She Won't Be Lonely Long

The next day began somber for Maral and Sergio as they wondered what was to do about all Hannah had said the night before. Hannah, frankly not recalling anything that had happened, wondered what they were thinking about amidst all of that uncomfortable silence. It didn't run across her mind that something out of their comfort-zone had happened when she came home the night before, because she had simply left Connar with a goodnight and went to bed... right?

After her shift was over, she settled at home just long enough to shower and get dressed before driving to her brother's house, Maral and Sergio joining her. Her sixteen year old nephew, Joe, was turning sixteen and a party was being thrown to commemorate that. Hannah figured it would be better for the couple than sitting in her tiny house surrounded by nothing but corn would be. The party was more of a family gathering for the first few hours, Hannah explained, but beyond that the elders would head home and things would quicken in pace.

By that point, only Hannah's mother, Brenda, her father, Mark, her brother, Will, and Joe were there because it would be a good hour before the real guests showed up. The men of her family were outside and Brenda was in the kitchen, mending to a pot of molten barbecue on the stove. Maral had met Brenda before and they got along fine, but she had to introduce to her Sergio.

"It's great to meet ya." was all she could say before Hannah cut in.

"Serg', can you help me with somethin'? I've got a keg in my Bronco and need to get it in here."

"Keg?" he questioned, not quite sure what "keg" meant in his primary language until she had drug him outside to see it for himself.

That left Maral and Brenda in the kitchen to their own conversation, and considering their thoughts focused mainly on the same thing by that time, the conversation would start itself.

Brenda shook her head, blankly staring at the white tile surface of the kitchen counter that she hunched over. "I can't believe she bought a keg for a sixteen year old's birthday party..."

Maral bit her lip, not quite sure if she should mention what had been scratching at her mind for the past day and a half. Unfortunately, it had been in Brenda's thoughts for the past year.

"She drinks too much; That's all she does cuz she can't stand it here where she's sober." There was some silence, but Brenda could tell that Maral agreed in her mind. "Maral, when are you gonna convince her to move to Spain?"

In shock, Maral cringed and peered to Brenda. "What?"

"To be honest, I don't think she'll make it another two years if she stays... doing things the same way that she has been..." Brenda's glasses fogged over as her eyes did, the thought of her daughter's struggles sickening to her. "If what it takes for her be happy is moving to Spain, then I can deal with that. And I think that the only way she'll be happy is by getting the hell out of here."

Maral was shocked, to say the least, but by the end of that conversation one thing was already decided: She wasn't going to leave Michigan until Hannah had agreed that she wouldn't be staying much longer either.