“Hey, guys, I got you something. Is it okay if we go into another room?” I don’t even introduce myself, attempting to diffuse a situation without overstepping. They nod, rapidly. I look at Elizabeth, but she just shakes her head in a sad way. God, this must be tearing her apart, seeing her son like this.
“Leena, we’ll do the formalities later. Thank you,” Keith says. We make our way towards another room, which in this house, after never being in it except for today, makes things a little tricky. What’s even trickier is how to keep my cool walking past Elijah and biting my tongue.
“Thank you,” Maya says low, in a way you know she’s worried anything will trigger her ex-husband into waking him up. I can’t say that I’ve ever been around someone in this situation, but I am one hundred percent empathetic for everyone involved.
“You’re welcome. I have a nephew who’s about Mitchell’s age. If you’d like, maybe I can convince my brother to steal him away, and they can meet,” I offer.
“I’m sure he’d love that.” Of course, that’s the time we walk by Elijah and bad things turn to worse in the way.
“You’re not going anywhere, Maya,” Elijah slurs out, except he doesn’t reach out for his ex-wife; he grabs my forearm instead, in a pretty aggressive grip, too. I don’t think anything of it; in my next movement, with my right arm in his hand, my left hand comes down, hitting the clearly overdosing dude who’s slumping in a chair, and when I deliver the blow, he rears back. “What the fuck, you cunt!”
“Leena, come on, let them deal with him,” Maya says, but I shake my head. No fucking way will I ever let someone use those words towards me, drug addict or not. When I see that she and the kids are out of the room, I cross my fingers that the door is closed because there is no way on God’s green earth I am going to curb my attitude. “You touch another person like that, I guarantee you won’t have fingers to use to snort your blow or pop your pills, let alone hurt someone.”
“Yep, she’ll fit right in,” Elizabeth states. Keith chuckles, and Decker, well, let’s just say my husband looks like his head is going to explode if I don’t diffuse the situation. I skate around Elijah, not that my words were comprehended. I get it; addicts have a disease, and in order to kick that habit, they have to be stronger than it. Hopefully one day, Elijah can beat it. Until that day comes, though, there’s nothing anyone can do.
“Decker, honey.” I reach his side, my hand going to his heart, feeling it beat rapidly. “Breathe for me. I’m okay, promise.” I stand on the tips of my toes, gliding our noses across one another until he takes a deep breath.
“Yeah, I know you are, baby. I fucking hate that my own blood is like this.” After I fall flat on my feet, his lips graze my forehead and he continues on, “I know this sucks. I’m going to take him back with Dad to wherever he’s staying. Then I’ll be back, and we’ll have our dinner together, okay?”
“I’ll always be wherever you are.” And that’s how I met my in-laws. It seems every family has a bit of drama sprinkled in along the way. Was it a great way to meet one another? Probably not, but that’s life. No, that’s our life, and I wouldn’t change it for anything in the world.
epilogue
DECKER
Three Months Later
“Hello, Mr. Williams. Fancy meeting you here.” I bring Leena into my arms. She’s wearing the same dress we got married in while we stayed in Belize.
“And you, Mrs. Williams, are a goof.” A beaming smile has been plastered on her face all afternoon. It all came together. Well, between my mother and Leena’s, plus the girls, I was basically told the time, date, and place, given what I needed to wear, plus told to have an open wallet. Not that this is costing a fortune. There was something about paying for it that I felt was necessary to do. It came in the form of flowers, alcohol, and food. The tally ran up, but it was still cheaper for us to get married while on vacation after all. Though, to see the smile plastered on my wife’s face, it was worth it.
The reception we’ve had today is good for her and me, but also for our families, minus a brother, who once again is on a hiatus. This time, though, all strings are cut. There’s no line of communication. It was necessary and something that came up when my mother hit up a narcotics anonymous program. It was a meeting for family members on how to cope, grieve, and learn to live with what that person is dealing with. Since then, we cut off all communication. We’ve only seen Elijah once. He seemed to be doing well, but he’s had those moments before. It used to be that we’d let him stay with us a few days, feed him, let him shower, and he’d crash for a week or two, becoming clean, and then dash out again. The last time, though, Mom ate a sandwich with him outside on her porch and then told him she’d see him later. So, while it’s been good, it’s also been hard, especially on Melanie and Mitchell, who are now hanging out with Jace.