I rang the doorbell, and Silas pulled the door open almost immediately. I stared at him in surprise.

               "I saw your car comin'," he said. "If I have to suffer this, so do you."

               "Well, uh, happy Thanksgiving," I said, entering his house.

               My family was doing Thanksgiving dinner later than usual today, so I'd agreed to go to Silas's for their early dinner. It was just him, Ray, and Ray's parents.

               "She keeps trying to hug me," Silas said.

               "She's your grandma. Of course she wants to hug you," I said.

               Silas grumbled something I didn't catch, leading me into Ray's kitchen. Ray looked up from setting the table.

               "Hey, Garrett," he greeted.

               "Hi Ray! Hi Mr. and Mrs. Edmon!" I said.

               "Hi Garrett! Here, have a drink," Mrs. Edmon said, grabbing a cup and pushing it into my hands. "There's soda there, water there, and juice and milk in the fridge."

               "Thank you," I said, pouring myself some soda. Silas picked up his cup, looking moody as he sipped on it. I nudged him. "Did you make anything?"

               "Dessert," he said, dropping his gaze. "I made these peanut butter ball things. Ray showed me."

               "Oh, my mother used to make them for the kids," Mrs. Edmon said. "Ray used to eat them until he'd feel sick."

               "Could've just said 'Ray really liked them'," Ray said, glaring at her.

               "He used to get the chocolate from them all over his fingers," Mr. Edmon said. "I remember one Thanksgiving when he was little, he got the chocolate all over my shirt when I picked him up. Messiest kid ever."

               "Clearly you've never seen Silas eat," Ray said.

               "Hey, shut it. I ain't that messy," Silas said.

               "I am," I said. "No shame. I see food, and I lose focus of manners."

               "Well prepare to lose focus of your manners, because we've got to set the table. Mom, you're on gravy duty. Dad, get the mashed potatoes. Si, you've got the stuffing. Garrett, you grab...I don't know, the olives or something. I'll carve the turkey," Ray said.

               We all moved around the kitchen, putting out food and drinks as Ray fought to carve up the turkey. Mr. Edmon went over to help him once we had the rest of the food out. For only five of us, there was a ton of food, and I knew I was about to gain way too much weight today.

               "Hey, you can come to my place later if you want," I said to Silas as we took our seats at the table. "Just, uh, Jack and his dad will be there."

               Silas scowled. "Ain't gonna deal with them."

               "We're going to Garrett's later, so you better learn how to deal with them," Ray called. "If I can go this long without punching Paul Waymire in the face, you can go a few hours without punching Jack Waymire in the face."

               "Still having trouble with that neighbor?" Mrs. Edmon asked.

               "I never knew someone who barely speaks a word could be so obnoxious," Ray said.

               He and Mr. Edmon carried over the turkey, setting a plate of it down for us and taking their seats. Silas reached for the food, but Ray swatted his hand away.

               "Say what you're grateful for, you punk ass kid. You know how it goes," Ray said.

               "Raymund, stop calling him that!" Mrs. Edmon said, throwing her napkin at Ray's face. "You start us off then, you foul-mouthed man."

               "Yea, sure, fine," Ray said, tossing her napkin back to her. I thought he'd say something sarcastic, but to my surprise, he said, "I'm grateful Silas got to know Garrett. He's been a lot happier since meeting someone who expanded his world to the stars."

               Silas seemed surprised by that. His grandparents didn't know we were dating, so that was the deepest Ray could get without outing Silas before he was ready.

               Ray gestured to his mom. "Your foul-mouthed son has spoken. Your turn."

               She seemed touched by what Ray had said. "Well, after the falling-out with Eliza, I wasn't sure..." She cleared her throat. "I'm grateful we can be here as a family, with Silas. I'm grateful you love Silas as much as your father and I love you." She touched Ray's arm and smiled.

               "Dad?" Ray said, putting a hand over his mom's on his arm.

               "I'm grateful to have seen you grow up so well, and to get to watch Silas grow up well with his friends and family," Mr. Edmon said.

               It was to me, now. "I'm grateful that I got to know Silas. I'm sorry it had to start with setting your yard on fire, but it ended pretty well, I think."

               Ray laughed a little. "Yea, could've done without the fire part. Glad you're here, kid."

               We looked to Silas, who fidgeted under all the attention. "Uh, I'm grateful for..." He turned his gaze away from all of us. "I mean, I'm grateful for being here today. With Ray and Garrett. And you guys. I guess."

               I touched his hand under the table, a light reassurance. Silas didn't look at me, but the lightest blush came to his face, and he touched his leg to mine.

               "Alright, time to stuff our faces and not be sincere again for another year," Ray said.

               "Ray! You ruined it," Mrs. Edmon said, but she was smiling. "Silas, I'm excited to try your dessert. I hope you know I'm sacrificing some of my usual turkey intake to save room."

               "You ain't gotta," Silas mumbled.

               "She doesn't have to," Ray corrected. "But she'll do it anyway. Pass the rolls, will you?"

               We passed around food and loaded up our plates. I tried to be a little modest with how much food I took, knowing I'd have to eat a second dinner in a few hours.

               We talked and I listened to stories of the Thanksgivings Ray had as a child. His parents cautiously edged their way around the parts of the stories that involved Silas's mother, but Silas didn't seem to mind when she did come up in them.

               Silas shared stories of the things we'd done together, and things he'd done with Kaito and Jill. I talked about my family and what the holidays would be like for us.

               It was easy. Conversation flowed naturally, the food was good, and the atmosphere was light.

               When we'd finished eating, Ray and Mr. Edmon drifted to the living room to watch TV while they digested. Mrs. Edmon excused herself to make a phone call to a friend from their town. Silas and I sat at the table, comfortably full.

               "Thanks for inviting me," I said.

               "'Course I did," he said, not looking at me.

               I took his hand and he let me. I kissed his cheek and he let me. I turned his head and he let me.

               He kissed my lips, just a quick kiss. Then he looked down at our hands.

               "I hate bein' sappy," he said at last.

               "I know." I smiled at him. "Go back to telling me I'm a dumbass."

               He cracked a small grin. "The biggest dumbass I ever met."

               "And you still love me," I said brightly.

               He blushed a little. "Shut it."

               We leaned back in our chairs. I loved how at ease Silas seemed. I was grateful for a lot of things today, but seeing Silas so comfortable around his own family was high on the list. He'd been abused and neglected for so long. It was good to see people tell him how much they loved him.

               I squeezed his hand. "Happy Thanksgiving. I can't wait to try that dessert you made."

               Silas groaned. "Don't mention dessert yet. I gotta digest the three pounds of turkey I ate first."

               I laughed and squeezed his hand again, pulling him to his feet. "Let's go watch TV with Ray and your grandpa."

               So we went into the living room, Ray making room on the couch for us. Mrs. Edmon joined us a few minutes later.

               Everyone was happy, just sitting in the room together watching TV. There was no tension in Silas's shoulders. For as on-guard and paranoid as he tended to be, there was no fear in him now, surrounded by people he loved and who loved him back wholly.

               I leaned a little closer to him, inconspicuous to the others but noticeable to Silas. He shot me a small, private smile.

               It was a good holiday.

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A.N.- Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I wasn't sure I'd have any time to write a Thanksgiving special, but I managed to get this done before the day gets too crazy. Have a great day, eat a lot of food, and love ur local Silas and Garrett!!