Life's Unexpected Surprises - 24. Chapter 8.2 - A Special Dinner - Poker Face

Elijah

1

“Are you ready for your dinner?” Brandon asked looking into my room. I was looking at myself in the mirror adjusting my tie. “Looking a little formal there, aren't you?”

I looked at him from the reflection. “I wanted to make a good impression.”

He chuckled. “Think you might have already done that. Were you told it was going to be formal?” I shook my head. “So why do we have a bow tie on?”

“What's wrong with a bow tie? They are perfectly acceptable pieces of formal wear.” I like bow ties; they make the young look cuter than they are which adds to my cuteness. “I'm wearing it.”

“Didn't say you should take it off. If you're dressed, Mr. Bayes should be expecting you soon.” I looked at my watch, yes I have a watch, and he was right. I was to be expected at the Bayes household in just under 10 minutes.

Before leaving mom had to get a photo of me in my dress clothes. Breston couldn't stop giggling as she took picture after picture. Between every photo, I would shout at him, which would just cause him to giggle more and more.

We arrived at the Bayes household with a minute to spare. I quickly left Brandon in the car and headed straight to the door. After ringing the doorbell, I was greeted by a very happy looking Quinn.

He gave me a once over, smiling all the while. “You are very dressed up.” I mean I was wearing a complete set of dress clothes; he was wearing a nice shirt and jeans.

Mr. Bayes peaked around the corner. “You look very nice Elijah, come on in.” Quinn moved out of the way and let me in. I took off my shoes and sat down awkwardly in the living room.

Quinn went into the kitchen and grabbed glasses. “Would you like something to drink? We have apple juice, orange juice, Coke or Pepsi.”

“How can you have Coke and Pepsi in the same house?”

Quinn laughed. “Dad and I can't agree which one is better.”

“I'll take an apple juice, please and thank you.” Moments later a filled cup was in front of me. “Sweet, thanks.”

“I hope you don't mind; dad invited his business partner and her son to dinner too.” Quinn gave an awkward smile. “I've only ever seen him a couple of times while at the restaurant but he seems nice.”

“He's 16 but looks younger; Vega is a great kid.” Wait, Vega? He's 16 but looks younger... This sounds an awful lot like the Vega I knew back in my hometown.

Vega was a guy Breston would always talk about. Vega was an out and proud gay teen that the school just adored. He was the most adorable person according to every single girl and Breston. It couldn't be the same guy.

“That's fine, the more, the merrier.” It wasn't my dinner after all. Not my call to make really, not my house. “It should be fun meeting someone new.”

Quinn showed me around their small house. It wasn't to to small it looked a lot bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside. Quinn's room was down a hall from the living room. It had barely enough room for a bed and desk, but he seemed to really enjoy it.

When his tour finished, there was a knock at the door. “We're here!” It was a woman's voice, Mr. Bayes' business partner. She continued to speak, but I couldn't make out the words from Quinn's room.

“Quinn and Elijah are in the room down the hall there.” Mr. Bayes spoke loud enough for us to hear him. We heard footsteps coming down the hall.

“Hey, Vega,” Quinn said before he even came into view. “What's up?”

And the kid who came around the corner was who Breston had shown me so many months prior. The same face, haircut, everything. Breston is going to die when he hears the news.

I guess I was staring at him for a bit. Broken from my trance Quinn was waving in my face. “Wake up; it looks like you've seen a ghost.”

“You're Vega Mills.” Vega just nodded his head. “Do you remember Breston Crossen?”

Confused Vega gave off an awkward smile. “Yes, he lived in my hometown. Are you related to him or something?”

“He's my stepbrother we moved here in the summer. Breston talked about you a lot.” My face felt warmer than usual, was I blushing? THIS ISN'T EVEN ABOUT ME! Breston was the one who spoke about him.

“Well isn't that coincidental that we both moved to the same town.” He laughed a bit before continuing. “I guess I'll see little Breston again.”

Quinn snorted. “You call him little, but you look like you're twelve.” Vega rolled his eyes. “Did you know we live in the town of the artist of Blades of Eternity? Elijah is really into that stuff.”

Vega looked over at me with great interest sketched into his face. “I've read a few chapters of Blades of Eternity: Dragoons. It's pretty interesting so far.”

Remember I'm a Blades nerd, so this set off a switch that went into full-on rant mode. “Dragoons is a spin-off of the original story. People were so interested in Kiari that Isaac offered to write the story himself. Given all of the notes on Kiari's story, he wrote Dragoons.

“I personally like how the story centers around Koiji's ancestor. Koiji is the main character of Blades. His ancestor, whom he's named after, is confirmed to be the focal point of Dragoons.” I told you I entered nerd mode. I knew a lot more but didn't want to make a bad impression.

“Terra is my favorite. He's such a powerful earth user, and apparently the first solid one of the series as a whole.” I think the name Terra could use some work; it's very cliché in my opinion. “Though his name could use some work...” I couldn't help but laugh.

“That’s actually what I was thinking but didn't want to be rude.”

He shrugged it off. “Don't worry about being rude; it's just an opinion. As long as it's not an attack, it's perfectly fine to say.” That makes sense. “Do you like anyone, Quinn?”

Quinn barely shrugged. “I know it's popular, but I haven't read any of it.” He looked super awkward not looking into either set of eyes.

“That's okay; we can talk about something else then. What kind of stuff do you like Quinn?” He shrugged and walked out of his room, in a hurry. Vega and I both watched him going down the hallway and right into the kitchen. “What's going on with Quinn?”

“I don't know.”

Quinn

2

They started talking about Blades, Elijah went on a rant. I'd never read anything on Blades and didn't know what they were talking about. When they asked for my opinion, I told them I hadn't read any of it.

At that moment, my nerves got the better of me. For some reason, my anxiety went into full blown attack. “What kind of stuff do you like Quinn?” Vega asked me, but I was too focused on my right hand shaking.

So I did what I could, immediately removed myself from where my stress originated. Vega and Elijah were probably very confused, but I didn't care. I walked straight into the kitchen, and by then my breathing started to get heavier.

The hallway twist and turned, I almost lost my balance. So I shut my eyes and placed my hand on the wall. My head started to hurt, a headache. A full blown anxiety attack at a time like this? Why?

“Dad...” I barely made a noise. But it was enough for dad to notice.

“Linda, could you just finish this up for me. It should only take a minute or so.” Dad quickly took off his apron and sat me down on a chair in the kitchen. “Hey, hey, hey what's wrong buddy?”

All that I could manage was shaking my head. “I... I... I don't...”My breathing got heavier, and tears started to form. In a moment they started to stream down my face.

“What's up with Quinn?” I heard Elijah ask. Linda quickly hushed them and took them out of the kitchen.

Dad kept massaging my arms in attempts to calm me down. “Hey buddy, what can I do to help you?” I didn't say anything; I couldn't. My body wasn't listening to me anymore. All it wanted to do was shake and cry.

Who knows how long it was later when I finally calmed down. My breathing was still a little heavy. “I'm sorry...”

“There is no reason to be sorry Quinn, it happens. Think you can join everyone for dinner?” I nodded. “Linda has already talked to Vega and Elijah about it. I know you're still going to be awkward, but know that they understand.”

“Thanks, daddy.” Whenever I finish an attack, I call him daddy. It makes me feel like such a little kid, but I can't help it. He's my daddy and always will be.

I got a kiss on my forehead. “No problem buddy. I'll always be there for you. Love you, Quinn.”

“Love you too daddy.”

Vega

4

“What happened in the bedroom?” Mom asked me as we were heading home in mom's junky car. She keeps saying she's going to buy a new car but never does. Mom can afford it but just hasn't gotten around to it. “There might be something that could link to Quinn's anxiety attack. Any kind of information could help.”

It's been just mom and me for a while now. Dad got convicted and thrown into jail years ago. I was never told why, just that he wouldn't be in my life until I was an adult. At that point, it's my choice if I want to see him or not.

When mom said, she's been in contact with an old friend from high school I didn't think it would lead to us moving. Over a couple of months, they figured they would open a restaurant together. They opened at the beginning of the summer, but I spent my summer with my grandparents.

“I don't know, Elijah and I started talking about Blades. When Quinn told us that he didn't like it, I tried to change the subject. He walked out of the room and had the attack.” That was all that happened; I have no idea why he got triggered.

“What was said, Rick said even the smallest thing could help.” Rick is Quinn's dad. “Anything you can remember Vega?”

“I don't know mom... I asked him 'What kind of stuff do you like Quinn?' and he walked out.”

“Okay. Thanks, Vega.” I don't know how that will be helpful, but if it is at all, I'm happy. “How did you enjoy getting to know Quinn and Elijah?”

“They seem cool, younger than me, though. I'm looking forward to meeting kids my age.” No insult to Quinn and Elijah, I just want to meet kids my age. “When can I start school?”

“Monday.”

“I can't believe I'm excited about school.” Mom got a good laugh from that one.

Once we got home, I headed up straight to my room. It's mostly unpacked with a just a couple of things hanging out in boxes still. Mostly it's my library of manga and graphic novels. I have the complete set of Naruto, Pandora Hearts, Fairy Tail and most of Blades. I have a bunch more but nothing worth mentioning.

My walls lay blank, but every desk or table has a mess on it. From empty boxes to the garbage they were covered in a mess. I do mean to get it all cleaned up, just been busy. Have to keep the floor clean, so my guitars don't get all messed up.

The pride and joy of my room was my computer. Worked all summer and bought the best of the best to make it. My desk was the surface closest thing to being clean. Two monitors sat on the desk waiting to be watched.

That could wait till later, though, now was guitar time. I grabbed my favorite acoustic and just started fiddling with the strings and basically just making noise. “You should play something,” Mom spoke softly leaning against my door frame.

“Why? Not like anyone is listening.”

“I am... I love hearing my baby play.” I let out a sigh and started to play mom's favorite song. When it got the part, she knew she sang. “Can't read my, can't read my, no you can't read my Poker face.” and I stopped.

Mom gave me a disappointing look. “Sorry...”

“Why'd you stop?” I shrugged setting the guitar on my bed. “You'll get back into it, just give it time. A lot has changed in a short time.”

“Ya, I know.” Giving an awkward smile, I just sat there swinging back and forth in my chair. Out of nowhere, a tear went straight down my cheek. Luckily it was away from Mom. She did take notice, though. “Mom... I miss Dad.”

Chapter End.