Chapter Five
I tried to act as natural and neutral as possible as I walked up to the Walkers' door. I knocked three times, and the door swung open, almost sucking me in like a tornado. At the door stood Mr. Walker in a pair of overalls and an orange shirt. He glared down at me with a blank expression on the rest of his face. It was almost like I wasn't there.
He nodded behind him awkwardly and limped back into the house. I peeked inside and looked around. I could hear the clanking of pans and sizzling from the stovetop, but I didn't see anyone. So, I took one timid step inside to see if I could find Adam. I hadn't expected a warm welcome, anyway. I supposed silence was better than a bunch of insults or something.
I found Adam setting the dining room table. He looked up at me with a smile while he finished before walking over to me and giving me a big hug. "I apologize for their behavior. It definitely took some convincing," he whispered before pulling away. "I'm so glad you're here. Come to the kitchen and meet the rest of the family."
I followed him into the kitchen where I found everyone gathered around watching his mother cook dinner. I only saw her back, but she was wearing bright yellow, and her hair was long and curly like Adam's. Leaning up against the counter was who I assumed to be Casey. He was chewing on a carrot like he was a rabbit or something and staring at me. He was very pale and had freckles all over him. His hair was more of a red color like his father's. "Well, look at the road kill my little brother dragged in. What could possibly make a Young decide to come into Walker territory?" Casey asked coldly before exiting the room, bumping into my shoulder on the way out. "Uh oh, better check her pockets. I bet she used that as an opportunity to steal something off me." He disappeared and I found myself staring after him with a slacked jaw. He was just plain mean.
"I'm sorry, dear," Mrs. Walker said, turning around to show me her sweet, aging face. "This is just going to take longer for us to get used to than I might have hoped. I'm so glad Adam brought you here, though. He talks so much about you." She smiled sweetly, and I felt genuine warmth coming from her. She was definitely shaky about the rest of the family, though. I could just feel the tension building.
I heard a mumble coming from over where Mr. Walker was standing, and I was pretty sure I heard some curse words. But he kept his voice soft so I couldn't hear. I felt my body tense up from the hostility bouncing off the walls at me. I was sure more than ever I would never get a warm welcome in that house.
Adam led me into the dining room and pulled out a chair for me before kissing me on the cheek. "I'll be right back with our food, okay?" he told me, giving me a peck on the cheek. I played with my hands in my lap, staring down at the dining room table. Casey was leaning against the archway just looking at me, still chewing on a piece of carrot in his mouth. I felt like some kind of circus freak or something the way the whole family was treating me.
“So, why are you here?” Casey finally asked in a hostile tone.
I wasn’t sure if I should answer or not, so I just said something simple. “Adam invited me as his date. I thought it was a nice gesture,” I shrugged but didn’t look up at him. I was a little afraid of the amount of hate I would see there. I had never known anyone to hate someone so much, especially if they didn’t really know the person.
“Well, aren’t you a comedian?” he snapped at me, getting really close and grabbing the back of my chair. I was almost shaking with fear. “I meant why are you even in town, Young? Rumor has it you have a fancy college degree and a fancy job in the big city.”
“Because her grandmother is sick.” We both snapped our heads to the left to see that Adam had come back with a plate for each of us. Mr. Walker was trailing behind him, still muttering under his breath. Somehow I preferred the insults that were being said out loud. “Now, could you get your food and sit down like a civilized human being instead of scaring my girlfriend?” Adam asked, not so politely. Casey stood up and walked into the kitchen, his eyes trained on me the whole way.
“I’m so sorry, Iris,” Adam apologized as he set our plates down and then took the seat to the right of me. “I had no idea Casey would be that bad about this.”
“It’s okay,” I whispered back even though it wasn’t. I just couldn’t let them see me falter or squirm. “I didn’t expect it to be all rainbows and sunshine.” Adam laughed a little. His parents ended up sitting down across from us, and his brother sat to the right of Adam. I could feel the tension yet again as we ate in silence. The food was pretty good, I had to admit. But it was hard to enjoy it with all the animosity going around.
“So,” Mrs. Walker began after a while, trying to break the silence. She seemed to be feeling the weirdness too. “Iris, tell me a little bit about what you’ve been doing since you left Melville. I used to live in a big city, you know, until this guy convinced me it was a good idea to move out here with him.” She winked towards her husband, but he just let out an annoyed huff and went back to stabbing violently at his food. I wondered if it was me or my father he was imagining on the plate.
“Well, I went to the University of the Rockies. I graduated magna cum lauder a year early and started my career. I work at Kamcom PR in Denver. It’s really a great job. I’ve been able to move up the latter pretty quickly,” I answered, trying to smile warmly at her. She was the only one trying to be civil.
“Just like your father in that respect. Bet he taught you exactly how to lie and steal your way to the top,” Casey spat as I was taking the last bite of my food. I had somehow survived dinner at the Walkers, though I wasn’t sure how much longer that was going to be the case. I really wanted to be excused from the table, and quick.
“This really was a lovely meal,” I complimented Mrs. Walker before looking to Adam for support. Things were getting really tense.
His mother sighed in exasperation, glancing at the other two men at the table. “Thank you, dear. I’m pleased to know you like my cooking. I’ve heard Mrs. Young is a pretty mean cook herself.” I smiled and nodded before Adam stood up from his seat to pull my chair out for me. But before taking me out of there, he placed one open palm against the table and then slammed the other one down after to get everyone’s attention. I watched him with great admiration as he stood up to his family.
“You guys are going to have to get used to Iris and I being together because neither of us are going anywhere. I don't see how some silly old feud pertains to us having a relationship, and neither of us cares about that. So, just get over it and show some respect for me and who I care about. You don't even know her." He grabbed my hand and walked us out the door. On the inside, I was cheering for him, but I also felt that familiar guilt creeping in. Because the two of us felt the need to date each other, both our families were getting ripped apart. I couldn't imagine how much worse it would be if my brothers were in town too. They probably would have never spoken to me again.
I let him walk me home, wanting to seem just as bold, and kissed him right under our dim porch light. I could feel myself falling in love with him despite all the chaos surrounding us.
"Can I see you tomorrow?" I asked, looking at him.
"Of course you can. How about we share a horse this time?" he said with a wink.
"Sounds great. I'll meet you at lunch." I waved and stepped into my house, unable to wipe the smile from my face.