“Bet.”
“And grab me a Happy Meal or something while you out,” Liv stated.
His brows heightened. “Hol’ up, hol’ up. First, you go all the way to the store and don’t buy no goddamn snacks. Then, you tell me to get my own food, and now you want me to buy food for yo’ ass too? You can’t be serious.”
“Pleaseeeeee,” Liv begged. “I mean, it’s only right. You are using my gas, and last time I checked, it don’t grow on trees.”
“Whatever. You want anything, Lex?”
I swung my head. “No. I’m good.”
“Aight. I’ll be back,” he announced.
Once he left, Liv and I got to work with prepping for her parents’ arrival. We were so busy that we didn’t immediately acknowledge Oak when he returned about half an hour later with a crumpled fast-food bag clutched in his grasp.He sauntered into the kitchen, making his presence known as he sat at the dining room table still topped with bags.
“It’s about time! Damn,” Liv complained.
“What y’all was doin’ all this time?” he inquired while opening the bag to pull out a small handful of fries.
“Just talking, y’know, reminiscing about our summers here,” I answered.
“Nigga, damn all that. I see one bag in your black ass hand. Where is my Happy Meal?”
He snapped his fingers. “Damn. I know I was forgetting something,” he answered while chomping down on some fries.
Her brows heightened as she rolled her brown orbs skyward. “Niggggaaaaaaaa.”
He laughed. “I’m joking, girl. Chill out. Here,” he said, passing her the bag. “I got you a four-piece nugget and a small fry. Yo’ ass don’t need no toy.”
She rolled her eyes for a second time while smacking her lips together. “Fine. Thanks.”
I chuckled to myself.
“What’s so funny?” Oak inquired, drawing me back into their conversation.
“I was just thinking about that one Halloween when the three of us hopped over the fence to your next-door neighbor’s house, Mrs. Blackwell, and tee-peed her doghouse, along with her flower garden and her precious lawn gnomes.”
Liv immediately burst out laughing. “What can I say? That old bitch deserved it. She was always getting us in trouble. And her lil ass dog was a menace!”
Oak laughed. “But that ass whuppin’ was no joke! And Mama made me give her my allowance for three weeks for all the toilet paper we wasted.”
“Those were definitely the days,” I added, leaning against the counter.
“They sure were, but c’mon, y’all. I’ve got the chili on. Now, we gotta finish setting up before Mama and Daddy get here.”
Of course, Liv was the event organizer, giving Oak and me tasks to complete. Liv had put me in charge of putting together a playlist of old-school R&B love songs to set the mood for her parents’ special dinner and had him hanging decorations in the living room to liven up the cabin.
A couple of hours later, the cabin smelled of hearty chili and spices, which was exactly what Lex had bubbling in the cast-iron skillet. The long wooden dining room table was set for five, with a bouquet of fresh red roses in the center, flanked by the necessary dinner sides—cornbread, tortilla chips for dipping, a side salad, and peach cobbler for dessert.
Their parents arrived holding hands, smiling at the setup. Mr. Gray was the lightest in the family, with a butterscotch complexion and full gray beard, while Mama Gray had the same rich chocolate complexion as her kids and salt and pepper sister locs that lay at the middle of her back.
Oak popped the cork on the champagne bottle and gave them both glasses as they took their seats at the table. Over dinner, laughter flowed around the table as they shared stories from our childhood and their relationship before having kids. I felt like I had a permanent grin on all night, soaking up all the love. The Grays epitomized Black love. I loved the way they still got at each other like newlyweds. If Pat and I could only have a fraction of the happiness they’d had over the years, I’d be happy.
The highlight was after dinner when Liv and Oak presented them with a slideshow in the living room titledFrom Forty to Forever, filled with photos that took us all down memory lane. I was in more of the photos than I thought I’d be, which almost brought a tear to my eye. I didn’t realize until then how deeply woven into the Gray family I was. Since both my parents were gone, I’d been looking forward to starting my own family with Pat, not truly realizing I’d had one all along. Nothing felt like home for me more than being with the Grays did. They were my chosen family, and I couldn’t have asked for a better one.For the very first time, I realized that true family didn’t have to be biological. Sure, blood was thicker than water, but not in our case. When it came to my relationship with Liv’s family, it didn’t get any thicker.
“I always knew we left a baby at the hospital the day we brought Liv home,” her father joked.
Everyone laughed as Oak grabbed the champagne bottle and refilled everyone’s glasses. We all raised them in unison.
