Chapter 20: The Ways

Tina's anxiety about Zeke's seemingly odd behavior seemed to fade as she focused on her midterm exams and fantasized about Thanksgiving. Perhaps she was just overthinking and being needy, but all of that would clear up once she saw him and they had Thanksgiving together. She loved the college life, but nothing beat being home with her family, eating her dad's famous Thanksgiving dinner. She was excited to figure out how the turkey would be prepared, how the cranberry sauce would be made, the potatoes, vegetables, stuffing… thinking about it just made her mouth water. She definitely was Bob's daughter.

After her last midterm, she said goodbye to her friends and roommates as they were getting ready to head home, and piled into her car and drove home. On the drive, she couldn't help but think about Zeke and their relationship thus far. She definitely saw herself marrying him, but she didn't want to be pushy. She knew they were still young, but she couldn't wait to start a new chapter with him. She slowed down the car to a stop when she saw a red light, and reached over to put in a mix tape that Zeke had made for her as an anniversary present. Music would definitely keep her mind off things.

By the time she got home, it was starting to get dark. Tina never really liked daylight savings, but at least she was back in town before it got too dark. If there's one thing she hated more than it becoming night early, it was driving in the dark. She turned off the car and looked in the restaurant window. It was pretty packed that evening. And everyone was home from school.

"Hello," Tina bellowed as restaurant doorbell jingled when she pushed it open, "need any help with the dinner rush?"

"Aw, Tina's back, finally!" Linda shouted as she threw down her rag.

"Lin, calm down." Bob said from the grill.

"I will, I just need a hug from my not-so-Teeny Tina!" She said as she hugged Tina tightly, covering her face and head with kisses.

"Hi mom," Tina said as she hugged her back. Before she knew it, the famous Belcher family hug consumed her; another one of her favorite Belcher Thanksgiving traditions, even though she couldn't really breathe. "Where's Zeke?" Tina asked after they collectively released their grip.

"He's downstairs doing inventory," Bob said, "but we're about to close up in an hour or so anyways, so you kids are off the hook."

"Al-right!" Gene exclaimed, mimicking Linda.

"Don't be too excited to get off early now," Bob said sarcastically.

"Don't worry, we won't." Louise said sarcastically back.

"You guys go ahead," Tina said as she turned to Gene and Louise, who were halfway out the door, "I'm gonna say hi to Zeke."

Tina slowly walked down to the basement in order to avoid making any sound, since she wanted to surprise him. She peaked over the railing and saw him standing in front of the walk-in with a clipboard in one hand and a pencil in the other, carefully taking inventory of everything in the freezer, from patties to parsnips. Tina tiptoed behind him and covered his eyes with her hands. "Guess who?" She asked, trying to disguise her voice. She wasn't very good at it though. Impersonations weren't her strongest suit.

Zeke knew it was Tina right away. Not just from her voice, but from her very dainty, somewhat clammy hands. Being stronger than she was, he quickly whipped around and hoisted her up. "Tina!" He exclaimed as he hugged her tightly. "I didn't know you were comin' back today!"

"I wanted to surprise you," she said as she kissed him, "everyone was in on it. Well, except mom. I had a feeling she would blab."

Zeke laughed as he set her down. "I'm glad you surprised me. And, um… I'm sorry if I've been actin' weird or if you thought I was being distant. I've been busy between school and the restaurant and-"

"Zeke, you're rambling," Tina said with a smile.

Zeke blushed and chuckled lightly. "Guess I am," he said, "speaking of surprises I-"

"Hey, Zeke," Bob bellowed down the stairs, "are you about done with inventory? That group cleared out and we're planning on closing early now that everyone's home."

"Almost done, Mr. B!" Zeke yelled back.

"Wait, surprise?" Tina asked.

"That's classified," Zeke teased, "be patient, T-Train. I gotta finish up."

"Ugh," Tina groaned, matching his humor, "okay I'm going up to the apartment, but don't think I won't forget!" she said as she headed up the stairs.

"Forget about what?" Zeke asked, teasing her again. Tina laughed to herself and rolled her eyes as she headed back up to the restaurant.

After dinner, Bob and Linda left to have a date night, leaving the young adults to their own devices. Zeke left to go to the liquor store to buy some wine and beer for them to share while they watched a horror movie marathon, per Louise's request. While Zeke was gone, the Belcher kids got a chance to catch up. They had grown up and changed so fast it was hard to keep up. Tina still rocked her flannel shirts and jeans, though she did expand her shoe collection and got newer glasses frames. Louise was going through a bit of a punk phase; she wore all black, combat boots, and leather-studded belts and jackets, and to Linda's chagrin, hot pink highlights in her hair. Gene was definitely the more stylish sibling. He upgraded his yellow shirt to a white, blue, and yellow color block windbreaker, blue jeans, and pristine white sneakers.

When Zeke got back with a bottle of wine and a six-pack of beer. They were allowed to drink in the apartment, as long as they didn't touch Bob and Linda's stash. Louise was still under 21 and wasn't allowed to drink, but that often went out the window when she was with friends or siblings, and didn't have a problem with turning the blame on one of them. She was the youngest, "most impressionable" sibling after all.

"So Louise," Tina started as she poured herself a glass of wine, "how do you like your new school?"

"Ugh, I hate it," she groaned as she took a beer, "it's like a prison! I have class with a lot of lock pickers though, so we get along."

"Y'know you could've stayed at Huxley if you minded your P's and Q's," Zeke touted. Granted Zeke wasn't the brightest when they were in high school, but he never got in serious trouble. If anything he got detention once because he was late to homeroom one too many times.

"Y'know you could mind your business," Louise mocked, "the school itself sucks, but at least I'm not around fakes and posers anymore. I've found my people."

"Tell 'em, sister!" Gene praised.

"So Genie, how's the new girlfriend?" Zeke asked as he cracked open a can of beer. Tina never thought he would ever be able to get over Todd. He had been dating around since he got back to school, but never took it to the next level with anyone else. Perhaps he was afraid he would get hurt again. Or maybe he was just playing the field until someone new came along. Or maybe he was holding out for Todd.

"Well," Gene started, "I wouldn't say girlfriend. Corinne's a sweet girl and we do have a lot in common. We're just having fun and seeing how things go."

"Yikes," Louise cringed, "what does Corinne think of that?" she asked as she sipped her beer. Louise became quite the cynic when it came to relationships. Tina knew she still had a soft spot for Rudy, but since she was flying with a different crowd, the guys she was into were questionable at best.

"I told her I wasn't looking for anything serious, and she isn't either. I wouldn't lie to her or fill her up with false hope. She's cool and we have fun."

Louise rolled her eyes, "if you say so."