Right As Rain | ✓

10| Human Nature

"Here you go kids," Mom says as she lowers the tray of hot chocolate and marshmallow onto the coffee table by where we sat on the floor.

"Thank you ma'am," Keaton says, lifting one of the Christmas themed mugs off of the tray. My mom smiles at him and straightens up.

"I'll be in the office if you two need anything." She hovers for a moment, watching the two of us.

"Thanks Mom, we're good," I say, forcing a smile on my face. She was beginning to embarrass me now.

When she finally decides to leave I turn on the television to any of the familiar shows playing that night. There weren't many options to chose from, most of them felt too boring or too interesting to have on in the background of the little moment I had going on for me at the present.

"So does this count as the second date?" He asks as I'm flipping through the channels.

"How about we say that it's a prelude to the real second date." I settle on a rerun of 16 wishes on Disney, smiling at the nostalgia the movie brings me.

Keaton turns to face me, his head resting against the legs of the couch. "I'll take that."

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"So you mean you just walked all the way home?" I ask through fits of giggles.

"What was I supposed to do?" He asks, his eyes wide and bewildered, "I already told you I left my phone in the truck."

"That's terrible." I sigh once the giggling fit had ceased.

"Yeah, well, my family isn't necessarily the greatest." He says, a faraway look on his face.

I sit up and lean against the couch, now sitting directly across from him. "Can I ask you something?" I ask, playing with the ends of the carpet that always seemed to make me trip when I was in a hurry. "Without you getting upset?" I add, the question I needed to ask was definitely not about his favourite tv show, it was more than that.

"I can't promise I won't get mad," he said matter-of-factly, "it just isn't human nature." I nodded my head, that was all the reassurance I was going to get.

"You talk about your parents like you hate 'em." I blurt, trying to get out all the words before I chicken out.

Keaton frowns, the corners of his lips dipping down, his forehead creasing. I try not to reach out and smooth out the skin. "Just my Father." He answers after a few moments, "I only hate him." The silence that stretched on after he spoke made it seem like that was all I was going to get out from him for the evening but he continued, "I can't convince her to go, my mom. She loves him too much." His jaw tightens then, almost as if the thought of his mother's affection towards his father repulsed him. "She deserves more." And then he looked towards me, as if asking without asking if I understood, and I did. I mean obviously not in the same way that he understood but I knew what he was trying to say. I could feel the hurt that he was trying so hard to shoulder alone.

"Was he-" I start, flailing my hands around trying to ask the delicate question of his father's sobriety. Suddenly I felt ignorant, his situation was too out of my depth.

"Oh he's a raging alcoholic, sends a mean left hook after a couple with the boys from the lodge." He mimics the hand gesture and I flinch as his fist passes a few inches away from my face, Keaton's frown deepens further. "I never want to be like him," He says, reaching his hand out tentatively, careful not to startle me, and places his hand on my cheek, his thumb brushing gently over its expanse. "And I never want you to be like her." I nod my head, the sheer force of the movement almost snapping the tense muscles of my neck.

Edit Summary

May 19, 2020 - Fixed a few things that bothered me aesthetic wise, no major edits took place.

June 8, 2020 - Added the banners made for me by Belle