really smart, Bella," I spoke up, everybody's attention was directed towards me. "My parents both worked in NASA. They built and calculated a lot of stuff."

"Mmh. Well, what happened? I mean, working at NASA pays a lot of money. So what happened?" she asked, coldly.

"Bella," Ross said, sternly.

"What? Just trying to get to know her," she replied, cutting her turkey.

I didn't say anything, and everybody went into back into their own conversations.

My mind was replaying the memories that night. The night my father went to prison.

~Flashback~

"Dad, I want some gummy bears. Can we please stop at the store? Please," My twelve year old begged, pointing to the store out of the darkness.

It was around ten o'clock, and we were driving back home from my volleyball game.

"Sure, sweetie. Anything for my sushine," he replied, pulling over at the store.

We got out the car, and we walked into the store. We walked to the candy aisle where I ran over to the gummy bears.

My father chuckled. I grabbed two bags; one for me, one for my father. He handed the candy to the cashier, and I paid.

He passed the gummy bears to me, and I smiled in glee. Gummy bears are my favorite.

"Thank you, Dad," I said, opening my bag once we got outside.

"You are very welcome, Campbell."

He opened the door, but someone yelled his name. A man came running up to my father. I was around the car, hidden behind the metal.

"Where is my money?" The man declared, clearly angry at my father.

"I will have it by next week, I swear," my father said, and the man laughed.

"You think I'm stupid?" The man asked.

"No, Drew, I don't. I just don't have it right now," my father said, calmly.

"That's too bad, Chase," the man said, pulling something out of his pocket.

It was a gun.

I was frozen, scared to death. My father backed up with his hands up in surrender.

"Please don't do this, Drew," my father begged.

"Goodbye, Chase."

He was going to shoot my father. I knew I was to stay behind the vehicle, but my legs had a mind of its own.

"Dad?!" I cried, coming around the vehicle.

"Campbell, run," my father told me.

The man looked at me, then back at my father. He was thinking about something, but he didn't put the gun down.

Instead, he aimed it at me. He was going to shoot me. I was frozen in my spot, tears were streaming down my face.

"Drew, don't."

"Say goodbye to your daughter, Chase," the man said, darkly.

"Campbell?!" A voice brought me back to reality.

My eyes were watering, but no tears were on my face. I noticed nobody was at the table other than Anna and Brent.

My hands were shaking violently again from the flashback.

"Campbell, are you okay?" Anna asked, worried.

I nodded, but I didn't say anything. I put my hands in my lap, and I tried to calm my nerves down.

They were still looking at me; worried filled their eyes.

"G-Guys, I'm f-fine," I stuttered, looking at them.

"You don't look like it," Brent replied, noticing my watery eyes.

"I am. I'm going to the restroom," I said, getting up.

My hands were still shaking, but not as bad. I walked out of the dining room, where I found all the adults in the living room.

I raan upstairs, and to my bedroom. I opened my bathroom door, and I locked it behind me. Looking at my reflection in the mirror, I could see what Brent was talking about.

My face was pale like I seen a ghost. My eyes were watery, and scared. I washed my face with some water, trying to look normal.

Something caught my eye. My medicine bottle was about empty. That means my physical therapy session is soon.

I could've sworn I had enough for two weeks, but it was only enough for one week.

I sighed, and I walked back into my room.

"You have an amazing taste in books," Brent said, scaring me half to death.

He was standing by my book shelf where I keep all of my books.

"What are you doing in here?" I asked him, sitting on my bed.

"I came to make sure you were okay," he said, turning to face me.

"I'm fine," I lied.

"You're a terrible liar," he said.

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Am not."

"Are too," I said before realizing what happened. "That's not what I meant. You tricked me."

He laughed,"Maybe."

"Brent! We're leaving!" Martha called, and Brent sighed.

"I guess that's my cue to leave," Brent said.

He walked over to me, and he licked his lips. He leaned in, and his lips met mine. I kissed back, putting my hands on his firm chest.

The fireworks reappeared again. Sparks shot through my body. This kiss was better than our first kiss.

We pulled back, gasping for air. My lips were swollen from the kiss, and I smiled.

"Happy Thanksgiving, Campbell," he whispered, my hands were still on his chest. A warm feeling spread throughout my body.

"Happy Thanksgiving, Brent," I replied.

"I'll text you later," he said, moving towards the door.

I felt cold all the sudden. My smile faltered, but I kept the smile.

"Okay. Bye Brent," I said.

"Bye, Cam," he said, using that nickname.

He walked out of my room, and I sighed. The sun was about to set, and I was already really tired.

"Campbell, are you in here?" Anna's voice asked, knocking on my door.

"Yeah, come in," I said, lying on my bed.

She walked in, and she had a neutral face.

"What's wrong?" I asked her.

She shrugged before saying,"I miss Elliot."

"Then go talk to him," I encourage her.

"I don't know what to say," she confessed, sitting next to me.

"You say 'hey, can I talk to you.' Then you just talk," I told her, giving her a side hug.

"It's not as simple as you think."

"I know, but, I saw how you two looked tonight. Yall looked miserable, and everybody saw it."

"Man, I wash Nichole and Madison were here, so we can have a girl sleepover. It would release some stress," Anna said with a laugh.

"Where's Madison?" I asked her.

"Her family went to the beach in Florida until Monday," she said, playing with her fingers.

"Look, I'm here, and I'm telling you to go talk to him."

She nodded,"I think you're right."

"Go get your man," I said with a smile while she stood up from the bed.

"I am. Wish me luck," she said before leaving my room.

I kicked my shoes off onto the floor, and I piled up in my bed. I just wanted to stay here until I die.

Before I knew it, darkness took over.

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