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"Hey Jake can you give me a hand?" Kristen called, her voice carrying down the hallway. I was busy staring at my reflection in the bathroom mirror as I washed my hands.

"Yeah. Just a sec!" I replied. I finished rinsing the soap away and then turned off the faucet, grabbing the hand towel nearby. Looking back in the mirror, I stared at myself for a couple more seconds. I had put on a brave face for everyone else's sake, but what my mom said had really bothered me. On top of that, I was worried about Sean and how the talk with my parents was going to go. I just hoped dinner today for Thanksgiving would go smoothly. Sean and I were spending it with his mom and grandparents. I had nothing to worry about though, as everyone already knew about our upcoming wedding and his grandpa and grandma had been nothing but supportive.

I quickly remembered Kristen needed my help and shuffled out of the bathroom and down the hallway. Sean and I had driven over here together earlier. I don't know why he waited until today to talk to my dad and maybe my mom about everything.

"Hey how can I help?" I asked as I entered theb kitchen.

"Can you get the rolls ready and put them in the oven?" She asked.

"Of course," I said, turning towards the dough. "So um, thanks for doing this." Kristen stopped working with the turkey and turned to face me.

"I'm glad to have everyone for Thanksgiving," she replied, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"I wonder how it's going with my parents. You didn't have to invite them you know," I told her. She shook her head's

"They're your parents Jake. They may have a funny way of showing it sometimes but they love you. I'd be more than happy to have everyone here for the holiday." She smiled reassuringly. I nodded.

"I think my dad will for sure come," I said. "I hope everything goes smoothly and Sean is okay right now." Kristen nodded her head in agreement.

"Everything will be fine. We're just going to have a nice dinner with everyone. No big deal honey," she said, smiling warmly at me. I was so glad to have her support.

"You know... sometimes I don't know what Sean and I would've done without you," I mumbled quietly. Kristen wrapped her arms around me and pulled me into a warm hug.

"I always be here for you. I love you both so much," she replied, her eyes twinkling. They almost seemed to water a little bit she she wiped at her eyes after pulling back to look at me. She turned back to the turkey silently. I smiled. Returning to the rolls I added "I love you too." I meant it. This woman had done so much for me over the years and especially recently. She truly was my mom. My other mom. I was lucky to have her.

As we both continued to get everything ready for dinner, I checked the oven to make sure the rolls weren't burning, when warm strong arms circled around my waist. I smiled and turned my head to the side to kiss him.

"I didn't hear you come in. How did it go? I asked, leaning in to let our lips touch. Sean smiled tiredly at me. He rested his forehead against mine.

"Hey Sean. How'd it go?" Kristen asked as she turned around to face us, apparently finishing up with whatever she was doing. Sean let out a sigh and turned so he could look at his mom.

"Erm. Well....uh..your dad said he's coming Jake," I must've let my disappointment show because Kristen looked at me sadly and Sean hugged me again.

"So that's a no?" I asked. Kristen looked at Sean expectantly.

"I'm sorry babe," Sean replied, looking away. I grabbed his hand.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. I love you," I said, taking his hand in nine. I smiled at him and he returned it. "It's her loss." Sean nodded in agreement.

"Well boys let's set the table. It's almost 3 which is when I told everyone to be here," Kristen said, and with that Sean and I got the plates and utensils and placed them at the dinner table. Then we got the glasses and the napkins. Everything looked perfect. Sean and I could sit on one side, his grandparents on the other, and Kristen could be at the end with my dad at the other end. I grabbed Sean by the waist and pulled him close to me. Despite everything with my mom, I wasn't going to let anything ruin the happiness I was feeling right now. I was celebrating Thanksgiving with my family. That was something to be thankful for. The love of my life would be at my side, who could ask for anything more?

The doorbell rang and Kristen excused herself to answer it. Voices sounded for a few seconds until his Grandma appeared around the corner. She was short and had gray hair that was neatly combed and styles.

"Ahh. There's my grandson!" She said excitedly, hurrying over to Sean and pinching his cheeks, causing him to blush in embarrassment (which was adorable I might add.) "How have you been?"

"I've been doing great Grandma," he replied, linking our fingers together. I smiled to myself but his grandma caught it.

"Aww you two are the CUTEST!" She said very animatedly. Then it was my turn to get my cheeks pinched, causing Sean to chuckle and earning him a playful glare from me. "I'm so excited for the wedding!! Ahh! I can't stand it! Doug! Doug wasn't I just talking about what a great couple these two are? I remember when they were kids like it was yesterday," she rambled, gesturing to her husband, Sean's grandpa. He clapped Sean on the back.

"We're both so proud and excited for you both," Sean's grandpa said, shaking my hand.

"Thanks grandpa. It means a lot to us," Sean replied. Grandpa Doug had gray hair and dark eyes. He too was neatly dressed and his hair was combed perfectly. Sean's grandparents were the type of older couple that you admired. They were perfect for each other and so cute together.

"So where are your folks? Are they coming?" Grandpa Doug asked. An awkward silence followed before I quickly answered.

"Uh..well my dad said he'd join us. He should be here shortly. My mother and I haven't been getting along so.." I stuttered. Grandpa Doug nodded in understanding.

"We hope everything works out," Sean's grandma, Kate, replied.

"Thanks, me too," I said quietly.

"Mom, dad? Would you like anything to drink? Dinner is almost ready." Kristen said from the kitchen counter.

"No thanks Hun, we'll wait for dinner. Don't mind us," Grandpa Doug replied, waving his hand dismissively. I bit my lip to keep from laughing. He was a little rude to his daughter. Kristen just shrugged and went back to busying herself in the kitchen. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and checked the time. It was 3:10. Why was my dad late? I looked at Sean.

"Can I talk to you for a second?" I asked, gesturing we go somewhere private. He nodded and followed me out of the kitchen and into one of the guest bedrooms. He closed the door behind him. "Tell me what happened," I demanded. He took a deep breath.

"Jake there isn't time to tell you everything," he replied.

"Okay well do you have any idea why my dad is late? Did he say he was for sure coming?" I asked. Sean shrugged his shoulders.

"Yeah he said he would come. I don't know why he isn't here yet. I'm sure it's nothing," he reassured. I shook my head.

"When it comes to my mother, it's not nothing," I scoffed. I looked away from him and towards the door, fumbling with the sleeve of my gray sweater.

"Jake don't worry okay? Please? I'm sure he'll be here soon," Sean said. "C'mon let's go back out there before they start to wonder..." He trailed off, wiggling his eyebrows.

"You perv!" I teased playfully, smacking his chest.

"Hey I can't help how attracted I am to you," he replied with his hands up in surrender. I laughed and brought my lips to his in a sweet kiss. I brushed my fingers against his crotch.

"I can see that," I said winking, before heading out of the room.

* * * *

"Sorry I'm late," my dad said as he took off his coat and nodded to Kristen who had opened the door for him.

"It's not a problem. Glad you could make it," Kristen replied lightly. Sean nudged my arm as if to say 'I told you so.' I just rolled my eyes at him.

"Thanks for coming dad," I said, taking the cranberries from him that he had brought.

"Of course kiddo," he said. He smiled at me.

"I didn't know if it was a good idea, but Mr. Stubborn here," I gestured towards Sean who shrugged innocently, "wouldn't listen. I hope everything's alright." He nodded and looked at Sean.

"It's fine Jake, we'll talk about it later," dad said dismissively. We joined Kristen and Sean's grandparents at the dinner table.

"Good to see you," dad said to Doug, shaking his hand.

"You too," Grandpa Doug replied.

"How are you?" He asked Sean's grandma.

"We're doing good thanks. It's nice to see you too!" She said kindly.

"Alright everyone, let's have a seat at the table!" Kristen said loudly to get everyone's attention. We all nodded. Sean took my hand in his after we were seated.

Kristen stood in front of her chair. "So it's Thanksgiving, and what I'd like to do is have everyone take a turn sharing something they are grateful for. Let's see, I'll start. I can't tell you how thankful I am to be able to have Thanksgiving dinner at my house this year. I love seeing everyone together. A lot of things have happened over the last year, but I'm so proud of my son And everything he's accomplished. My baby is all grown up and getting married, and I couldn't be more proud," she said, tearing up. Sean smiled sweetly at her.

"Love you mom," he said, as she wiped her eyes.

"Love you too honey," she replied. "Alright, sorry for the tears. I'm just so happy. Dad why don't you go next?" She asked. Grandpa Doug nodded.

"Alright I'm thankful for my good looks," he smirked, causing everyone to laugh. "Hah I'm just kidding. I'm really thankful to be here, and to have Kate and I in such good health. It's a blessing." We all nodded and then Grandma Kate cleared her throat.

"I'm thankful for my new television! Without that thing Doug and I would be forever arguing about what to watch!" She exclaimed and laughed at herself as we all chuckled. "It's also a great pleasure to be able to see my lovely daughter and my beautiful grandson." Her tone changed to a more serious one. "I know that things haven't always been easy..but I'm so thankful for the beautiful smiles I see on their faces all the time. It warms my heart," she explained, touching her chest where her heart is.

My dad cleared his throat. "I uh...it's been a tough year," he said, his eyes beginning to water a little bit. "You know you never really think about how fragile life is until you have to experience something that forces you to. I miss Collin terribly," he grabbed my hand and gave it a squeeze. "But I am so incredibly thankful for all the time we did have to spend with him. If anything, I'm thankful for the time we have." I wiped at my face, not realizing a tear had escaped until I felt it running down my cheek.

"Your turn babe," Sean said gently. I had spaced off for a second.

"Oh. Um.." I cleared my throat and took a sip of water. My throat felt so scratchy all of a sudden. "Um. Sorry I just got lost thinking about my brother. You know, I'm thankful for a lot of things. This year hasn't been the easiest by any means, but like my dad said, having this time to spend together is so much more important than we realize. I'm so so thankful for Collin and all of the time I did get to spend with him. He's a big part of the reason I am who I am today. He helped me even when I myself, didn't realize I needed help. I love him and miss him so much. He was one of the most important people in my life, and the other is sitting here next to me." I pulled Sean's hand up and set our intertwined hands on the table for everyone to see. "This guy is my everything. He was there for me when I wasn't the easiest person to be around, and I'm so lucky to have him. Sean," I said, turning to face him," I could never be more thankful for anything. I love you so much." He gently brushed his fingers from his free hand over my damp cheeks before leaning in and lightly kissing each cheek. I let out a shaky breath. I looked around the table at everyone and saw a little bit of redness in everyone's eyes.

Sean took a deep breath. "Oh Jake I love you so much. You know, I know it's cliche and all but I'm thankful for us. We've been friends for so long, and I'm glad that we were able to realize the love we have for each other. I'm thankful for our apartment, and the fact that I get to marry my best friend. It's a dream come true." Sean finished, looking directly into my eyes. I couldn't help but kiss him, causing everyone to start clapping. I felt a little embarrassed after that, which made Sean chuckle as he always did whenever my cheeks were red.

We settled into a casual dinner, the clanking of forks creating a peaceful background noise for the light conversation. I looked around the room, seeing Sean laugh, my dad smile, his grandparents' loving stares, and Kristen's small smile when she looked at Sean and I. For the first time in a while, everything felt easy. This was my family and I was so thankful for them.

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