Olivia colored and looked away. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Yes, you do. You’re a great actress, but you can’t hide drugs from people who have lived in your house for most of their lives.”
Her father frowned and looked away. Bryna hoped he realized his part in all of this. He had never stopped her mother. Maybe he wouldn’t have been able to, but he hadn’t tried either.
“I’m not judging you. You can live your life however you want. I’ve made mistakes, but I don’t want your mistakes, too. I want a mom,” she whispered.
“I’ve been getting help,” Olivia whispered. Their eyes met. “I had a bad accident a couple of months ago, and I’ve been trying to be better, for me and for you, even though I didn’t think you wanted me in your life.”
“I’ve always wanted you in my life. I just want someone who isn’t self-destructive. I was self-destructive enough for the both of us.”
Her mother wiped a tear from under her eye. “I can’t promise it will be better today or tomorrow or next week. I’ve been battling this for years, but I took the first step. I’m going to therapy and drug and alcohol counseling. I’m trying.”
Bryna broke out into a smile. “That’s what I want. I want us to be a family again…even if our family is different.”
Olivia rushed across the room and wrapped her daughter in a hug. “I’m so sorry for everything, Bryna. The absence was my fault. I want to be better. I will be better.”
“I know. Me, too, Mom.”
Olivia cried into Bryna’s hair, and they both held each other like that for a while.
Then, her mom pulled back and wiped her tears. “We’ll make this work,” she promised.
Bryna looked to her dad, and he put a protective arm around her.
This was her family—a broken dad, a broken mom, a new stepmother, a jerk stepbrother, withdrawn twin stepsisters, and a brand-new baby halfsister. It wasn’t perfect, far from it, but it was hers.
“We all will.”
When Bryna got back to her house, her father had to rush off to work. He was a busy man, even two days before Christmas. Luckily, Eric was waiting for her when she arrived.
“Hey,” he said. His whole face brightened when he saw her. “How did it go?”
“Bad.”
He frowned. “I’m sorry.”
She laughed. “Just kidding. It went great.”
“Geez. Fucking freak me out!”
“You’re too easy.” She giggled. “I mean, not everything was fixed today. But it will work itself out. I’m a persistent bitch.”
“I have no doubt it will work out.”
“Me, too.” She smiled up at him and drew him in for a kiss. “I hate that you have to leave today,” she groaned.
“I know. How can I leave?”
“I have an idea. Don’t. Just stay here. Have Christmas with me.”
He rubbed his nose against hers. “You know I would love to do that, but my parents miss me, too. Have to spend some time with them.”
“Maybe…I could meet them someday.”
He smiled. “You will definitely have to meet them. They will love you.”
“Are you sure?”
He nodded. “Absolutely.”
“Good.”
“I’m glad that you’re going to have a real Christmas with your family though. Last year, you told me you hated Christmas, and I don’t want that to be the case anymore. New memories to replace the old.”
She slid her fingers around his waist and held him close. “Memories with you.”
“For many years to come,” he said, punctuating the sentence with a kiss. “I do have a Christmas gift for you though.”
“You do?” she asked with excitement. “I didn’t know you were getting me anything!”
“Gifts are a trigger for you, so I didn’t want to raise your expectations of me,” he joked.
“You’re crazy. I already have high expectations for you.”
“In that case, I’m screwed.”
“I’m sure I’ll love it. What is it?” she asked. She looked at his hands and then down at his pockets. All seemed to be empty.
“Come on. I’ll show you.”
She was intrigued. She had never gotten a present from Eric. She understood where he would be worried though. After a house, jewelry, a key to a penthouse suite, and lots of clothes, it would be pretty intimidating to pick out a present for her. Not that she needed anything. She was happy with Eric. That was what mattered.
With L.A. traffic, it was a solid half an hour before they reached their destination, which turned out to be a small ice cream shop in West Hollywood.
“Oh my God.” She laughed hysterically.
She had heard of this place before, but she’d never been here. She couldn’t believe he was taking her to get ice cream. It was going to turn into a Christmas tradition.
“I was going to take you to the Sugar Factory,” he said as he stepped out of the car. “But then we came to L.A. to be with your family.”
“The place doesn’t matter when I’m with you.”
“I’m glad we’re on the same page.”
He took her hand, and they walked across the parking lot.
A hostess met them inside. “Just two?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Eric confirmed.
“This way.” She walked them over to a booth in front of the windows and then handed them two menus. “Enjoy!”
“Welcome! Do you know what you want to drink?” a waitress asked when she walked over.
Eric plopped the menus down on top of each other and handed them to the waitress, unopened. “We want the biggest banana split you have.”
The woman’s eyes widened as she wrote their order down. “For just the two of you?”
Eric nodded.
“Good luck,” the waitress said before disappearing.
Bryna gave Eric a curious look. “Why am I suddenly frightened by her reaction?”
“Because I picked this place with the guarantee that it had one of the biggest banana splits in the city.” He laughed. “And you’d better eat every last bite.”
Bryna leaned forward in her seat, all business. “All right. What are the terms?”
“If you finish the whole thing by yourself, then I’ll pick up the tab.”
“What a horrible Christmas present,” she joked. “And if I don’t finish it?”
“Then, you’re going to have to hang out with me again.”
The words were so familiar, reminiscent of their first time really hanging out. This was where it had all started. Just like this.
She stuck her hand out. “Deal. You’d better be ready to pay up.”
Eric shook her hand with laughter in his eyes. “Oh, I always pay up.”
A couple of minutes later, an enormous banana split was set down between them. Bryna’s eyes were huge when she saw the size of the ice cream. It was maybe double the size of the one at the Sugar Factory. How the hell did anyone finish this? They would need a large class of hungry fifth-graders to even give it a go.
Bryna took the two spoons that the waitress had left for them. She arched an eyebrow and then handed one over to Eric. “Eat up, Cowboy. We’re going to be spending a lot more time together.”
“I hoped you might say that.”
They smiled at each other and then started in on their banana split.
Much like her family, she and Eric weren’t perfect. They argued. They made fun of each other. They teased and joked and sometimes even ridiculed one another. But underneath it all was bottomless love and understanding.
Bryna didn’t need the money or riches or trips. She didn’t need any of it.
It’d turned out that the only thing she really needed to make her life better was Eric. With him, everything else seemed to fall into place.
And as they toasted to their first year together, Bryna knew all would be well.
The End