Kana’s teeth were on edge by the time Gen finally made it back to the house, looking less miserable than he had all day. Their Uncle Charlie, his wife Heather, and their two kids, Ty and Abby, had arrived and, as much as she loved them, she wasn’t up to dealing with them alone. Especially not Ty who was as communicative as her brother.

“Seriously, Eugene, can you move any slower?” She said, hands on hips. 

“What? I was talking to–”

“I know, I heard you.”

Gen’s eyes widened. “Did anyone else?”

“Not that I’ve noticed,” Kana said with a shrug. “Besides, it’s not like you were being too loud, I just heard your voice. The tone gave it away.”

“My tone?”

“You have a different tone of voice when you talk to Mika, you didn’t notice?”

Gen shrugged and shook his head. 

“Well, whatever, they’re here and Ty’s looking for you.” She grabbed his hand and led him quickly through the house to where the others had gathered in the living room, the noise level at a peak as everyone was talking excitedly. She felt his hand tighten. Family or not, close groups still made him nervous.

Ty caught his eye and nodded once. Gen returned it with a small frown. He looked around, and arched his brow. Ty shrugged a shoulder and they both walked outside and away from the house.

Kana could never understand how those two were able to communicate so succinctly without words. She managed to pull Abby away while the Real Grown Ups kept chatting. Charlie and Heather had seen Gen as he had walked in but now asked Kana where he had gone as she and Abby were walking away. She said he’d gone out back with Ty and they nodded. No more needed to be said or done; those two knew how to entertain themselves and did it well.

Gen and Ty hadn’t gone too far from the house when they stopped and started talking about Gen’s truck and Ty’s Jeep. Kana and Abby stayed on the porch, reclining in the canvas chairs, catching up and talking about nothing important in general. Donovan and Charlie were talking and laughing loudly while Heather snuck away to join the girls outside.

“Yeesh, those guys are loud when they get together,” Heather said, plopping into another canvas chair.

“Aren’t you glad it’s infrequent?” Abby asked.

“Very,” Heather laughed. “I complain, but it is nice to see them together. Just wait till tomorrow when Rachel and her kids arrive.” They all grimaced. Rachel’s three kids were incredibly boring individuals with the personalities of cheap, wet paper towels. Rachel was constantly on the phone and barely spent any time with either her kids or her husband, who also was as bland as the kids.

“Enjoy it while you can,” Kana muttered, her gaze out to where the boys were standing around, chatting about car stuff that she didn’t care to understand. She was just happy to see Gen a bit more animated than earlier. 

Leave it to Mika, she thought.

“Has he gotten taller?” Abby asked. “Or is it just the ‘hawk?”

“I think it’s the ‘hawk,” Heather said.

“Definitely the ‘hawk,” Kana concurred. “It gives him another inch, at least. He really likes it, too,” she said. “It’s a lot lighter and it’s easier to manage.”

“That’s right, his hair is thick and heavy as hell, isn’t it?” Heather said, to which the girls nodded. 

“I feel so bad for him,” Kana said. “He really got the short end of the genetic stick on that.” Mika absolutely loves it, though, she made sure not to add. 

While her grandparents were against homosexuality, her aunt and cousins weren’t, but it was still a conversation best left untouched at the current moment.

Abby leaned back, fingers to cheek, looking thoughtful. “He looks different.”

Dammit, Abs. She was too keen on her observations, Kana recalled.

“How so?” Kana asked, telling herself to stay as vague as she could.

“He seems more at ease with himself, less tense in his shoulders. He’s not slouched over and his hands are out of his pockets. He’s also moving around a bit more.” She cast her eyes to her cousin. “What’s going on with him, I wonder?” Her gaze said she knew there was a secret, but she wasn’t going to search it out. She would find it all out in due time.

Kana instantly knew how to address this one without having to give away the most important element to his change: Mika.

“He’s making friends,” she said with a wide grin. Abby sat up straight and Heather leaned forward.

“You’re kidding,” Heather said. 

Kana shook her head. “I know, it’s a surprise to us, too. Someone reached out to him in class one day and decided to help him. It’s a process but he improves little by little every day. His best friend, Riley, said that he’s still having a little trouble with customers, but he doesn’t throw up as much anymore.”

The other two glanced out at Gen who was laughing softly with his cousin. That alone made their jaws drop. When was the last time they heard Gen Parker laugh?

“He even has a best friend?” Heather said, crossing her arms and legs. “Wow,” she added under her breath. “He really has come a long way.”

You can’t even begin to know.

Gen and Ty walked further away from the house, into the dark, and the conversation on the porch changed.

-*-

When Gen and Ty were far enough away from the house not to be overheard, Ty said, “I never apologized, did I?”

“Ty, it’s fine. It’s in the past and I’m over it.”

“Dude, I could have killed you with that shit,” Ty said, his face pinched with regret. “Fuck, I almost did!”

Gen looked down at his feet, hands in his hoodie. “We were both really fucked up back then, dude. I got clean, so did you, there’s no reason to keep talking about it.”

Ty sighed. “I know, you’re right. I still feel like shit, though.”

“Well stop, it was almost three years ago now. I’ve moved past it and my life has actually gotten a lot better recently. I’m not the same person I was back in high school. Hell, I’m not even the same person I was a few months ago.”

Ty looked at him, almost eye level. He was just one inch shorter. “That’s not true and you know it.”

Gen’s eyes hardened and slid to his cousin. “Ty–”

“I still see that anger in you, bro. It may be locked up but it’s gonna come out again eventually. Next time, it could even be worse and your dad won’t be around to save you.”

“I have a reason not to be that way anymore. One that I’m not willing to risk.” Gen said, his eyes dancing with a hidden light Ty had never seen before. 

“Then I hope you never run into a situation like the last time ever again.” Ty looked off into the distance, his own hands in his pockets. “Grandad is gonna wanna spar in a few days,” he said. “Are you up for it?”

“I’m a bit rusty but I think I can match him.” The tension had eased instantly at the swift change in topic. His phone buzzed in his pocket and when he saw the notification, his eyes changed. Ty caught it but said nothing.

He opened the text from Mika, a pic of him with his family, smiling and giving him the peace sign filled his screen. Everyone says HI GENYA and they miss you.

The corners of Gen’s mouth turned up slightly as he typed back his reply. I miss all of you guys, too. How’s your evening going?

“What’s that about?” Ty asked, pointing between Gen and his phone. 

Gen looked up and put his phone back in his pocket, his entire demeanor more relaxed. “My reason.”