Thanksgiving
A couple gets into the car at 6:10. Minutes of silence follow. The boy asks the girl a question. She gives a single-word response.
-Are you okay? he asks.
-Yeah.
-You seem mad.
-No.
-You sure?
-I'm fine.
-Why are you being so quiet and weird and clearly angry, then?
-You said 6:00.
-I did.
-I told you I wanted to leave on time.
-You did.
-Well you asked why I was upset.
-I already apologized.
...
-I told you I wanted to leave on time.
-Do you know what's happening right now? We're being my parents. You're mad at me over something inconsequential - whether we left at 6:00 or 7:00 it doesn't matter, but you set this arbitrary goal and I failed to meet it because I always do, but I only missed it by an almost negligible amount of time. And now we're quiet and you're angry and I'm getting angry as a result, and now we're going to be quiet for another thirty miles and maybe you'll apologize to me or I'll restart my apologizing to you and we'll pretend that it's okay - or maybe no one will apologize to anyone and we'll get there and act like no fight ever took place but either way the fucking holiday is already ruined regardless of whether or not we're able to fake it once we get there. And fucking Tim is in the back seat, and he's had to witness all of this, so his fucking holiday with a room full of strangers is going to be even more ruined than ours because the only people he knows are fighting and he knows it. And they're acting like everything's fine but they're also both drinking wine and he's worried they're going to start fighting again because he knows you get talkative when you're drunk and I get morose and defensive. All over the difference between six o'clock and 6:10.
After about ten seconds, they both start laughing.
-That was ridiculous, she says.
-Did you like my rant? he says.
-I'm sorry. she says, with gravity and conviction.
-I know. he says. Then he pauses. Then, -Seriously, though. Ruined.
-Are you okay? he asks.
-Yeah.
-You seem mad.
-No.
-You sure?
-I'm fine.
-Why are you being so quiet and weird and clearly angry, then?
-You said 6:00.
-I did.
-I told you I wanted to leave on time.
-You did.
-Well you asked why I was upset.
-I already apologized.
...
-I told you I wanted to leave on time.
-Do you know what's happening right now? We're being my parents. You're mad at me over something inconsequential - whether we left at 6:00 or 7:00 it doesn't matter, but you set this arbitrary goal and I failed to meet it because I always do, but I only missed it by an almost negligible amount of time. And now we're quiet and you're angry and I'm getting angry as a result, and now we're going to be quiet for another thirty miles and maybe you'll apologize to me or I'll restart my apologizing to you and we'll pretend that it's okay - or maybe no one will apologize to anyone and we'll get there and act like no fight ever took place but either way the fucking holiday is already ruined regardless of whether or not we're able to fake it once we get there. And fucking Tim is in the back seat, and he's had to witness all of this, so his fucking holiday with a room full of strangers is going to be even more ruined than ours because the only people he knows are fighting and he knows it. And they're acting like everything's fine but they're also both drinking wine and he's worried they're going to start fighting again because he knows you get talkative when you're drunk and I get morose and defensive. All over the difference between six o'clock and 6:10.
After about ten seconds, they both start laughing.
-That was ridiculous, she says.
-Did you like my rant? he says.
-I'm sorry. she says, with gravity and conviction.
-I know. he says. Then he pauses. Then, -Seriously, though. Ruined.