Page 17 of Shifted

Hope(9:02 a.m.): False. I'm avoiding Grayson’s Stewie impression after he's downed four glasses of wine.

Read 9:02 a.m.

The speech bubbles pop up and then down, then return, and then finally I get a message.

Arabella(9:04 a.m.): Enjoy Charlie and the parade and your cinnamon buns.

I stared at the oven where they remained baking. This woman knew me too well. It was almost freaky in ways, but she stayed over Thanksgiving morning once. But at that time, mimosas were involved.

Hope(9:05 a.m.): First, they're rolls, not buns, and second, we will.

The scent of them excites my nose as the timer is almost nearly done; I am obsessed with them. They were honestly the ultimate comfort food. But holidays were extra special as if it added to the feeling and nostalgia of it.

Arabella(9:05 a.m.): Dinner’s at three!

She responds, knowing full well I’d be there with a pie. It looks like my cooking plans and my non-defrosted turkey would have to wait for a few days until I decided to cook round two. If only I had more friends to host a Friendsgiving for. But instead, I'd be feasting alone, well, with a toddler who just ate mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce.

Placing my phone down on the corner, I went back over to join Joely as she sat in the other room. "Charlie, mummy." She whined impatiently, waiting for me to switch the channel so we could watch our beloved tradition together.

"Okay, okay." Pulling the covers over both of us, I changed the channel as she curled into me. "I'm going to have to get up soon for the cinnamon rolls, so don't get moody when I move," she giggled softly and wrapped her arms tight around my waist to the best of her abilities—moments like these reminded me why I loved Thanksgiving.

?

There we stood hand in hand outside of Bella's. The main reason I finally decided to come was guilt, and I forgot to thaw the turkey. Instead, I threw it right in the freezer without a thought. Joely leaned forward, standing on her tiptoes to ring the doorbell. I flattened my wool coat, wiping the lasting raindrops from the morning drizzles. But within seconds, the door swung open to a smiling Arabella.

"Aunty Bella!" Joely cheered as Bella looked down at her excited.

"Joely!" Bella squealed. She picked up Joely and hoisted her on her hip. "Happy Thanksgiving, girl!" She kissed her little cheek as she squirmed slightly.

"I brought my blueberry pie as a truss?" She raised a brow, skeptical for a moment, and glanced down at the perfectly baked pie.

"All right, fine. Come in," I grinned. Stepping into her apartment, Grayson walks over and tries to steal my pie. After failing, he pulled me in for a hug.

"Let me take that off your hands." I laughed as he snatched the pie away so I could hang up my coat while Bella helped Joely with hers. I headed towards the kitchen, knowing Maria would be cooking up a storm. She didn’t ever catch a break on holidays.

"Maria?" A pan clanged to the ground as I entered the kitchen. I saw Maria jump, "Hey, Mama Jones." She gasped and moved away from whatever she was working on.

"Hope! Oh, you came!" She beamed, turning towards me.

"Don't mess up the sweet potatoes," I gestured to the uncooked casserole on the marble counter in warning as she stepped away. Removing her apron, she came towards me and wrapped her arms around me.

"Happy Thanksgiving, Hope. I'm so glad you came. Now we can all witness Grayson ruin the turkey." It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving if someone didn’t ruin the turkey somehow. One year, we opened the oven to see it up in flames. Theo was in charge.

"I heard that!" Grayson yelled from the other room, and she grimaced. The pantry door opened, and I looked to see him step out. Theo stood with a grateful smirk as he stared at me.

"Vermont?" He quizzed.

"Missed the ride," I countered, and he shook his head.

"Oh yeah, sure.” The kitchen door burst open as Grayson chased Joely in here.

"Uncle Gray!" She yells as he wraps his arms around her, tickling her. She squirms in his arms and attempts to escape, but he doesn’t budge.

"Joely! Look at you, what a big girl you are!" Maria smiled at her, and she escaped Grayson's grasp and ran into her arms. Their relationship was more than special. I swear Maria loves my daughter more than anyone else.

As I turned I saw Theo standing confused as he stared at her. Stepping beside him, I leaned in as we both observed the little girl in Maria’s arms. She looked like the spitting image of me as a kid, so the dots weren’t hard to connect.

"That's my daughter, Joely." His face paled a little bit, and then, glancing back at her, he smiled. “She's adorable," he whispers.

---