Chapter Four

                                    

                                          
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Chapter Four
                          
   Friday nights were my favorite. An entire weekend to relax and not have to get up early to go to the Reid's. Don't get me wrong, they're wonderful people, but a girl needs a break and I needed to be young sometimes. That's what the weekends were for, especially Fridays. This Friday in particular Amber and I took to a local club, getting in without the bouncer asking for our to see our IDs which was a total win on our part. I was feeling good, I had finished watching for Thomas early today, around 3:00 so I still had enough energy to enjoy myself for the night. Alexandra had invited me to stay for dinner with them after I finished however, so I accepted the offer graciously. She had picked up some food that was pre-made from the local market on her way home and I helped her set the table, listening to her talk about her day.
                          
   As expected everything she had picked up seemed relatively healthy. A selection of peas, carrots, boneless chicken, and some kind of Mashed potatoes with weird colored specs in it that I assumed was a type of flavoring. Maybe I just wasn't used to any food that wasn't pizza. Needless to say, when everyone sat down for dinner it was really nice. It felt like a real family atmosphere that I wasn't ever really familiar with in my own life. In a way Alexandra and Matt were more like friends because they were close to my age, but I had to keep it on a professional level obviously. I sat on one side across from Tommy's high chair while Matt sat on another side across from Alexandra and we engaged in casual conversation while we ate. It was completely normal.  Until...
                          
   "Matthew," Alexandra said after clearing her throat. Her voice caused Matt to lift his head from eating, looking towards her with raised eyebrows as she spoke, "I was speaking to Robyn today. She said..."
                          
   "Jesus Christ, Alex. I don't care what she said." Matt shot back, his tone instantly changing. I have no idea who this Robyn person was but clearly she was someone Alexandra and Matt didn't have a similar interest in.
                          
   "Matt! Watch your language. Thomas is right there." She pointed at Thomas who was contently eating his mashed potatoes. "There's no need for you to raise your voice when I'm just trying to speak to you."
                          
   Matt laughed. A different laugh then I was used to hearing from him. Usually when he laughed it was a charming chuckle, but this laugh was nothing but sarcastic and annoyed. He shook his head, "Not when you bring up things that you know I don't want to talk about. My god, Alexandra. Really? Right now? We have guests for crying out loud. Have some respect."
                          
   I stared down awkwardly at my plate, moving my fork around my peas while I attempted to distract myself my counting them. 4, 5, 6... oh jeez. My eyes lifted from my plate and I cleared my throat, "Thank you for inviting me to stay for dinner, but I really should get going..."
                          
   I pushed my chair back, standing from the table and looking towards Alexandra who was staring at Matt like she wasn't finished with the argument. She looked in my direction and forced a smile, "Thank you for joining us, Allison. We'll see you on Monday."