~ Zoie's POV ~
"Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!" The whole table erupted in cheers as everyone raised their glasses.
"Happy Thanksgiving!" Zoie chimed happily. She was raising a glass of sparkling wine. For special occasions like this, she was allowed to have a little.
Around the table were Zoie's entire family and their extended family. Damon sat at the head of the table and Violet was next to him. On his other side was Zach, followed by the twins and Zoie. Sitting across the table next to Violet were Talia, Liam, Landon, and Ash. And then of course, her uncle Dylan, his wife, James, and Grandma Barbara were there too.
Thanksgiving was always a big deal in the Van Zandt household. This year, it felt even extra special because after a decade or so, the family was complete again. Talia seemed most happy about it. She kept putting extra spoonfuls of turkey and sides on Asher's plate.
"Mom, I'm full," he laughed as Talia kept putting more food onto his plate.
"You need to eat more, sweetie," she replied.
Asher just chuckled and continued picking away at the food. Asher wasn't skinny, but he was lean. And all pure muscle. Apparently, your body weight mattered when you're in a car race. He was keeping himself in good shape.
In very, very good shape.
Zoie found herself staring at Asher's biceps. She didn't mean to, but it just happened. He was wearing a plain white t-shirt and his muscles were stretching it out.
Damn.
"So, Zoie, how's college so far?" her mother's voice suddenly broke through her daydream. Zoie quickly wiped the drool off her face and stuffed her mouth with some mashed potatoes.
"It's going pretty good. I really like my classes," she replied.
"Just the classes?" Zane teased.
"What about the after class activities?" Zander added with a wink.
Zoie rolled her eyes at the twins.
"For your information, I've been very busy with schoolwork. I don't have time for anything else," she replied.
"Oh, really?" Zane scoffed.
"Ask Asher if you don't believe me. All we do is go to class, do our homework, and..."
"And?" Zander pressed.
Zoie shot Asher a glance. He just stared at her with a blank face.
"...And we're building a race car,"
"What?!" Zane and Zander gaped in unison. Everyone else at the table who was having their separate conversations was now listening to them too.
Asher gave Zoie a look. The what the hell are you doing look. Zoie gave him a look back.
Just trust me.
"...So, a few weeks back, we went to see a Formula D race for Ash's birthday and I got really into it," she said, gauging everyone's reaction carefully. "Don't worry, though it's all safe and everything,"
"A race car, honey?" her mother raised a concerned look.
"What are you two going to do with it?" Talia asked.
"Just drive it to school," she shrugged. "Maybe take it to the race car track sometimes, just for fun,"
"Isn't that dangerous?" Grandma Barbara chimed in.
"Not at all, grandma. It's like a sport, pretty much," she replied.
Everyone at the table was now into this conversation. Zoie flashed Asher a quick look. The car thing was supposed to be a secret, but she had to tell her family something. Otherwise, they'd get suspicious of her activity.
And this is so much better than telling them about the whole Miles situation!
"I never knew you like cars," Landon quipped.
"I like learning new things," she said, pausing for a beat before turning to her dad. "And it's better that than boys, right, dad?"
Zoie let out a nervous laugh. Damon wasn't amused, though. He kept a straight face.
"Well, as long as you two are being safe about it, I guess that's okay," her mom answered instead.
"Oh, we're being very safe," Zoie said reassuringly. "Right, Ash?"
Everyone's eyes were now turned to Asher.
"Right," he answered. Quick and firm.
"So, no boys, huh?" Zach summarized, resting his chin on his hand.
"Nope,"
"Not even one?"
"Not interested," Zoie shook her head from side to side, purposefully avoiding eye contact with everyone.
Don't get her wrong, Zoie had the most supportive and loving family. But having a boyfriend behind her parent's backs will have strong repercussions. Especially since she chose very poorly. She didn't want that to jeopardize her dad's trust in her. And of her freedom. So, Zoie had to make this a secret.
"Really, Ash?" Zane turned to Asher this time.
"Not even one?" Zander added.
Zoie shot Asher a pleading look. Asher kept a straight face as he shook his head.
"She's just been going to school, that's all," he said. His voice didn't even change or anything. The definition of cool as a cucumber.
Zoie's brothers were looking at each other in disbelief. Zach was smiling approvingly, and the twins were baffled.
"Wow. She's doing a lot better than we thought," Zane said.
"Pay up. You two owe twenty bucks each," Zach nodded to the twins.
The twins groaned and pulled out their wallets. They each took out a twenty dollar bill and shoved it at Zach. Zach laughed and gathered the money.
"You guys made a bet about me?" Zoie squeaked.
"We thought you'd go crazy," Zane replied.
"Yeah, first chance at freedom. We didn't think you'd even be back for Thanksgiving," Zander looked disappointed.
"Wow, thank you so much for believing in me," Zoie said sarcastically. She was offended that people had very little faith in her. Even though, technically, they were right.
"And I'm not desperate, alright, you guys? I can handle freedom and responsibility like an adult-"
"So", Damon spoke up suddenly, cutting her off. "What's your plan for next summer?"
"Next summer?" she frowned. "...I don't know. We're not even done with this semester yet, dad,"
"Well, I'm asking because I might get you an internship at the New Yorker,"
"What?!" Zoie gaped in shock. The New Yorker was one of the coolest, most prestigious literary publications in the country. And it happened to be Zoie's dream job.
"Save the date," Damon said coolly. "Make sure you two will be available next summer,"
"Wait, me too?" Asher looked confused.
"If you're still unsure about what to do, Ash, you can intern with me while Zoie's in New York,"
"Uh..." Asher looked even more confused.
"And you can still build cars on the side," Damon said again.
"Deal," Asher jumped in right away.
Damon let out a satisfied grin before going back to his food. Asher turned to Zoie, and Zoie was beaming with excitement. This internship felt like a gift Damon got her because he was happy with her progress. As long as the two of them can keep this up, they might just get their dreams sooner than expected.
"So, does this mean we're gonna get you two back for Christmas and the entire summer next year?" Talia asked.
Zoie and Asher exchanged another look. She smiled at him and he smiled back.
"I guess so," she said.
"Well, that's awesome!" Talia exclaimed, pulling Asher for a side hug.
Meanwhile, Asher kept his eyes on Zoie. They were still looking at each other. Unspoken words were exchanged through their eyes.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Zoie was so relieved when dinner was over and she made it through without anyone noticing anything. The rest of dinner went along great and they ended the day with some dessert, drinks, and fireworks. Zoie couldn't remember when it started, but when her brothers were young, they brought fireworks to Thanksgiving one day and it became a tradition in their household. After dinner and the prayers, they'd all go outside for the show.
As Zach, Zander, and Zane lit up the night sky with those fireworks, Zoie was sitting with Landon at one corner of the back patio. Damon and Ash were talking inside the house, and the others were scattered around the middle of the backyard.
Zoie and Landon were catching each other up on what's been happening in their lives. Landon told her what it was like working under her dad and Zoie told him that she did have a social life. It wasn't just school for her, but Zoie spared Landon the details. She just mentioned that she went on a couple of dates with Miles, but it never became anything.
"Well, I'm glad you're taking things slow, Zee," Landon said. "There's no reason to rush into anything,"
"Yup," Zoie bit her lip and smiled gingerly. "Not gonna do that again,"
Even though I already did.
"And how are things with Ash?" he asked.
Zoie turned her eyes to the glass door behind them. Asher and Damon were still sitting in the dining room. It seemed like they were talking about something serious. Asher then caught her eye and he gave her a little wink. One so subtle, Damon didn't even notice it.
"Ash... is kinda growing on me," she replied, holding back a smile.
"See? I told you he's great," Landon said.
Yeah. He totally is.
Zoie quickly turned away before Landon noticed that she was staring at Asher for way too long. She threw her gaze up to the sky again and watched the fireworks blasted into the night.
"Hey, guys,"
Suddenly, a voice was heard. Zoie and Landon turned to see Talia walking closer. She had a tall glass of wine in her hand.
"What's up, mom?"
"Can I talk to Zoie real quick?"
Landon glanced at Zoie and back at his mom.
"Sure," he said, getting up and letting his mom have his seat.
"Thanks,"
Talia sat down and sipped her drink. Landon walked over to join the boys and the fireworks show.
"Hey, Aunt Talia," Zoie greeted her. "How's it going?"
"Oh, it's going great, honey," she answered. Talia was slurring her words a little. Maybe she's had one glass too many. "So, listen, I just wanna thank you for taking Ash out on his birthday to see the race. He told me had such a great time,"
"Of course, I had a great time too," Zoie replied.
"That's good," Talia smiled and sipped her drink, pausing for a beat before continuing, "I just... don't want him to feel alone on his birthday. He's never... really happy on birthdays..."
"Yeah, I kinda noticed... Why is that?"
Talia's eyes suddenly turned glassy. She paused for another beat, and Zoie waited for her to speak.
"When Asher was born, his father had already passed away. Liam stepped in and he helped me raise Asher. Liam loves Asher like he's his own, and Asher loves Liam too. He calls Liam "daddy" at first. But still, I always knew that I have to tell Asher the truth someday. So one day, on his eighth birthday... I decided to take him to Adrian's grave. That's Asher's biological father... I told Asher everything. Who he is and who his dad was... I thought that it was the right thing to do, but ever since then, Asher was never the same again. He stopped calling Liam "dad". He became cold and distant from everyone. And from then on, he never wanted to celebrate his birthdays anymore..."
Zoie's mouth fell open, but there were no words. She didn't even know about this story. She always assumed that Uncle Liam was Ash's dad. She found it odd that Ash would call him by his name, but she never thought anything of it.
"A part of me thinks that maybe he feels betrayed..." Talia continued, holding back her tears. "Maybe he thinks that I lied to him. Or maybe he feels like he doesn't belong in this family. I've been trying every day to make sure that he feels loved, but... Asher only went further and further away from me. Until one day, he asked his godfather if he can be sent away,"
"Asher asked to be sent away?" Zoie gaped. "I thought he went away because he got kicked out of school?"
Talia scoffed out a smile.
"Your dad is a very powerful man. You know he can pull any strings, right? If Asher wanted to stay, Damon could've easily made that happen. But Asher said he didn't want to. He wants to go out and do things on his own. And so... he did,"
Talia was fully crying now, wiping her tears with her hand. Zoie didn't know what to say, so she just froze.
"...I'm actually really grateful for you, Zoie. Because of you, he's come back. I get to have my son back again. So, thank you!"
Talia came closer and pulled Zoie into a hug. She was so full of gratitude, and Zoie didn't know what she did to deserve it.
"O-of course..." she said.
"He's a great kid, you know?" Talia smiled as she pulled away, wiping the last of her tears. "He's got the best heart. Even if he doesn't show it a lot,"
Talia started standing up, but she lost her balance and almost fell down. Zoie was quick to grab her hand. Landon came racing over too.
"Mom, are you okay?" he looked concerned.
"Oh, I think I've had too much to drink," Talia laughed at herself. "Can you take me home?"
"Of course," Landon held his mother up and turned to Zoie. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
Zoie nodded her head. Landon and Talia then went to get Liam. They said goodbye to everyone, heading for the exit. Once they left, other people started leaving too. It was getting really late, so the party was officially over.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Later that night, Zoie lay in bed and for some reason, she couldn't shake off the words Talia said to her. She started thinking about all these things about Asher that she never knew. And what else does she not know about him?
Zoie tossed and turned in her bed. It was about 3 AM and she still couldn't sleep. Letting out a sigh, she decided to get up. She went down to the kitchen to grab some water, thinking that maybe it would help. But when she was standing over the kitchen sink, she saw from the window that the cottage's light was on. Asher was staying in there.
Is he awake too?
Zoie decided to check it out. She walked out into the garden, pulling her nightrobe tighter to her body as it was cold. Once she got to his door, she knocked on it lightly, and the door creaked open by itself. It wasn't even fully closed.
"Hey..." she whispered lowly.
Asher was sitting on his bed, playing on his phone.
"Hey," he replied. He looked taken aback, not expecting to see her there.
Zoie came in and closed the door shut.
"Is everything okay?" he asked, looking concerned.
"Can I stay here tonight?"
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- - - - - - To Be Continued - - - - - -