Cocoa And Vanilla

"Hey." I said softly as I opened the door.

Justin stood in the doorway looking all domestic in a plain black sweater, the trench coat he wore to work and regular jeans. However, he was wearing something I had never seen before. Glasses. "I didn't know you wore glasses. They look good on you."

"They do?" He smiled. "It was a last minute choice. I wanted to look nice."

"Well, you do look nice. Come in, we were just setting up the table." I stepped aside to let him in and he took off his jacket.

"Where's Merissa?" He asked as I led him into dining room.

"Helping my mom in the kitchen." I said.

"That smells so good. What are you cooking?" I opened my mouth to answer but someone else decided to.

"Good ol' southern food. Ever had it, boy?" I winced while Justin jumped and we turned to face my father.

My father had a menacing look on his face and his hands behind his back. "N-no, sir. I've never had the pleasure to." Justin squeaked.

I nearly laughed but kept it under wraps. My father looked at me and grinned. "How are you, baby girl?"

"I'm fine. I was just about to help mommy in the kitchen." I said and I saw Justin glance at me in disbelief. "You two have fun, okay?"

I practically skipped into the kitchen and my mom stopped what she was doing to look at me. "Why do you leave that boy in there? You know your father is going to tear him into pieces."

"Justin can handle it. He's a big boy." I shrugged and my mother chuckled.

"Whatever you say."

The food was finished and we brought the plates out into the dining room. I almost dropped the yams when I saw Justin's face but I kept my mouth shut. Justin was white as a sheet and looked like he had crawled into his subconscious and never wanted to come out. My mother shook her head and put the silverware on the table. Merissa seemed oblivious to the whole thing and just wanted to eat.

I put the yams down and leaned over to Justin. "Justin, are you still alive?" I whispered.

"I'm sorry for every bad thing I've done in my life." He whispered back, staring at the table.

What the hell did my dad do to him? I glanced up at my father and he was smiling at my mother while she rolled her eyes. I cleared my throat and stood back up straight. "Merissa, come sit beside your brother."

Merissa hopped into seat beside her brother who seemed to be having an out of body experience and waited for the food. I sat beside her and my parents sat on the other side of the table in front of us.

I fixed Merissa's plate who said she wanted everything. I questioned her ability to eat everything on her plate but let her do what she wanted. I made my own plate and painfully watched Justin move as slow as possible to put the food on his plate. "Justin." I coughed out.

He jumped and looked at me. "Go faster." I mouthed to him.

He glanced at my father and sped up to a reasonable pace. Once we were seated, my mom said grace while Merissa squirmed in her seat. As soon as my mother said the last syllable of grace, Merissa practically shoved her face into the plate causing me to snicker.

"So, young man," My father started and he flinched. "How old are you?"

"Eighteen, sir." My father grunted in approval and ate a spoonful of macaroni.

I stared at Justin worriedly and nudged him. He looked at me and I smiled. "Go ahead and eat."

He nodded and shakily picked up his fork which clattered noisily against the plate. I ate as well and my mother exchanged glances with me over the table. "What's your name?"