252. COMPENSATE

~ Zoie’s POV ~

- - - - - Several Weeks Later - - - - -

“Ah! Welcome home you two!” Aunt Talia yelped in excitement as soon as Zoie and Landon walked into the house. She got up from her seat, raced to the door, and gave Zoie and Landon the biggest hugs ever.

“Nice to see you again, Aunt Talia,” Zoie replied.

“Hey, mom, how are ya?” Landon said as he hugged her back.

“I’m good, I’m good. I’m just too excited to see you two,” Aunt Talia looked at Zoie and at Landon, smiling a knowing smile. “Come on, come in, your mom’s in the kitchen making everyone coffee,”

Ah. Of course.

Aunt Talia led Zoie and Landon through the living room and they arrived in the kitchen where everyone was gathered. Her mom was making coffee, per usual, her dad was sitting at the head of the dining table with Uncle Liam, and her brothers were chattering and crowding their mom.

“No, I’m serious, mom. There’s this animal in Indonesia that poops out coffee beans and people will drink them!” Zander was saying.

“Guys, look who just came in!” Aunt Talia announced, gathering everyone’s attention.

“Oh! There they are!” Zane exclaimed.

“Sweetheart, welcome back!” Zoie’s mom dropped everything and went over to give Zoie a hug.

“It’s good to be back,” Zoie said as she hugged her back.

“Landon, nice to see you again,” her mom said to Landon.

“Nice to see you too Aunt Violet,”

“How was the flight, honey?”

“It was fine, just super crowded. Everyone’s going back home for Thanksgiving and all,”

“Yeah, the line at baggage claim was insane,” Landon added. “It’s a miracle we even got our bags,”

Speaking of miracles, Zoie looked around to see the happy faces of her family, and she couldn’t help but smile too. The last time she was here, she thought the world was ending. There was no way she’d ever smile again. But here she was, surrounded by the people who loved her the most, and she was feeling happy.

It almost didn’t feel like it, but another month had passed and it was Thanksgiving break all over again. After finishing up her midterms, Landon and Zoie went back home for the holiday. At first, she was worried about coming home. She didn’t know how’d she feel about being in this house that keeps reminding her of Asher. But now that she was here and she was feeling good, that didn’t matter anymore.

I guess it’s true what they say, time does heal all things.

“Yo, Land,” Zach chimed. “How long are you gonna be staying in California exactly?”

“Yeah, I thought you’d be back in the office, like, weeks ago?” Zander added.

“I dunno, I kinda like it out there,” Landon shrugged.

“Yeah, I bet,” Zane said, throwing Zoie and Landon a knowing glance.

“Plus, I can still do my job online,” Landon said.

“Yeah, but it’s not the same not having you around,” Zach argued.

“Aw, you guys miss me?” Landon joked, and the guys shoved him playfully.

“Mom, do you need any help?” Zoie said as Violet went back to the kitchen counter.

“No, sweetie. Do you want some coffee, though?”

“Sure, I’ll have a—”

“Hot peppermint mocha?” her mom cut her off.

“You know it,” Zoie nodded her head.

Her mom’s hot peppermint mocha was her favorite drink growing up. It almost made her feel like Christmas. It was a little taste of home.

As her mom was making the drink, Aunt Talia stepped forward and started glancing around between Zoie and Landon. She wasn’t being coy about it too.

“So, Landon, Zoie…” she said, “I’m not trying to pry, but a little birdie told me that you two are… well, you know?”

By a little birdie, she probably meant Landon. They were pretty close to each other. They talked on the phone every week and Landon probably told his mom about it.

Regardless, everyone’s eyes now turned to Landon and Zoie, waiting expectantly. Zoie glanced at Landon and he just shrugged, smiling sheepishly.

“I just really wanna know,” Aunt Talia said again. “I wanna hear it from you two…”

Letting out another smile, Landon walked over to Zoie and grabbed her hand. Then, he turned to everyone and said, “Zoie and I are dating, yes,”

“Woooooo!!!” Cheers and claps erupted through the house. Zane and Zander were whistling like it was a football game. Even Damon was clapping too, nodding his head approvingly.

“We are taking things slow and, um, we’re… really happy together,” Landon continued. His cheeks were blushing a little. It was kind of cute.

After the Halloween party, Zoie and Landon’s relationship hit a turning point. Especially that morning after, when Zoie realized what a great person Landon was. He was patient and kind. He never asked for anything except for her to be happy.

If I was to be with anyone, it should be with someone like him, she thought.

Landon made her feel safe in the midst of the chaos and destruction that Asher brought. There were a lot of ups and downs with Asher, many highs and lows, but with Landon, things were stable. And that was something she desperately needed right now.

“Stability is better and ups and downs,” Nic would tell her. “The highs will come with time. But to have a strong and stable base for the relationship, that’s the best,”

“I agree,” Jo said. “Especially that you two are best friends. There’s no better relationship than that,”

And so, Zoie and Landon embarked on a new kind of relationship. Not much had changed because he was still her best friend and she was his. They just happen to kiss sometimes. And no, before you ask, they hadn’t done it yet. Zoie didn’t feel like she was ready, so they agreed on taking things slow.

“Holy crap, he’s really dating our sister,” Zane interjected.

“I think it’s about time we have that man to man talk,” Zander said.

“You mean man to men?” Zach added.

“And don’t forget dad,” Zane nodded to the big man sitting at the dining table.

“Guys, relax,” Landon laughed.

“Don’t tell us to relax, you’re dating our sister,” Zach playfully glared at him.

“Yeah, maybe you should relax, Landon,” Zander added, patting Landon’s shoulder.

Suddenly feeling threatened by Zoie’s older brothers, Landon could only laugh nervously and glance at Zoie for help. In response, Zoie just grinned and shrugged. This was out of her hands.

“Congratulations, sweetheart,” Zoie turned around to see her dad, opening his arms for a hug.

“Thanks, dad,” she narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but hugged her dad back anyway.

That’s odd. I thought he’d have more of a reaction?

“We’re really happy for you,” he said again, ruffling her hair before going over to kiss her mom.

Something was weird about that. Her brothers were more into grilling Landon than her dad was. He didn’t seem too shocked either. Perhaps Aunt Talia and him had been talking? Or maybe Landon told him too? That sounded like something Landon would do, asking for her dad’s approval before anything else.

Hm, who knows?

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~ Asher’s POV ~

It was Thanksgiving night and Asher was sitting at a booth in Denny’s diner with Mikey and two of their friends, Hayden and Malcolm. Denny’s was the only restaurant open within a mile radius, so they didn’t have a lot of options. It was Denny’s or frozen pizzas, so here they were.

“Some Thanksgiving, huh?” Mikey chuckled as he finished his plate of burger and fries. He dabbed the last fry in ketchup before popping it into his mouth.

“Wouldn’t have it any other way,” Asher laughed back, cutting a piece of steak on his plate.

“Cheers to that,” Mikey said as he raised a glass of coke.

“Hear, hear!”

Asher and the other guys did the same thing and they toasted. Mikey then let out a big burp and the guys laughed. This was definitely a different kind of Thanksgiving compared to last year, but Asher didn’t mind it. Sure, he missed enjoying the holiday with his family. He missed spending time with Zoie. He missed everything about last year, but that doesn’t mean life ends. Life still goes on, and this year’s Thanksgiving, he was spending it with a new kind of family.

Mikey was given up for adoption as a little kid, so he never even had a real family. Hayden and Malcolm too, they were brothers and their mom passed away and their dad was in prison. The four of them banded together for their love of cars and mischief, and here they were, eating together at a Denny’s on Thanksgiving night.

“So, hey, I was thinking we should go back to the garage and do one last test before the race next week. You know, just to be safe,” Malcolm said. He was the head mechanic in Ash’s racing team.

“Sure,” Mikey nodded his head and turned to Asher. “What do you think, Ash?”

“Let’s do it,” Asher said.

“Should we just do it tonight?” Hayden asked. “I got nothing better to do anyway,”

“I’m ready whenever y’all are,” Mikey shrugged.

“Same here,” Malcolm added.

The three guys turned to Asher and waited for his response. Asher let out a scoff and dropped his fork and knife on the plate.

“Guys, I’m eating steak at a fúcking Denny’s,” he laughed. “Let’s go,”

“Alright then!”

The guys got up and started leaving the table. Asher pulled out two hundred dollars from his jeans pocket and put it on the table. The meal itself was probably not more than seventy bucks, but since it was Thanksgiving, he thought the server deserved a little bit more.

After leaving Denny’s, the guys were walking back to the garage. It was only a ten minute walk and the air outside was cool and crisp. Asher pulled out a cigarette and he was just about to light it up when something caught his eye. They were passing by a store, some kind of antique toy store. From the store’s window, he noticed a fluffy unicorn doll. The same exact one that Zoie used to have when she was a kid.

“Hey, man, what are you doing?” Mikey asked. Hayden and Malcolm were already a few feet away from them.

“Nothing, I just…” Asher couldn’t stop staring at the unicorn. Out of all the places in the world, and out of all the toys there were, why would this store be putting this toy out on the display on this very night when he was thinking about her?

Zoie got this unicorn doll from her dad for her sixth birthday or something like that. She called it Mr. Unicorn, not very original, but she was six. Mr. Unicorn soon became her best friend. She went everywhere with it, she couldn’t sleep without it, and she even took showers with it.

Asher was twelve at the time. For some reason, he was jealous of Mr. Unicorn because it had all of Zoie’s attention. He wanted to be her friend, he wanted her to play with him. And so, he did what twelve year old boys thought was normal, he cut open the unicorn and dissected it. The doll was forever ruined and Zoie cried for days. It was also a pretty rare doll, so Damon couldn’t even get a new one for her. And then, fourteen years later, like some twisted joke, the universe decided to bring this toy back into the world.

“You wanna go in there?” Mikey’s voice pulled Asher out of his thoughts.

“Should I…?” he asked himself. “Her birthday is in a week… “

“Ash?” Mikey asked again.

“Nah,” Asher said finally, turning away to follow Hayden and Malcolm. “Let’s go,”

“You sure?” Mikey was still waiting for Ash to turn back, but Asher didn’t.

Mikey took one last look at the store’s window, eyeing that unicorn on the display, and after a beat, he turned around and followed the other guys.

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~ Zoie’s POV ~

- - - - - One Week Later - - - - -

Zoie and Landon were walking down the hallway of their apartment. Landon was carrying most of their stuff, including their two rolly suitcases. Meanwhile, Zoie was texting on her phone while carrying a bag of leftover food from her mom. They had just gotten back from the airport, but there was no time to rest because her friends were already planning a party. Her birthday party, to be exact.

“...Anyway, Jo and Nic are saying they wanna do an 80’s retro night at the roller rink or something like that,” she said, relaying the messages on their group chat to Landon.

“Sure. That sounds fun,”

“Uh-huh, we just gotta get some shoes…” Zoie was still typing on her phone when they arrived at the door. In front of her apartment door, there was a big FedEx box waiting for her. She looked at Landon and narrowed her eyes. “Don’t tell me you’ve already ordered the shoes?”

Landon laughed and shook his head. “You just told me about roller skating a minute ago, how would I have known?”

“Then what’s this?”

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “Did you order something from Amazon?”

“Not that I remember…”

Landon opened the door and brought all their stuff inside. Meanwhile, Zoie stopped at the front door, studying the big box. The box was addressed to her, but weirdly enough, it didn’t have the sender’s name. Curious, Zoie peeled the tape and opened the box. Her eyes jolted wide in shock once she saw what was inside.

Mr. Unicorn…!

It was a unicorn doll that she had years and years ago. It was her favorite toy ever until Asher borrowed it from her and Mr. Unicorn ended up going to heaven.

But how is this here…?

“Zee?” Landon’s voice was heard from inside the house. “What’s in the box?”

“N-nothing!” she said quickly, closing the box back.

It didn’t sound like the gift was from Landon. It sounded more plausible that Asher may have sent this for her. It had to be him. Who else would it be from?

How dare he?! Does he think this is some kind of a game?!

“I’m gonna take out some trash!” Zoie yelled into the house, taking the box with her as she stomped away angrily.

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- - - - - - To Be Continued - - - - - -