Page 179 of Scars Like Wings

Thanksgiving morning dawned a few days later—crisp, clear, and with so much promise.

The autumn sun and blue sky filled the Great Room of the penthouse condo with golden light. Behind me, Teddy had already been up for a few hours working on the feast for later today. He and his pale green magic seasoned, stirred, chopped, placed, and prepared ingredients for all sorts of entrees and sides. He did the work of a team of professional chefs with the cheery attitude of someone’s grandmother cooking for her family. It was adorable.

Everett was knocked out, having come home later from work the night before. The girls, Talli and her family, Rhois, Izzy, and Journee, would arrive later, closer to dinnertime. For now, I stretched on the couch, keeping Teddy company with my presence rather than my words. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade watched me more than I watched it at the moment as it played softly in the background. I stared out the windows onto the rooftop terrace overlooking Little Salem, lost in memories. Myrealmemories.

Mom and Pops used to love holidays like this. With everyone on break from work and school, every holiday was the perfectreason to bring everyone together. Thanksgiving was Mom’s favorite. She would get up early to start cooking, and Pops would get up with her to heat up the sausage balls she had made the night before for our breakfast and to sous chef as best as he could. Mom loved cooking and seeing the joy her cooking brought to everyone’s faces. Pops loved seeing her happy and supporting her, knowing how much of a burden it was to do all on your own, even with fire powers to help brown the mac and cheese. I would race down the stairs to put on the Macy’s Parade and marvel with excitement at the floats. As soon as Santa appeared, I would start playing Pops’ Motown Christmas album, declaring it was time for the season of cheer. Mom and Pops would laugh every year. Uncle Everett, Aunt Max, and Talli would arrive a few hours before the dinner was served, and the house would be full of so much laughter and joy. Remembering it made my heart ache with longing for those times again.

After we ate, we wouldn’t sit down and watch football. Instead, we would gleefully head outside into the forest. I would lead, skipping along, despite being full from Mom’s cooking. Once we reached the perfect spot, Mom and Pops would shift into their full forms, Mom being engulfed in flames and Pops being encircled by a misty cloud. Then with a mighty roar, they would show off their full forms. Mom and Pops would both take flight with me and Talli onboard to fly over the trees and mountains. Everett would shift to fly next to us, too. Once Mom and Pops got tired of flying, they would land and run next to a shifted Aunt Max through the trees. My throat would be sore the next day from my giggles and screaming, but I loved it and looked forward to it every single year.

At the end, once everyone had shifted back, I would always exclaim how excited I was to be able to join them one day, to fly with them over our home. I wanted it so much now my wings threatened to come to life behind me.

But it would never come to pass for me.

My phone vibrated in my lap, making me jump and taking me out of my thoughts. Seeing the Caller ID, I immediately got excited.

“Happy Thanksgiving, pumpkin!” I smiled as I answered Quinn’s video call.

“Happy Thanksgiving to you, too, gorgeous,” Quinn appeared on my screen, smirking and looking as fine as ever. Her stunning curls were in a ponytail today with strays stubbornly hanging out that I wanted to touch and push back. Her apron today was orange and embroidered with her name on the top pocket like her navy one. It took everything in my power not to watch her muscles flex under the rolled sleeves of her t-shirt or her large hands handling her knife with precision as she chopped vegetables into various glass bowls in front of her.

Oh, I was so in love with her.

“Hi, Miss Queenie Quinn!” Thompson called from the kitchen. I got up from the couch and flipped the phone to show a waving Teddy with his multiple bowls and magicked utensils. “I’m Byrd’s Uncle’s boyfriend and the Thanksgiving King! It’s nice to meet you!”

“Nice to meet you, too! Good luck with your Thanksgiving! I wish we had some magic on our side.”

I turned the camera back to me and walked back over to the floor-to-ceiling windows in front of the terrace. “You do have magic on your side. Have you tasted your cooking?”

“Yeah, but no matter how much prep you do the night before, it’s still so much that needs to be done before dinnertime.”

“What all do you guys make?”

“Mostly the usual. Turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy, mac and cheese, green bean casserole, rolls, and we cannot forget about the pies. Everything made from scratch, except for the rolls. We use frozen yeast rolls for that.”

“Oh, that sounds delicious, but I definitely understand what you mean by work. That sucks! Is it just you?—?”

“Oh, my goodness, is that my sweet potato pie, Byrdie? Hi, sweetheart! How’s your Thanksgiving going?” Quinn’s mom practically pushed Quinn out of the way to take up the entire phone screen. She waved cheerfully.

“Mama, you are smothering again.” Quinn rolled her eyes from the side.

“Hi, Mama!” I greeted. “Happy Thanksgiving! It’s going great!”

“What do you and your family do for Thanksgiving? Any fun traditions?”

My smile faltered for a moment. I had forgotten my thoughts from earlier about how much I missed how Thanksgivings once were and how much I missed my parents. I pushed those worries aside as much as I could. “My Uncle’s boyfriend is cooking Thanksgiving for the first time! Usually, Uncle Everett and I would have ordered some turkey, ham, and sides. The most cooking I would have done would be making some box stuffing.” We chuckled. “This year, we are inviting over our friends, since our family is so small.”

Quinn watched me talk. I could tell that she easily saw through my ruse, like only she could. Her mom, on the other hand, wasn’t as observant. “That’s so sweet! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday! Bringing the family together, cooking for them, and seeing them enjoy all the food?—”

“Mama? I think the noodles are boiling over.”

“Oh! Of course! It’s good talking to you, honeybun! I hope you have a good Thanksgiving!” Mama scampered away to the stove behind them.

“I’m going to go take a few hits, Mama. I’ll be right back.” Quinn lifted her phone and walked to the balcony outside. Once she sat down, she did take out her case for her blunts, lit one,and took a puff. Then she locked eyes with me. They were a soft honey that I could just drown in.

“I’m so grateful for you, pumpkin. Thank you for that. I love your mom, and I know?—”

“She didn’t mean anything by it. She just… She just gets caught up in things sometimes. But I knew something was wrong. I could just tell.”

“No one gets me like you do, babe.”

---