51. Serves You Right

            Krislynn woke up with a heavy, airy feeling in her head and her eyes burned from the lack of rest when she came out of her sleep. She felt like she had slept forever, but in fact it had only been a few hours and her body complained upon her awakening. It might have been the time of the day – being mid afternoon – and her brain refused to let her sleep any further despite her exhaustion.

            After sitting up gingerly, Krislynn gathered the rest of her thoughts and quickly searched around her vicinity for Chase. He was absent, and after a moment of alarm, she decided to take in her surrounding. She was on a bed, alone in a room somewhere that made her feel like she had travelled back in time to the Victorian era. Floral patterns swallowed up the room and then spat it out, dominating its presence on the wallpaper, the carpet, the lace curtains, the bedding – everything.

            Everything in the room just gave off a feeling of the olden days where T.Vs and iPods didn’t exist, but despite the aura of ancient civilization – and perhaps the bad décor – the room was still warm with hospitality. With that small thread of reassurance, Krislynn got out of bed and almost tripped over her own luggage when she made her way to the door.

            Great. Perfect. No doubt Chase had thrown her inside the room after and then left their luggage lying around the floor for her to pick up once she woke. She let out a sigh of disdain and picked them up since it was partially her job to clean up after him.

            After she placed their stuff to the side and picked up his jacket that he left hanging off the side of the bed, half dragging on the ground, she took a deep breath and prepared herself for the exploration through the rest of the house. She didn’t know where Chase was – he had left his phone on the nightstand – and she was worried about who she’d run into before she could actually find him. Then she’d have to introduce herself, she realized, which could end up being supremely uncomfortable.

            Deciding she should just get it on with, she gave herself a mental fist pump as encouragement and headed toward the exit just as the familiar voice drifted into her ears in faint, grumpy mumbles. “It’s been hours! I can’t believe she’s still sleeping. I’m going to starve her later as revenge.”

            Krislynn rolled her eyes at Chase’s remark and extended her hand to the doorknob just as the whole door swung open in crazy speed and smacked her in the forehead. She automatically let out a piercing cry and tumbled backwards as her hands went for her face protectively. She tripped as she backed up in confusion and released another sharp shriek, squeezing her eyes close for the impact of the fall, but met something softer instead. Slowly, she lifted her eyelids and found herself in Chase’s arms, her eyes looking directly up at his annoyingly gorgeous face.

            She let out a breath of relief, and so did Chase when he realized he had caught her just in time, helping her back up on her feet before glowering at her. “What kind of stupid person trips like that?!” He screamed, but Krislynn stuck out her bottom lip and blushed in response, her stomach in knots since his concern for her had made him completely fluster even if only briefly.

            Of course, the giddy feeling subsided quickly as the anger flooded her veins and she felt the pain on her head again. “You were the one who hit me!” She shouted, her voice accusing and snappy. “What kind of person swings the door open like that?! Ow… This really hurts.”

            Chase’s arms fell to his side as he studied her with disbelief. “It can’t hurt that bad,” he muttered, since he couldn’t remember using that much strength.

            “Well it does! It hurts a freakin’ lot!”

            “You’re lying,” he grumbled.

            “Am not!” She cried. “It hurts! It bloody hurts!”

            Chase heaved a sigh as he watched her gently rubbing the center of her forehead with sulky, pouty lips, and suddenly found himself thinking of very off-topic things. He shivered and then moved closer to her, bending his knees and lowering his head so that he could observe the injured girl face to face. “C’mon, it can’t be that bad,” he said again, and then tentatively removed Krislynn’s hands away from her face. “Come here. Let me see.”

            She was reluctant to let him touch her since she was probably still resentful that he had accidently slammed a door in her face, but didn’t argue when he removed her hands and left her arms at her sides. Chase tilted her chin towards him and then peered at the mark on her forehead before letting out a chuckle. “What?!” She cried. “Is it red? Is there a bump?”

            “It’s kind of red,” he admitted, running a free hand through his hair. “But there’s no bump… yet.”

            Krislynn immediately released a hopeless sob. “God, I hate you,” she grumbled. “I hate you!”

            Chase smirked at her. “No, you don’t,” he said. He watched her let out another half sob, half growl, and then sighed. “Well, what do you want me to do about it? It’s already been done and it was accidental!”

            “I know, but I still haven’t met your parents yet! I already fell asleep and made myself look like a loser! Now I have this fat, red bump in the middle of my forehead and it’s going to be even weirder!”

            “Well then what?” He grunted, and then raised a suggestive eyebrow at her. “Want me to kiss it better?”

            Her mouth gaping, Krislynn tried to angrily push him away, but Chase pushed her down onto the bed instead and with some very finely coordinated movements, straddled her body and pinned her wrists over her head and against the mattress. It happened in a matter of moments and Krislynn could only stare up at his cheeky expression with complete surprise before a deep blush sunk in her cheeks. “Wha– Wha– What the heck do you think you’re doing?!” She screamed. “Get… get off me!!”

            Chase smirked at her as she kicked her legs in lame attempt to kick him in the back of the head somehow, but of course, how was that even remotely possible? Even Krislynn knew she’d have to have some freak of nature flexibility to hit him, so she could only whimper when the only outcome of her action was making her long skirt roll down and reveal her underwear.

            Chase burst out laughing when he realized what had happened. “You’re such an idiot,” he laughed. “I was just gonna tease you a bit by pretending to kiss your boo-boo, but this is more fun than I thought. Shall I continue? Shall I see what kind of underwear Miss Piggy is wearing today?”

            The reaction Chase received from Krislynn was as far as possible from the one in his mind. Instead of shrieking or swearing at him, she narrowed her eyes and raised her chin at him in pure defiance. “Go ahead,” she said, with all the confidence in the world. “You might even find something wonderful.”

            “What?” He snorted. “You’re not wearing any?”

            She smirked. “Why don’t you just find out?”

            Chase huffed through his nose and took the suggestion more as a dare than as personal entertainment. “Fine,” he said, smirking. “Reverse psychology won’t work on me.” With that said, he shifted the position of his hands so that he only needed one to hold her down, and then quickly moved the other on the top of her thigh before pushing the rest of her skirt up and lifting it to let his eyes get a better view.

            Krislynn waited patiently as he studied her underwear, and though he stared at it for a long time, he eventually turned back to her with a grim looking expression. “So?” She chirped. “What do you think?”

            “That kind of underwear…” He murmured. “You should burn it.”

            Obnoxious giggles immediately flooded out of her mouth, filling the entire room with laughter. “Right?” She cried. “I love it! I knew I’d have to spend a weekend sharing a room with you and wore my lamest and most worn out looking underwear on purpose! It’s got random strings poking out and everything!”

            “What kind of girl wears that kind of thing?” He cried. “Are you even functional as a woman?!”

            Krislynn continued laughing, only briefly stopping to stick her tongue out at him as she chanted, “Serves you right pervert!”

            Chase’s face lit up in mischief, and though the expression could only convey trouble and vengeance, Krislynn never found out what he might have done if given the chance. Instead, the door that Chase had left partially open prior opened up the rest of the way and Krislynn witnessed firsthand a mid-aged lady walking in with a gut-wrenching idea of who she might be: Chase’s mom.

            Lenora Evans, after walking upon her son straddling his girlfriend with his hand on her upper thigh clutching the hems of her skirt, only smiled at the two youths with the usual warm-hearted expression plastered on her face as they turned to look at her. It was as if she had walked in on them playing Scribble or Monopoly on a quiet Sunday afternoon. She beamed at them, her brown eyes warm like hot chocolate on a cold Christmas day before she turned to leave. “I’ll just… I’ll be in the kitchen,” she said pleasantly, and then closed the door behind her.  

            The two of them quickly crawled off each other after, Chase tumbling off the bed as Krislynn pushed her skirt down and fixed her hair. “Wait! Mom!” He shouted and flew out of the room to catch up to his mother as Krislynn eagerly followed.

            His mother turned her head around halfway down the hallway and again, smiled sweetly at them as the two caught up to her. “Um! It’s… It’s… We weren’t gonna do it!” Krislynn blurted, her cheeks engulfed by a terrifying red ember. “You probably think I’m such a loser! My name is Krislynn! It’s seriously not what you think it was! Nice to meet you!” She let out a low groan after, closing her eyes and lowering her head as she mentally bashed herself for saying all her inner thoughts in the wrong order.

            Chase smacked his head and covered his eyes at the horrid sight in front of him. First the drool, then the compromising position and now this! Thank God he knew his mom was compassionate and had a sense of humour otherwise it would definitely be the end of the train for Krislynn.

            “Oh darling, she’s adorable,” his mother chuckled and then gathered Krislynn in her arms to her surprise. “Don’t babble any nonsense darling. It’s wonderful to have you over for the holidays. We’re so excited! Come down. Come down. Everybody is just dying to meet you!”

            A bit of guilt still tore inside of her, but Chase’s mom was so incredibly nice that it soothed her and made Krislynn think that she could just relax and enjoy herself for the weekend. “Um… okay,” she murmured, still blushing as the beaming woman took her hand and led her down a flight of stairs. “Thanks so much for inviting me! It means a lot!”

            “That’a girl!” She chuckled, and for the first time, Krislynn was finally calm enough to take in the affectionate woman’s features and appreciate them for the gentleness in their structure. Every line on her face was soft as if she was drawn with extreme care – even the small lines around the edges of her eyes when she smiled – and yet her brown eyes brimmed with life when she spoke, enlightening even those who were at the edge of despair. No wonder Chase was so fond of his mother, and Krislynn could easily recall the gentle expression that invaded him the handful of times he spoke of her. “It was Krislynn right?” His mother continued. “That is such a beautiful and unique name! I don’t think I’ve ever heard of it before.”

            “Yeah, I don’t think a lot of people have that name,” she murmured. “Um… sorry. You know my name is Krislynn, but I don’t know how to address you at all.”

            The woman laughed, waving her freehand as if the matter was no big concern to her. “Oh darling, just call me what Chase calls me.”

            Krislynn’s eyes almost flew out of their sockets before she quickly spun her head around to look for Chase. He had faded into the background almost as soon as his mother met her, but he didn’t seem to mind and was happy just to follow them silently down the stairs. When he saw her staring at him for guidance, he only yawned and offered her a lazy shrug – totally unhelpful.

            She turned back to his mother, completely flabbergasted. “But uh… Chase uh… Chase calls you mom.”

            “Exactly!” She exclaimed. “So just call me that!”

            “But! But! We’re not even… Chase and I aren’t even… like… married and stuff!”

            “That’s fine,” she muttered. “It’s going to happen sooner or later so you can just call me mom now. There’s no use calling me Lenora for a few years and then changing it later, right?”

            “Uh… But…”

            “No?” She murmured, and although her face fell, showing that she was rather disappointed by the turn of events, a supportive smile still touched her lips nevertheless. “You don’t have to force yourself if it’s something you really don’t want to do. I can understand that. A lot of girls also reserve the title of mom for their own so you can call me by my first name if it makes things uncomfortable for you otherwise.”

            “It’s… it’s not really that.” Krislynn sighed and bit her lower lip, coming to a halt before concentrating her gaze on the ground. “It’s just that my mom passed away when I was fourteen so I mean… I haven’t called anyone mom for a really long time.”

            “Oh dear! That was insensitive of me then.”

            “Oh no, it’s fine. It’s just… I uh...” Krislynn stopped. She could feel the burning sensation in her throat that warned her she was closed to tears, and she had to take a deep breath to force it all away. Ella’s mom had treated her like a second daughter and especially took care of her after her mother passed away, but she had never called anyone besides her own mom, mom. The moment touched a bit of her fonder childhood memories with her parents, and though realistically, no one could ever replace her mom, she was tempted with the feeling of how wonderful it would be to call someone that again.

            Biting her lips, she forced herself to speak. “Can I… Can I really? Can I really call you that? You won’t mind?”

            Lenora smiled and tenderly brushed a strand of hair off Krislynn’s face. “Of course sweetheart. I may never take the place of someone so important to you, but if you’re willing to call me mom, I’ll definitely treat you like one of my own.”

            Krislynn bit her lips, her fingers playing with the hem of her shirt as she gathered enough courage. “Okay then,” she finally said and then gazed up at Chase’s mother through her lashes. “Mom.”

            Lenora’s eyes instantly welled in tears, but not enough for Krislynn to analyze it as she quickly wrapped the young girl in her strong arms and squeezed her with all her might. “Welcome home my beautiful daughter.”

            Krislynn’s own eyes closed to stop the emotional overload, but felt the soft breeze of Chase's cologne as he passed them by. “You guys are weird,” he said.

            The next person that Krislynn met was Chase’s father, a skinny man whose skin had turned a golden hue most likely due to the work outside in the heat. His eyes were friendly and Krislynn quite enjoyed his sense of fashion, a red plaid shirt with faded blue overalls, ripped at the knees, and a straw hat. They had caught him just as he was about to head out and feed the livestock, but he didn’t mind the delay, and after a brief introduction from Chase, told her she could just call him Ben.

            “It’s nice to meet you,” she said and held out a hand. “Thank you for having me over.”

            Benjamin Evans only sighed before wrapping his arms around her and giving her a friendly hug. “Stop with the formalities,” he grumbled when he pulled away, a grin on his lips. “’Round here, we don’t do any handshakes. That’s the reason I moved away from the city. It was nice and big there, but it’s not like here where everybody knows everybody. As long as you don’t mean any harm, you walk through that front door and you’re family. You’re one of us. You got that?”

            Krislynn nodded her head repeatedly. “I got it,” she shouted, riveting with happiness that everybody was so nice and welcoming. She could not understand why Chase strayed away from his family. They were absolutely delightful and if it were her, she’d want to see them everyday.

            Lenora took her to the kitchen after her husband left for his daily routine and explained that only Isla, her daughter, and Amy, her daughter-in-law were in the house preparing for tonight’s feast. Her oldest son, Adam, and her son-in-law Isaac, had taken all the kids into town today, and should probably be due back soon enough. Among the absentee was Brett also, Lenora’s second son, who lived in Australia with his family consisting of five kids and would not be joining them for Thanksgiving because of the costs to fly over. 

            Before they even made their way into the kitchen, Krislynn could already smell the fragrant seduction of the food and felt her stomach rumble in anticipation. Fortunately her hunger wasn’t so consuming that it took over her conscious and she was able to meet Amy and Isla without her stomach interrupting. While Amy instantly took a liking to her and gave off a curious, older sister sort of aura, Isla was a bit more cautious, watching and scrutinizing every aspect about her before finally giving her a faint grin.

            “Well, you don’t look like a gold-digging bimbo,” was the first thing that came out of Isla’s mouth. “Okay. Alright. I accept you. I approve of your relationship with Chase.”

            “T- Thanks…”

            With Isla’s misunderstanding straightened out, she instantly moved from one extreme side of the spectrum to the other, hooking her arm through Krislynn’s like they had known each other forever, and forcefully dragging her into the living room. “Mom, you cook,” she shouted. “I’m going to show Krislynn all of Chase’s ugly baby photos! She’s never going to see him in the same light again!”

            Chase almost had to fight to wrench his younger sister off of Krislynn. “No, you’re not,” he shouted.

            “Stop! No! I’m going to...” Isla let out a whimper of defeat when Chase finally pried her apart from Krislynn successfully. “Why won’t you let me?!” She cried.

            “Why my baby photos!” He screamed. “Show her something else!”

            “Okay,” she said, getting back on her feet quick. “I’ll show her your prom photos.” Her ember eyes sparkled in mischief as she peered at Krislynn. “The pictures are hilarious! Mom felt so bad that he couldn’t find a date for prom so she insisted on going as his–  ”

            “Okay fine!” Chase shouted, angrily giving Isla a push so that she was sent stumbling a few steps backwards. “Go get the stupid baby pictures!”

            Krislynn burst out laughing once Isla rushed off with glee. “Why did you stop her?” She teased, elbowing Chase playfully on the ribs. “I think that story had a lot of potential.”

            “Shut… Shut up.”

            A moment after, Krislynn was ecstatic to get her hands on the pictures despite Chase’s embarrassment. She opened the baby album and immediately pointed to the picture that stood out to her the most. There were two babies in the picture, one who was petite with long, dark eyelashes that reminded her of a doll, and the other, a fat baby with cheeks that were so enormous that she laughed at once. “Oh my god, what a fat baby! Is that you Chase?! You were so freakin’ cute as a kid! I just want to squeeze those chubby cheeks to death!”

            Chase frowned at her from where he was sitting on the couch. “The other one is me,” he muttered. “The fat one is Jace.”

            “Do you know Jace?” Isla piped, studying Krislynn with interest as her jaw fell in disbelief.

            “Yeah but… Jace is as skinny as a twig!”

            “He was just fat as a baby alright,” Chase grunted. “How perfect is that for you! He’s cute no matter what!”

            Krislynn felt a bit bad after and bit her lips when she realized that the photo she pointed at was the only one on the first page that included Jace so it would be obvious that the other child was Chase. “Well, you were a cute baby too,” she added, hoping it would bring him out of his crap mood that she had just initiated.

            Chase remained composed, determine to stick with his frustration until he finally cracked and gave her a curious side glance. “R- Really?” He mumbled. “You’re not just saying that, right?”

            She laughed. “Of course not. You were a cute, little baby.”

            His lips pressed together in a thin line for several moments before his confidence came back to him and he showered her with a self-dignified smirk. “Of course I was a cute baby,” he decided. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

            Isla only rolled her eyes at him. “You’re a loser Chase. I have no idea how you even get girls.”

            Chase’s eyes shot out at her, but his mother entered the room at that moment and he refrained from battling it out with his sister. “Are you guys looking at the babies pictures?”

            Krislynn nodded. “Yeah. I was just going to mention though, Chase was really tiny when he was a baby wasn’t he? How old is he here?”

            Lenora narrowed her eyes, leaned over and studied the pictures for a second before smiling. “Oh! Those bring back memories! He was probably three or four months in there! Chase was born several months before he was supposed to so that’s why he looks so small despite his age.”

            “Really?” Krislynn turned to Chase with curiosity. “I didn’t know you were a pre-term baby. Is that why the baby pictures start at this age or are the earlier photos just in another album?”

            Chase released a splutter of laughter and eyed her with a look that sent chills to her bones. “What album?” He snorted. “There are no other albums Krislynn. What kind of pictures did you want to see? I spent the first two months of my life in a freakin’ closed off box and before that… you want to see the pictures before that? Where my parents and my aunt bled to death in a car accident and I was born when some doctor cut open my dead mother’s stomach? You really want to see pictures like that?”

            Krislynn could only regard Chase in a frozen, wide-eyed expression as he released a breath of pent-up frustration. His eyes lowered the moment he realized what he had said – most likely due to his own family’s facial expressions – and he scratched the nape of his neck in discomfort. “Sorry,” he muttered. “I didn’t mean that. I’m just... I'm going to go out for a second.”