RP: For these people, I thank you

[jake_abernathy]

Date: November 24, 2011
Characters: Jake Abernathy, Star Abernathy (NPC), Neve Standheim, Shelby, Mack and Bryn Standheim (NPCs), Ezra Loy
Location: Jake’s place
Status: Private
Summary: Jake has much to be grateful for this year.
Completion: Incomplete

Comments

[jake_abernathy]

“Be happy to remind you any time,” Jake said, wishing he had a moment to properly ‘remind’ her right now. Yes, definitely. He had enjoyed that ‘conversation’ very much.

“I can see how it would,” he said with a nod. It was cute of Bryn, but he knew it could easily become a little awkward if she were to make an actual request. Not that she would really understand what she was asking, but they just weren’t quite up to the point yet of a discussion like that. He was only starting to delve into his own thoughts like that in regards to his relationship.

“Well, we’re happy to have you. All of you,” Amanda said, smiling at each person in turn. She had missed her son being happy, and he definitely seemed more happy now than he had been in a long time. It wasn’t perfect, but he finally seemed to be making peace with some things. “We want to share this holiday with people who are important to us.” She grinned at Ezra. “We’re grateful to have you here too, Ezra. Happy Thanksgiving,” she told him.

She slowly herded everyone, girls and all, to the large dining room table. Jake had the slot with the missing chair on one end, her husband the seat on the other. Everyone was free to sit as they saw fit in all of the other seats.

“We have a bit of a tradition in this house,” Amanda said, smiling over at her husband. “We always say grace on Thanksgiving, and then when we start to eat, I like to go around the table and hear two things-something you’re thankful for this year, and a favorite Thanksgiving memory.”

[neve_stadheim]

"I look forward to that reminder." Neve answered with a half smile. She hoped they would get a moment alone at some point, though likely if it was today it wouldn't go near as far as their conversation had the week before.

"Doesn't take much to give a seven year old an idea." She really did hope it didn't go any further than Bryn asking questions like this, because she wasn't entirely ready to have that conversation with her youngest just yet, or wonder if she and Jake would ever have that conversation, they weren't at that place yet and she wasn't sure if they ever would be. She could admit she wanted to be, but there were a lot of factors to take into consideration.

It really was nice to be celebrating the day with a family that she felt comfortable with, a family that genuinely seemed to want her there. "Again, thank you." Neve wasn't surprised by the way Jake and his parents welcomed them in, she'd always known the entire Abernathy family to be fairly generous people. "You're saving me a day of headaches." She wasn't going to go into it, though she knew Jake's parents knew details of what her in-laws had tried earlier in the year.

"Uh, thanks. I really do appreciate it." Ezra replied, smiling at Amanda. "Last year was a little.....stressful." He added, not going into details or how he'd spend the majority of the holiday in the hospital.

Neve, Ezra and the girls all willingly moved towards the dining room, and found seats. She took the seat to the right of Jake, and Bryn begrudgingly crawled out of Jake's lap to take the seat on the other side of her Mom. Mackenzie sat as far away from her Mom and Jake as she could, insisting Ezra sit next to her, and Shelby just took whatever chair was still open.

Nodding, Neve wasn't about to comment on traditions. She wasn't particularly religious, but she could respect those that were. "That sounds appropriate, and kind of nice." She commented, glancing at her girls while she wondered what they might say in response to the two things.

[jake_abernathy]

Jake was familiar with the mentality of a seven-year-old girl, at least. Star and Bryn might be a lot different, but there were certain things most children that age had and one was the way an idea crept into their heads. “Don’t I know it,” he said with a faint smile. It gave him a lot of ideas, in fact, some of which he was sure it was much too soon for, but he supposed so long as he kept it to himself, it would be fine.

“It’s not a problem, dear,” Amanda said, hugging the other woman briefly with one arm. “We really are glad to have you here.” It was nice to see her son in a serious relationship with a woman she not only approved of but actually liked. “I know Jacob is glad to save you that headache, too.” Jake had discussed it more at length with his father, since he was a lawyer even if he didn’t specialize in that. It had been his father who refered them to an investigator to help deal with everything.

“You’re welcome anytime. We’re just glad you’re with us and doing so well this year after the last one,” Amanda told him, smiling gently. She knew what had happened; with Neve and Jake being friends, it had been inevitable, even if both of them had been rather busy and stressed at the time, Jake with learning how to function in a will chair and doing intense rehab and Neve dealing with her brother’s injury and surgeries.

Star sat on her father’s other side, Amanda on the other side of Bryn, and Mack ended up next to his father near that end of the table. Once everyone was seated, the Abernathys, familiar with the tradition, reached to take the hands of the people next to them. “Don’t worry, I don’t bite,” Jacob Sr said, dark eyes twinkling faintly over at Mackenzie as he reached for her hand. He was a tall man, though not as tall as his son had gotten, though much thinner and less muscular, gray-haired and distinguished.

“Thank you, Lord, for the food, friends, and family around us today. Bless our meal to the nourishment of our bodies, and our coming year, so it may be filled with better things, and our hearts with more love, and our minds with more knowledge, so that next year we have even more to be thankful for. Amen.” It was simple and heartfelt and brief, as their family believed things should be. Jacob stood up to carve the turkey, and on the first plate he laid a piece, he said, “You can start us out-something you’re grateful for and a favorite Thanksgiving memory.”

[neve_stadheim]

This really was an odd situation to be in, Neve was far more used to not getting along with her significant other's parents. She had never seen eye to eye with her mother in law. The fact that Amanda not only seemed okay with her relationship with Jake, but also that they had always been on friendly terms was something that pleased Neve. "Well, I'm really glad to be here." It had been nice over the summer to have people she could lean on during all of this. She was glad to be here for many reasons, one of which was that it was spending the holidays with all the people she cared about.

Ezra wasn't surprised that Jake's Mom seemed to know all about his own hospital stay, no doubt having heard it all from Neve. "Uh, thanks. This year has definitely been better than last." Though he'd still had his various stumbling points, over all he'd made it through okay-ish. "The food is better this year as well." Hospital food on Thanksgiving kind of sucked.

Eying Star's Grandpa, Mackenzie blinked once before replying. "Yeah? I can't promise I don't." She realized after she said it that maybe it would be considered rude, but Star's Grandpa had started it, so Mack just hoped she wouldn't be yelled at her her reply.

The Stadheim girls weren't used to this, but they weren't uncomfortable either, which was saying a lot. Mackenzie stared up at Star's Grandpa when he told her that she could start everyone off with the two things, she had to wonder if this was rigged somehow. She bit her lip and tried not to fidget. "I'm thankful that I don't have Mrs. Wilson for a teacher anymore and my favorite memory is kind of odd, but it's from last year. Grandma and Grandpa were here and Uncle Ezra was alive, and I thought that was something to be thankful for." Mack kind of hoped those answers were good enough, shrugging slightly she glanced around the table. "So next person now, right?"

[jake_abernathy]

"The food had best be better," Rosa said as she came in, smiling at the blond young man. "I don't know that I've met your, senor, but I am Rosalia and the food is mostly mine. I do hope you enjoy it." She was obviously Hispanic, on the plump side with a cheerful mien about her.

Jacob laughed softly at the girl's reply. "Well, do try to avoid any major arteries, the last thing we want to do is spend part of the holiday in the emergency room," he said, taking it in stride. He did have, after all, a rather blunt granddaughter of his own already.

Jacob gave her her plate and urged her to start putting the sides on it, as they would be passed around. "Very good reason to be thankful, yes," he agreed, starting on the next plate, this one for Star. "And you, my dear?"

Star took her plate as it was passed down. "I'm thankful that Dad is alive and well and that Mom is back," she said. "And my favorite memory is a couple of years ago when we all had Thanksgiving at the fire station, and we got all the way to dessert before the alarm went off. Everyone grabbed a slice of pie and took off." She grinned at the memory.

[neve_stadheim]

Ezra held up his hands in surrender as Rosa came into the room right as he made his comment. "No offense intended, I'm sure your food is much better than the stuff at the hospital." he remarked, his worry easing as she caught her smile. "No, don't think we have met. It's nice to meet you Rosalia, I'm Ezra." He replied with a grin. "Neve's younger brother." He tacked on, unsure if Rosa would put two and two together.

Mack wrinkled her nose. "Spent last year in a hospital, it's not so bad." Granted it hadn't been awesome, at least they had all been together, her mom, sisters, uncle Ezra and her grandparents. "But I'll avoid any arteries since you asked." Mack kind of liked Star's Grandpa, he didn't scold her like some adults were prone to doing when she made comments like that.

Shelby couldn't help but giggle and pipe up. "Was it the guys being called to our house?" She couldn't remember if they'd ever had the fire department out on Thanksgiving, but they came out so often that it all kind of bled together. "Oh sorry, it wasn't my turn." Shelby wasn't usually prone to jumping into a conversation like that, she usually left that solely up to Mack.

[jake_abernathy]

"No offense taken," she said, smiling broadly at him. She hadn't taken offense in the first place. "I thought that might be you. We're glad to have you here tonight."

Jacob smiled. "In the hospital, but not in the emergency room. Big difference there," he told her, not upset with her attitude. Besides giving her a reaction, which in a way would reward her behavior, he wasn't really bothered by it. "My thanks, then."

Jake smiled at Shelby. "No worries, Shelby. It's not strict turn taking here. Feel free to speak up if you have something to say," he said. So long as it was a positive something, serious talks of politics and the like and anything of a negative sort, were discouraged, as family dinners were supposed to be good things. "And no, it was a man who tried to deep fry a turkey and blew something up, I think, if I'm remembering right."

[neve_stadheim]

Ezra couldn't help but smile even wider at Rosa, relieved that she hadn't taken offense to his words. "The family resemblance is hard to miss, I guess." Ezra replied, glancing around the table as he continued. "I'm thankful to be here tonight." He had a lot of things to be thankful for this year.

Mack very nearly sighed and rolled her eyes at Star's Grandpa, thankfully she caught herself before she did that. "I guess, still the hospital is the hospital." She answered, knowing she was two steps away from her Mom yelling at her if Star's Grandpa didn't beat her too it. "Welcome." Mack grinned, relieved that it seemed she wouldn't be getting into trouble.

"Okay, wasn't sure. Things are always really formal at my Grandparents house." Shelby replied honestly. She pondered the two questions for a moment, knowing what she was thankful for this year, it was the memory part that was harder. "Well, I guess I can answer the questions, then. I'm thankful that Mom's happy, and Uncle Ra is doing a lot better. And my favorite Thanksgiving memory is actually the one year we were all together for Thanksgiving, Mom, Dad, Mack and Bryn." It was a good memory, one she cherished now that her Dad wasn't around. When Jake explained where the fire department had been called to, she smiled. "Oh, we'd never let Mom try and fry a turkey, she'd end up burning the whole house down I think."