and bounds with herself since that night, and her determination to heal her old wounds had sped up the process. I would love to know who her therapist was. The woman deserved a fucking medal.
The guys showed up not long after that, and they decided to set up for a jam session on the patio to entertain us before we all pitched in and made dinner.
Grill Master Alys took the last chicken thigh off the grill just as Lili showed up for the feast. Like one big happy family, we had a meal full of laughter and story-swapping. Alys was right. This was just like when we were kids.
“Too bad Connor isn’t here,” I remarked to her.
I witnessed a sadness of sorts flash in her eyes. I supposed she missed him, too. He was just as much a brother to her as to me.
“Yeah,” she said with a small smile, “he’d probably really enjoy himself after he shit his pants, considering who we’ve made a new commune with.”
Laughing, I said, “Yeah. It’s going to be hilarious when he finally gets to meet them.”
“Have you spoken to him recently?”
“Not since my birthday. I know he said he has a heavy load this year, and the two bands he’s in for the moment get a lot of circuits. But he keeps talking about coming back permanently after he graduates, so…”
“He sounds really interesting,” said Phil around his mouthful of skirt steak. “Holy shit, this meat is fuckin’ tasty.”
“Skirt steak is a specialty of the Stuarts,” I told him.
Grunting in appreciation, he asked, “Is he coming back for Thanksgiving break?”
“Probably,” I replied. “He always has.”
Alys seemed keen on getting as much chicken in her mouth as possible.
“My dad was saying he’d like for everyone to come over to his place for Thanksgiving,” Phil told us. “Your family and Alys and Lili and Lewis, too, if he wants. Dad’s gonna have a shit-ton of food. Alys, your family can come. And I guess if Lili—”
“That’s cool,” I said quickly.
Lili nodded in agreement and a little appreciation as well. They didn’t know what sort of family life she had grown up with, and until she wanted to share it with them, that was just the way it would stay.
“It’ll be nice not to be the ones to cook this year,” Alys said. “Although, if everyone brought something, your dad wouldn’t have to slave away either.”
“Ooo! Alys, please make your mom make that carrot soufflé!” wheedled Lili. “That’s what makes the whole damn thing worth it.”
“Oh, jeez, thanks, Lili,” I said dryly.
“You know it’s true,” she retorted. “Even though your turkey and stuffing are almost as amazing.”
“I’ll talk to him and see if he’s cool with it. I don’t see why he wouldn’t be,” said Phil.
“Sweet! Then, Kenna can make her stuffing, too,” Lili said with a shit-eating grin.
“Yeah, what are you gonna make?” asked Phil, sounding testy.
“Nothing. But I’ll have Lewis make us some badass desserts.”
“She’s got you there.” I laughed. “I tried to make Lewis’s pumpkin and ginger spice cake a couple of years ago. I found that perhaps my culinary talents don’t include baking.”
“I’ll have him make that one and a few others. Let me know what you guys like, and I’ll see if he’ll do it.”
After the food had been cleared and Phil and X and Flipper cleaned up the dishes, the guys decided to make it a Led Zeppelin evening and play some of our favorites.
A couple of hours later, Flipper headed out to Vivian’s, and Lili caught a ride with him to The Duck Pond to finish out Lewis’s shift, saying that she’d be spending the night with him.
“Let’s go back to my place tonight,” I whispered to Phil. “Alys plans on staying here with X, and that means the house is all ours.”
“Too fuckin’ right.”
Muscles burning, sweat pouring into my eyes, I transitioned from a handstand into scorpion pose. Breathing deep, focusing on my positioning, I executed it with a little difficulty. It wasn’t easy, holding such precise balance, but I managed, and I was happy following through with it.
Phil was still asleep, and it was really no wonder. He had been a fucking machine last night. I didn’t know how he had done it. His stamina was a little scary in its intensity, but I saw how it benefited him up on stage. NOLA’s Junk had a reputation of going balls to the wall for hours, and I wondered if Alys had the same issue with X and