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“Okay, what was that?”
“A fumble.” Ryan turns to me, and I nod that she's right once more. She smiles, satisfied, before turning her attention back to the game. “Did you doubt your teaching abilities, Gabe?” She teases, without looking away from the current play.
“No. Just checking to see how well I did.”
She chuckles, but doesn't say anything more. We watch the rest of the game with only a few comments here and there. As expected, we win. Owen's team held a good lead throughout the game. My family follows Ryan and I as we walk over to the field goal posts, waiting for his coach to finish talking to them. Ryan stands close to me, much as before, and I keep my arm around her.
Owen grins big at Ryan when he makes his way over. His hair is sweaty and matted down on his head from his helmet. Owen holds up his hand and Ryan high fives it.
“Good game,” she tells him.
“Thanks. I'm excited that you're joining us for Thanksgiving next week.” I told my family soon after we came back from Raleigh.
“Owen,” my mother sternly interrupts. “We should go.”
“Yes, ma'am. See y'all later,” he mumbles. Owen gives me a fist pump, hugs Ryan, and then hugs my grandparents.
We all say our goodbyes, Gramps hugging Ryan, and then we go our separate ways. I was able to park near Ryan and as we walk towards our cars, she looks over at me.
“I guess your mother isn't thrilled about me joining y'all?”
“That's not it. Owen was caught sneaking in this week, so he's in trouble. That's all,” I reassure her.
Ryan nods, goes over to open the little door to the gas cap, and grabs her keys. She unlocks her doors, and I open it for her.
“I'll see you at your place?”
“Yes, you will.” I give her a kiss before she gets in, and I go to my own car. I'm so happy I told her she should pack ahead of time and come stay with me tonight.
My stomach growls loudly. It hits me that I haven't eaten supper yet. Ryan pulls up right behind me and once inside the house, I go straight to the fridge while Ryan goes and puts her things in my bedroom. I decide to fix a grilled ham and cheese and while I'm standing at the stove, Ryan comes up behind me, burying her face in between my shoulder blades.
“Your parents still hate me, you know,” she whispers into my back.
“They do not,” I object.
“Oh really?” she says sarcastically. “That's why they all talked to me like Gramps or even Owen did.” Ryan sighs, and I realize she's right. Not one of them really spoke to her. “But it's not me who has to get used to that, Gabe. I mean, what I'm trying to say is that there is a serious possibility that your parents aren't ever going to like me and that Thanksgiving is going to be shot all to hell. So if you plan on keeping me around, you are the one who has to get used to it.”
I scoop my sandwich onto the small plate, turn off the stove, and face Ryan. Cupping her cheeks, I tell her, “They do not hate you. They just don't know you yet.”
She rolls her eyes. “They tried so hard to fix that.”
“Did you try to talk to them?” I question, raising an eyebrow at her.
Ryan frowns. “I said, 'Hello, how are you.' Does that count?”
“How about we forget my parents for tonight? How does that sound?”
“Perfect.”
I give her a kiss and ask if she would like a sandwich as well. She shakes her head. Ryan grabs me a drink from the fridge, grinning when she sees that there are some Sunkists in there.
“So you do plan on keeping me around?” She says as we go into my living room.
“Absolutely.”
We sit down and turn on the TV, but Ryan still wants to talk. “I declared my major this week.”
I smile. “You did? How do you feel about that?”
