Page 64 of Tutoring the Bad Boy
Kaleb
The trek home is miserable.Not that I mind spending the holidays with my dad because, for the first time since my mom left, we actually have a decent relationship. I’m just bummed Ginny won’t be around. Even more bummed knowing I won’t get to kiss her the whole break too, especially after that last kiss.
I don’t know whatshewas thinking, but that kiss was giving me visions of the future. It was passionate and hungry and…all the things I’ve been thinking about her. A future with her. Our lives together. Yeah, high school romances are destined to fail, but they don’t have to. I know what failure looks and feels like. So does Ginny. Maybe if we take what we’ve learned and apply it to us, we can grow closer together as we get older. Our relationship doesn’t have to be our parents’ relationship.
I’m also missing her because I was hoping to introduce her to my dad. Maybe I can convince her to Facetime me and introduce them that way. It wouldn’t be the ideal situation, but it’d be better than nothing.
Dad’s car is in the driveway when I reach the house. I’m still getting used to him being around more. These were my most dreaded two weeks out of every year because of being stuck with nothing to do and dealing with my dad. There’s no hanging out with Chris either. He and his family head to Wichita each year to see his mamaw. I’d tease him about the word, but you just don’t make fun of a mamaw. It’s just a known bro-code rule.
As I walk in the door, Dad looks up from his phone and smiles. “Hey, bud.” Again, I’m struck by how different things have been between us. We used to avoid each other, like, it felt actively done. Now it’s like we make reasons to hang out. Crazy part is, I’m enjoying it.
“Hey,” I reply and let my bag slide off my shoulder to the floor just inside the door.
“Any plans for this evening?” He slips his phone into his dress shirt, giving me his undivided attention. So weird.
Shrugging, I walk to the couch and flop down. “Nah, Ginny’s going to Galveston with her mom. I’m flying solo.”
“Sorry, bud. I was going to see if you’d ask her to join us sometime on Christmas.”
I nod. “I was thinking of doing just that.”
“Really?” He asks the question like he’s shocked that I want her to meet him. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Isn’t the first step of a serious relationship introducing the person to the parents?
“Well, yeah. I wasn’t sure if she’d be able to, but I was at least going to ask.” I pause. “I guess I should have checked with you first, huh? I’m sorry.”
My dad waves me off. “It’s all right. I would’ve been happy to have her over.”
We sit in silence a few minutes. It’s not the oppressive silence from the past, but comfortable. It’s just us, and we’re just spending time together. Nothing to feel weird about, actually.
“Have you gotten her a Christmas present yet?”
I groan and rub my face with my hands. “No, because I have no idea what to get her.” We’d both agreed we wouldn’t get each other a gift, but there’s no way I’m not getting her something. Mostly, I want to find something that will make her smile.
“Well, how about tomorrow we hit some shops and find something?” He smiles. “We don’t even have to stay in Port Crest.”
“Really?” I’ll be straight, I wasn’t expecting that. Talk about different. This Christmas isn’t looking at all like the ones before Mom left.
Once she left, it was like holidays were the enemy. But to be honest, that had happened long before she split. The last Christmas before she left was the worst ever. I was a freshman, so it wasn’t like I didn’t know what was going on or couldn’t see the writing on the wall. I just didn’t see the coach’s name scribbled there too.
My mom wanted to have Christmas early so she could go “hang out with friends.” Translation? She wanted to ditch us so she could go meet the coach in the next town over. Only, we didn’t know that yet.
It wasn’t until the next year that we figured it out when she accidentally sent my dad pictures of her and the coach making kissy faces at the camera. I’ll never forget that day. Never.
Of course, he never showed them to me. I found them on his phone after he nearly drank himself to death a week later. I still associate the smell of scotch with that moment in my life. To this day, I can’t be near the stuff without feeling sick to my stomach.
I was younger and stupid and the world revolved around me. Looking back, there’s no mistaking the heartache my dad was experiencing. I wish I’d seen it back then. Maybe the last few years would’ve been different. I shake off the memory. I’ve learned dwelling on it doesn’t change the past; it just makes the present miserable.
“You don’t have to work?” I ask my dad, excited at the prospect of hanging out with him, shopping for a present for my girlfriend. Not only does that word roll off my tongue with ease, but it floats through my mind like I’ve known the whole time how I’ve felt about her and my brain is finally catching up with my heart.
Shaking his head, my dad says, “Nope. I’ve taken the entire break off.” I can see his excitement too. He’s actually looking forward to spending time with me. Will wonders never cease? “You want to run to Denny’s and grab some dinner? Maybe we can hit up the Redbox on the way home and find something to watch.”
“Denny’s is cool with me, and so is a movie.”
He leans forward and lightly smacks my knee. “Let’s go, then.”
I’ll miss Ginny these next two weeks, but there’s a tiny part of me that’s glad she’s not here. I like the idea of looking forward to Christmas. At least there’s hope of that, which is more than I’ve had in a while.
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