It was that time of year when families came together to celebrate and give thanks. Eva was supposed to be on her best behavior. “No shenanigans,” her mother warned, before the guests started trickling in for dinner.

Eva was given strict instructions not to mention her father’s gambling problem or Aunt Stacey’s fondness of walking out of stores with things that she hadn’t necessarily purchased. Uncle Mike’s drinking problem was completely off limits. Eva supposed she could ignore his slurred speech if everyone else at the table was going to pretend not to hear it too.

She absolutely could not mention that Aunt Rita’s boyfriend was so young that he had more in common with Eva than anyone else at the table. So, asking him about his college classes was a no-go. Speaking of college—well she couldn’t. Because that might draw attention to the fact that her sister dropped out of college after one semester, with a vague plan to “discover her true purpose.” That was two years ago and so far, she’d discovered a part-time job at the craft shop down the street.

Eva couldn’t ask about Uncle Ronnie’s “vacation,” because apparently that was code for rehab. Politics and religion were banned for life after the fight that broke out three years ago. Pets were a tricky subject, so probably best to just avoid that topic too.

“Are you going to remember all this?”

Eva went upstairs to get her earbuds. It was going to be a very quiet evening.  

Written By: S.M. Grady

© 2020 S.M. Grady