The next morning, Matthew exits his room to find his mother and his girlfriend's mother chatting at their kitchen table.
"Hi, sweetie," Lindsay greets him as he walks past her.
"Hey." He looks at Jackie. "Hey, Mrs. D. Where's my girlfriend?"
Jackie smiles at Matthew. "She's still asleep, I think. Don't worry, I'm sure she'll be here as soon as she gets up."
"She'd better be," Matthew tells her with a small grin. "I miss that girl."
"Yeah, she misses you, too," Jackie tells him as he opens a cupboard and pulls out a box of cereal.
"So…" Lindsay feels slightly awkward continuing the subject that they were just on now that her son is in the room. She had been describing her newly rekindled friendship with Nick. "How was Daniel while you were gone?"
Jackie scoffs. "You already know." She frowned, resting an elbow on the table and placing her chin in her hand. "I told him he's on thin ice."
"Hasn't he been on thin ice?" Lindsay inquires after taking a sip of her coffee.
"Yeah, well… I really mean it this time." She taps her fingers on the table. "My dad wants us to come for Thanksgiving and I haven't told Daniel yet."
"Would he go?" Lindsay raises an eyebrow at her friend.
Jackie shrugs. "Probably not, but you know what? He can go to his mom's like we usually do and I can go back home for a few days or something… and I'll just see what the kids want to do."
"I'm sure he'll love that idea," Lindsay replied with a smirk. She knows her old friend well, and she knows their marriage probably better than the two of them do.
"Don't take my girl away from me again," Matthew tells Jackie, joining them at the table. "This past week was hard enough."
Lindsay beams at her son. She loves his adorable relationship with Jackie's daughter.
"Even if she wanted to go, it would only be for maybe three or four days," Jackie responds. "I definitely can't get away with leaving for an entire week again." She sighs and looks at Lindsay. "Maybe that'll be the ultimate test, you know? I can see if he behaves, and if he doesn't…" She bites her lip and gives her friend a look that finishes the rest of her sentence.
Matthew continues crunching his Frosted Flakes, feeling slightly awkward. However, he hears the door open and turns around to see Alex.
"Hey!" Matthew instantly shoots up from his chair and goes to her.
"Hi," Alex replies, grinning as he envelopes her in an embrace.
"Perfect timing," he murmurs in her ear. "Things were getting a little awkward."
Alex withdraws from him and gives him a confused look.
"Hey, Al," Lindsay greets. "You have fun with your mom?"
Alex shrugs. "I guess so."
"Oh, please," Jackie responds to her daughter, then turning to look at Lindsay. "She spent so much time with Donna's daughter Lisa." She looks back at Alex. "I think you just don't want to admit you're hanging out with a girl."
"Yeah, well… Lisa's, like, barely a girl," Alex tells her. "Most of her friends are guys, too." Her face flushes as she is reminded of whom she actually spent most of her time with.
"Whatever," Jackie says. "You two go catch up so Lindsay and I can keep talking."
Matthew's eyes light up and he grabs Alex by the hand, leading her down the hall to his room.
"Door stays open!" Lindsay calls after him. She smirks and looks back at her friend.
"So, now that it's just you and me," Jackie says. "Tell me more about what happened with Nick."
"Jackie, you make it sound like we're about to date or we're hooking up," Lindsay tells her, her voice sounding disapproving.
"Well, you could," Jackie states. "You used to."
Lindsay shakes her head. "Nick and I never hooked up. We hardly even dated." She frowns. "I'm not even trying to talk about it like this! You know I'm not looking for anything. It's still… difficult, you know?"
"Okay, well… I'm glad you found a new friend," Jackie replies in a bored tone. "Just don't let him surpass me." She grins at her friend and nudges her mug a little closer to her. "More coffee?"
Lindsay pretends to roll her eyes and picks up both of their mugs, taking them to the counter.
"So… you think he likes you?" Jackie inquires.
"It doesn't matter," Lindsay comments, pouring coffee into one of the mugs.
"Fine, fine; you don't wanna talk about it." Jackie frowns at her nails, noticing some chipped polish.
Lindsay fills the other mug silently and walks back to the table, setting Jackie's mug in front of her.
Meanwhile, in Matthew's room, he and Alex are sitting on his bed.
"You've got any plans today?" Matthew asks her.
"I told Ben I'd come over at four," Alex says. "He wants to get me up to speed with everything him and the guys practiced this week while I was gone."
"Oh." Matthew looks slightly upset.
"I'll come over after," Alex offers. "They've just been working on a lot of new stuff and I need to catch up."
"Okay." He reaches over for a textbook on his desk. "Guess I'll hang out with this guy for a while then."
Alex glances at it and wrinkles her nose. "You're taking pre-calculus?"
"This school year, yeah," Matthew tells her.
"Smarty pants," Alex teases. "You know, that's the reason we never have any classes together. You're too smart for me. It's hurting our relationship." She gives him a look so he knows she's joking.
"Yeah, well, maybe you should keep up," Matthew says, poking her in the arm. "Anyways, your mom mentioned something about going back to Wisconsin for Thanksgiving this year."
Alex gives him a weird look. "She didn't mention anything to me."
"I think she's waiting to tell your dad," Matthew tells her. "I overheard her talking to my mom."
"Well, he's not gonna want to go," Alex points out and shrugs. "Yeah, probably won't happen."
"Um, she said he probably wouldn't," Matthew admits, feeling a little uncomfortable. "She said it would only be for a few days and… she said she'd see if you and Justin wanted to go with her."
"My dad won't let her," Alex insists. "It's not going to happen."
"Okay," Matthew says, "But if it does, would you go?"
Alex thinks about it and shrugs. "Probably." Her heart starts to race.
"Damn. Was worried you'd say that." Matthew sighs.
"Well, if she said it's only for a few days, it's no big deal," Alex tells him. "I mean, I hate being away from you, but… well, it's nice when my parents aren't together, you know?"
Matthew thinks about the other thing that Alex's mother had said, but decides against mentioning it. "Things are pretty bad with them, huh?"
Alex groans. "Of course. It never ends with them. Dad drinks, Mom nags, Dad smokes, Mom nags."
Matthew nods sympathetically. "If they split up again, do you think she'd go back to Wisconsin?"
Alex bites her lip in thought. "I don't think so. I don't think she would do that to me and Justin. We're older now, and… well, the only reason she took off last time was because she was so pissed." She pauses. "That place had no memory of my dad and that's why she wanted to go, but now… I mean, he's been there. He knows everyone now." She glances at Matthew. "I think all of that was supposed to happen though. When we moved back it just brought us all closer together."
"Back when we were twelve," Matthew nostalgically comments. "You came back after being gone for however long, and suddenly I thought you were the prettiest girl I had ever seen." He grins at her.
"What about now?" she asks, pretending to look offended.
"Well, now you're the hottest girl I've ever seen," Matthew tells her, a wicked smile forming on his face.
Alex lightly smacks his arm, a grin on her face despite the guilt she feels upon hearing the retelling of their relationship's beginnings. She has been trying to ignore the fact that she's been yearning for Jimmy. It was hard leaving without saying goodbye, and because it's been on her mind so much, she's beginning to feel like an awful, awful person.
Matthew places his arm around her and she begins to feel more ashamed of herself. The thing is, she hasn't lost feelings for Matthew. She loves him immensely. He's always been there for her; he has become a safe haven for her when she needs to escape her parents' incessant bickering. Despite this, what she has felt with Jimmy is unlike anything she's experienced before. It was becoming an ongoing struggle in her mind—comfort versus passion.
"You're quiet now," Matthew notices as he lightly rubs her arm.
"I'm just enjoying your company," Alex assures him. "I missed it."
"And I missed yours," Matthew tells her before giving her a soft kiss.