Roberto sat at the kitchen table, his gaze fixed on his phone screen, Brandon’s message staring back at him: Maybe I can make it up to you? If you want, I could help get supplies for your dinner.
The offer felt half-hearted to him, like an olive branch made out of plastic. Brandon would be spending Thanksgiving with Garth and Laura, after all—the dinner Roberto had painstakingly planned was being demoted to a “secondary” event, at best.
Jazlyn, perched across from him with her coffee cup, watched him quietly. Finally, she broke the silence. “Brandon’s asking if everything’s okay.”
Roberto scoffed, shaking his head. “I’m… thinking it over.”
Jazlyn raised an eyebrow, setting her cup down. “You’re leaving him on read? Isn’t that exactly what you were so upset about? I thought we were past the point of silent treatments.”
“Maybe, but it doesn’t exactly feel fair,” Roberto muttered. “He left me hanging all of today. Not a word.”
“He was at work, Roberto. You can’t expect him to be on his phone all day when he’s got responsibilities. He’s doing what he can to keep everyone happy.”
“That’s no excuse for ignoring my texts last night,” Roberto grumbled, looking back down at his phone.
Jazlyn sighed. “And you know he has a social life. He was probably just out with friends—don’t you remember being twenty-something, trying to balance work, family, and everything else?”
Roberto crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair with a reluctant frown. He knew she was right. Brandon was busy, and yes, he had a life outside of family obligations. And deep down, he felt a flicker of pride that Brandon was even offering to help. But swallowing his own irritation was easier said than done.
“Fine,” Roberto said with a heavy sigh. “I’ll answer him. If he wants to help get supplies for a dinner he won’t even be part of… then fine.”
Jazlyn smiled, giving his arm a gentle squeeze. “That’s still something, Roberto. He’s trying, and that counts.”
He nodded, picking up his phone to type out a response. Jazlyn watched him for a moment, then pulled out her own phone and tapped out a quick message to Laura, updating her on the situation.
Jazlyn: Everything seems to have cooled down over here. Roberto’s replying to Brandon now.
A few seconds later, Laura’s reply appeared.
Laura: Good. Now I just need to cool down Garth.
Jazlyn chuckled softly, shaking her head as she put her phone away. At least the chaos seemed to be simmering down. Thanksgiving was still a tangled mess of expectations, but for now, they were all doing their best to hold it together.
Across the table, Roberto’s fingers hovered over his phone, his face softening slightly as he finally pressed send.
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