Matthew groaned a little when they pulled into the driveway of the cabin. His wife, Kenzie elbowed him in the side and shot him a warning look. He wanted to be anywhere else but there, but he had promised his wife to give it a fair shot, so he fixed his face. Besides, just last month Kenzie had gone to a family dinner with him that had turned into an all-out brawl. He kind of owed her one. They took turns putting up with each other’s dysfunctional families.

“My legs are a little cramped from the drive up,” Matthew said, in case his in-laws had heard him groaning. He didn’t want to offend anyone.

It was going to be a long weekend. His mother-in-law was the most annoying woman he’d ever met. His brother-in-law was tolerable, besides the fact that he was a momma’s boy. His father-in-law was cool, although he didn’t talk much unless it was about sports. Matthew got the feeling that his father-in-law had survived 30 years of marriage by drinking and tuning out the rest of his family.

Matthew couldn’t help but smile when he saw how happy Kenzie was as they unloaded the car. She and her brother had been suspecting that their parents’ marriage was on the rocks, so when their father suggested a family vacation, they figured things were looking up. Matthew decided not to point out the fact that the only bag their father had grabbed, was the one with all the liquor in it.

The first night went well. They played board games and made dinner together. Matthew noticed that Kenzie kept both his and her father’s glass full. He made a mental note to talk to her about it the next day. She couldn’t possibly think that the key to keeping her parents together was to keep her father drunk.

Matthew didn’t get a chance to discuss his concerns with Kenzie. They were both awakened by yelling and screaming upstairs in the kitchen. After a few minutes, the front door was slammed with so much force the walls shook. They went upstairs to find Kenzie’s brother comforting their mother.

“He just got so angry out of nowhere. I was just asking him about breakfast,” his mother-in-law was saying in between her sobs.

“Are you sure you weren’t nagging him?” Kenzie asked.

“Kenzie, you’re not helping,” her brother said.

“Like anything could help this,” Matthew muttered under his breath as he grabbed a bottle of water. He went back downstairs to sleep off his hangover.

Matthew was awakened again later that afternoon by Kenzie calling him upstairs for a late lunch. His father-in-law was back, and to his surprise everyone was getting along. After lunch and a movie, Matthew realized that Kenzie was on drink duty again. He decided not to say anything. All they had to do was get through the night, and breakfast the next morning. He would talk to her when they got home.

They made it all the way through dinner and one round of a board game before his mother-in-law started back up again. It started with her complaining about dessert. Everyone else wanted ice cream, but she wanted pie—that they didn’t have. She wanted Kenzie and her brother to go get it. Next the music was the problem. Then the game. And on and on, until none of them could take it anymore.

“That’s it. Put everything up. The night is over,” Matthew’s father-in-law finally said.

No one questioned him, except his wife of course. Matthew, Kenzie, and her brother quietly tidied up the living room and kitchen while the couple argued. The last thing Matthew heard as he closed the bedroom door downstairs was his father-in-law loudly proclaiming that he wasn’t going to waste another minute of his life being miserable.

Matthew and Kenzie went to sleep without discussing anything again. Just a few hours later, they were awakened by a loud knock on the bedroom door.

“Kenzie, get up. Come here,” they both heard her father calling. Kenzie gave Matthew a confused look, but went out into the hall to see what her father wanted. She returned to the room, flipped on the light, and started packing in a frenzy.

“Get up. Grab your stuff. We’ve gotta go now!” she said.

“Kenzie, what is going on?” Matthew asked.

“Just come on. Right now! I’ll explain in the car.”

Kenzie was focused, but also visibly upset. Not wanting to upset her any further, Matthew did as she said.

Matthew made it outside with the bags just in time to see his father-in-law, carrying his brother-in-law to the car as if he was passed out. He turned to look back at Kenzie who shifted her eyes downward. “Keep going,” was all she said.

Matthew stuffed the bags in the trunk and went around to open the door for Kenzie, who surprised him by nudging him inside then getting into the front passenger seat.

“Kenz, your mom isn’t going to want to sit back here,” Matthew said.

Kenzie didn’t respond.

“Want me to go back in and see if she needs help with something?” Matthew asked. His eyes darting back and forth between Kenzie and his father-in-law. Neither of them responded. His father-in-law cranked up the car and started rolling forward.

“Kenzie…” Matthew tried to get a response out of her again.

Matthew tried to catch Kenzie’s eyes in the mirror, but she wouldn’t look at him. He glanced to his side, and saw that his brother-in-law was still passed out. As he turned back around, he felt a prick in his arm. The last thing he heard before he passed out was Kenzie’s voice saying to her father, “He won’t be a problem. I promise.”

The End.

Written By: S.M. Grady

© 2019 S.M. Grady

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