56 - the chapter where he talks to Amber

Christian

I walked back, leading her toward the dining hall, where everyone was gathered for Thanksgiving dinner. If you could call that meal dinner, it wasn't even four in the afternoon.

The dinner went smoothly, Rose and I once again sat down next to my family, but this time the subject in question was not our relationship but college.

Everyone seemed more than willing to fill Rose with the most diverse questions about her future education and she seemed more than happy to tell us everything in detail, in fact, I had never seen her talk so passionately about something as she did at that moment. Probably because among our group of friends none of this was news.

At the end of dinner, my parents decided to rest, and those who had not helped in the preparation of the celebration were responsible for cleaning up, and Rose took advantage of the time off to advance the replacement work she would have to hand in next week, going to her room to work in silence.

I went to the door to the sitting area where there was a lit outdoor fireplace surrounded by large upholstered chairs. My sister was there alone, sitting on one of them, admiring the flames. Without much thought, I opened the door, approaching her before sitting down in the vacant chair beside her.

Amber looked up at me, smiling easily at the sight of me.

" Hey, what are you doing here? Where's your girl? " she asked.

" She made a deal with some teachers to be released early so she could travel, so she'll have to do some extra work," I explained.

" She worked hard to get here," my sister commented.

Yes, indeed, she worked hard to come, I couldn't deny that.

" Yes, she was great.”

" Were her parents okay with it? “

" They were upset about missing the family discount for the annual photo. But then our friends offered to replace Rose, so they got a bigger discount, and everything was fine," I explained with a small smile on my face.

That family was completely insane, and somehow they were also charming. I myself was sorry that I couldn't be with them both on that holiday, because I am sure that for our friends it will be unforgettable.”

" Has she been replaced? " Amber arched her eyebrows.

" It seems that this is the way her parents deal with any unforeseen events. Is she forbidden to participate in the family game night? They invite the neighbor's daughter. She can't come home for Thanksgiving? They get three new kids," I shrugged as if this was the most natural thing possible.

" Is she forbidden to participate in the game night? " my sister's surprise seemed to grow by the second.

" It's a long story. But her parents are great, you would get along well, they are about three years older than you," I leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms.

" That explains it. I think if I were your mother, I would find some creative punishments for you too," she scoffed.

That made me laugh. I remember well the kinds of punishments I endured living with her in my senior year of high school.

" You think so? The day I was caught with Vodka at school and you were called, and when we got home you made me drink until I puked, and then made my life very difficult during my hangover the next day.”I stared at her, trying hard to remain serious while she laughed “I should have reported you to the child protection service.”

" There I realized that I was not fit to be a mother. May your parents never find out about this!”

We laughed together for a few seconds before shutting up, watching the stars in the sky.

" What about you and Vihn? How are things going?”

My sister and I were always very close, she was the one I went to for advice, and it was to me that she always told things first hand. So much so that she was one of the ones who found it most strange that I was dating and not telling anyone.

" Better than ever, we were talking earlier and decided that it is time to take another step in our relationship," she declared with a smile.

" Really?”

" This weekend he is moving into my apartment," she added.

" Wow, this is a big step. Congratulations.”

" So is introducing your girlfriend to your parents at Thanksgiving.”

I forced a smile at this sentence. Yes, that was a big step. A step that I had never taken with any girl, and now because of an impulse I had gotten caught up in this madness. But Rose was right, it was my fault. I might as well have insisted on the explanation to my parents. Why didn't I?

" You had a fight earlier," she commented, analyzing my reaction.

" Did you hear that? " I sighed.

" Well, in the end your argument got a little heated. It wasn't hard to tell that she wasn't happy when she left. " she shrugged.

I covered my face with my hands, letting out a frustrated groan. Okay, I knew that some people had noticed our disagreement, but I didn't expect anyone in my family to know about it.

" I'm sorry, I didn't expect things to escalate to this extent.”

" Well, it seems that you stopped acting like an idiot in time, and from what I've been told, your reconciliation was also quite lively," she winked at me, making me laugh.

" How do you know that I was the one to blame? " I returned after a few seconds.

Amber stared at me with a small smile on her face.

" Chris, I know you. If you were really right you would never go after her to apologize. You're too proud for that.”

I lowered my face to hide a small smile knowing that she was right. I would never apologize if I was right, at the very least I would have made the situation worse.

" You seem upset about something," Amber commented.

" I…”

For a moment I thought of denying it, but it was my sister there. She was right, I always told her everything, she always kept my secrets, why not take advantage of that now?

" You?”

" I'll break up with her as soon as we get back to campus," I decided to tell her a version of the truth.

And that version was enough to make my sister's eyes widen, and she straightened her position, leaned a little toward me, and then lowered her voice.

" What? Why would you do that,Chris?”

" Things aren't going so well, Beebee." I used an old childhood nickname that I used to save for special occasions, like when we were having an honest conversation.

" Really? Because it's not what it seems, you're great together and the way she talks about you, you can tell she's as crazy about you as you are about her.”

" Can you keep a secret? “

" Do you still have to ask? " she arched her eyebrows.

I pondered for a second what I was about to do, but I trusted my sister and knew that she, of all people, would never judge me for what was happening.

" Rose and I... we are not really dating. I mean, she's been my friend since the beginning of the school year and we have a lot of chemistry and sometimes it happens... But we're not really together, and I don't think we ever will be.”

" Never is too strong a term, don't you think? " She stared at me.

I couldn't hold back a small, sneering smile. Yes, this experience was proving to be very interesting, I did not know what it was like to have a girlfriend until I brought her here, and I must admit that it was not bad. But that doesn't mean that a relationship between the two of us would work out.

" Beebee, I never thought about getting a girlfriend. I mean, until I came here we both never thought about being in this situation," I began, "and this experience only served to highlight how differently we think about relationships.”

" And what are these insurmountable differences? " she looked at me incredulously.

" We both have different examples of relationships. If you see how her father treats his girlfriends... I mean, the guy stops whatever he's doing just to watch as his girlfriend leaves an environment," I began.

" Girlfriends? I thought her parents were together," Amber frowned.

" No, her mother is a lesbian. Rose was a... fluke," I explained, "But the two of them are best friends and neighbors.”

It took my sister a few seconds to absorb this information, and I took the opportunity to conclude my thought.

" The point is, the guy does everything for his girlfriends, Rose expects someone to treat her like some kind of deity who needs to be pampered all the time, while I, what example do I have? My parents, I'm sure they only told me they love each other on their wedding day," I mumbled.

" They also said it when you were born," my sister scoffed, "you know their agreement.”

" If one day this feeling changes, one lets the other know," we both said together.

Amber laughed at this sentence. After all, we both knew that my parents' marriage was solid, although not one of the most loving in the world.

" Rose wants something that I don't know how to give, Amber. I don't know how to be the person who always praises her and spoils her all the time!”

My sister watched me for a few seconds, seeming to ponder what she should say.

" You know, ever since you got here I've seen you carry her around, rub her feet, worry about everything she eats, offer her your jacket so she doesn't get cold, and it may be intentional or not, but every time she walks in or out of any room, you stop what you're doing to pay attention to her.” She declared looking into my eyes before standing up "for someone who says he doesn't know how to spoil a girlfriend you are doing pretty well."

She ruffled my hair before walking away, walking into the house leaving me alone behind completely thoughtful.

Is she right? Am I spoiling Rose this whole time? Maybe like Skyler does with Van Derr Waal?

With a frown I stood up and walked in, heading straight to my room where Rose was sitting on the floor, surrounded by several notebooks and with her laptop open. She lifted her face, smiling as soon as she saw me.

" What is all this?”

" I need to write a summary on the relationship between museums, culture, art and cultural-historical heritage," she explained, "I am reviewing my classes and doing some research.”

I sat down next to her on the floor, and my gaze was drawn to a sheet of paper where she had put her name and her open case beside her.

" And you're going to do all this in handwriting? " I frowned.

" It was a requirement of the mrs Mongerstern. To make sure I did it myself," she rolled her eyes, "I'm writing down the most important parts so I can use them.”

I took a sheet of paper with the topics she would put in her summary; she had already crossed some out, but there were still some missing.

" Tell me how to research and I'll help you while you start writing," I proposed, receiving a grateful smile in return.

And once again the conversation with my sister came back to my mind as I started to research. Could she be right?

No, I shouldn't think about that. The best thing is to follow our initial plan. That's all.