Lexi's Final Year

Chapter 16

By early afternoon, the Ambros household was preparing Thanksgiving dinner. Isaac's mother and sister were busy in the kitchen cooking up a storm. Laura's fiancé, Jacob, sat in the living room with Isaac and his father, watching football and chatting about work and school.

As for Lexi, she helped Isaac's mother out wherever she could. She set the table as instructed and made sure that enough hot pads were on the dining room table. She also got out the proper serving dishes for all the food.

"This all smells delicious," she remarked as she saw Laura check potatoes and turnip boiling in separate pots.

"Hope you like turnip," Laura said with a laugh. "It's Mom's favourite."

"I love turnip!" Lexi exclaimed. She then looked at Isaac's mother, who was checking the timer on the stove. "Can I help with anything else?"

"Just put the dinner rolls in that brown wicker basket, but make sure to line it with a napkin first," she ordered.

Lexi carried out the task, setting the basket of rolls away from the chaos. "Anything else I can help out with, Lana?"

"Nope, we're good," Isaac's mother stated in a flat voice.

"There's not a lot of room for three people in the kitchen," Laura chimed in. She grinned at Lexi. "Besides, you're our guest— relax."

"Oh, uh...okay then," Lexi replied before excusing herself to the living room.

Lana's probably just stressed out over making dinner, she thought as she claimed an empty chair. She stared at the TV without paying much attention to the football game.

She then glanced around the living room. Isaac was gone while his father sat on a light grey leather recliner, engrossed in the TV. Jacob sat beside him on the black leather couch, also occupied in the game.

"You alright?"

Lexi jumped, only to relax when she saw Isaac beside her. "I'm good."

"Sorry to scare you again," he remarked with a laugh.

"You're forgiven."

About an hour later, dinner was served. A large turkey sat in the middle of the table looking golden and juicy. There were also mashed potatoes, mashed turnip, peas, and dinner rolls. Two white ceramic gravy boats sat on opposite ends. A glass dish of butter and a small plastic container full of cranberries were also on the table.

"This all looks great," Lexi remarked.

"It sure does!" Jacob exclaimed. "I'm starved!"

"Jacob, please," Laura said, rolling her eyes. "Sorry about him."

"Don't worry about it," Isaac laughed.

Thanksgiving dinner went off without a hitch. Everyone filled their plates with enough food to keep them full well into tomorrow morning. People chatted about the football game playing on TV, as well as about their respective lives. It was a heart-warming dinner that left everyone's hearts and stomachs full. A few people enjoyed a slice of pumpkin pie afterwards to cap off a tasty and successful Thanksgiving dinner.

After dinner ended and the table had been cleared, Isaac and his mother ended up doing dishes. Isaac dried everything and made sure to put it away in its proper place. Everyone else had returned to the living room to chat and relax.

"Thanks again for dinner, Mom," he said. "It was good."

"I'm glad," his mother replied in a soft voice.

"Is something wrong?" Isaac asked. "You've been kinda quiet since I came here."

His mother stopped washing a pot and gave him a hard stare. "It's about Lexi."