Jason could almost remember it clear as yesterday; the day his father had first informed the family of wanting to start doing Family Game Night again. It was about 3 years ago, and Jason was at home, watching his then infant daughter while Anna was at work. Jason had the day off, and was flipping through channels on the TV when the phone rang, and he answered, only to hear his fathers voice on the end of the line.
"Jason?" he asked calmly, and the hair stood up on the back of Jasons neck as he slid into an upright position on the couch. "Dad?" he calmly asked, trying not to freak out, "Hi...what...what's going on?" "Jason, I, uh...I've been calling everyone and asking about how they're feeling about starting doing Family Game Night again. You were the last one I had to call, so I was just...it's nice to hear your voice, Jason," Harold said, trailing off, "Are you doing okay?" "I'm doing okay, yeah," Jason said, "Yeah, I'm just watching the kid while Anna's at work. Are...you okay?" "I'm doing alright, sure. Look, Jason, I'm ready to move on if you are," Harold said, "Why don't you stop by the toy store and pick up a game and drop on by and we can all play something this coming week, alright? It'll be nice to see you again. It's been too long." "...that...sounds...just great, dad, yeah, I'll do that," Jason said, before they said their goodbyes and hung up. Little did Jason know at that time that he would be so grateful for the time he did get to spend with his father after that, because he'd be dead soon. Now, after Harolds death, Jason was standing in his apartment, staring at a box on the table that he'd wrapped himself, picked it up and headed out the door to Family Game Night. *** "So, you're saying werewolves deserve their own stores?" Carl asked, chewing on some nuts while sitting at the island, watching Ashley at the sink as she cleaned an orange and started to peel it. "Well, at least a fuckin clothing exchange or something, right? I mean, it's hard enough to be a werewolf without ruining your entire goddamn wardrobe, why not cut them some slack? So you give em like a werewolf clothing exchange where they can buy cheap shit they don't care about ruining when they transform and then buy cheap new clothes in case they do ruin their clothes," Ashley said, placing the orange on a cutting board and slicing into it. "You know, I'd imagine most werewolves just get naked when they're about to transform," Anna said, opening the fridge and taking out a bottle of water. "Sure, there's preparations I'm sure, but it's gotta be kind of like a period, you know? Sometimes it just shows up out of the blue, you forget it's coming," Ashley said, "I've forgotten my cycle more times than I'd like to remember." "I would imagine of all the monster syndromes to be endowed with, lycanthropy has gotta be the worst," Carl said, "I mean, vampires are pretty easy. You just try not to go in the sun too much, you slip out at night and drink some blood when you have to, it's pretty easy to conceal, especially since they look like people, but shit, a whole period of time where you just transform into a wolf? That's not something you're keeping from your wife, I'm tellin you that right now." "If I was a werewolf, I would kill the people I hated when I transformed, and then nobody would know it was me that killed them," said Anna, "Like there's this cashier at the Whole Foods near our house, he's this skinny little redheaded fuckboy who keeps dinging my car with the cart when he's taking stuff out for me, oh my god, I'm ready to transform into a werewolf right now and slit his throat." "That was the most white person problem I think I've ever heard," Carl said, the three of them laughing, "Waaah, this teenage boy at the Whole Foods nicked my Mazda!" "Don't you kids ever talk about anything important?" Betty asked, coming into the kitchen. "Where in the world did you get that idea, mom?" Ashley asked as Betty took some orange from the cutting board. "Well, since it's your birthday," Betty said, placing her hand on Carls shoulder, "You get to pick which game you'd like to play this week." "Same as every year, Guess Who," Carl said. Just then there was a knock at the door, and, expecting Jason, Betty went to answer it. As she pulled the door open, there stood a man who appeared in his late 50s, somewhat balding, with a bushy mustache. He had bags on the porch next to him and opened his arms for a warm embrace. "...Ernie?" Betty asked. "Guess who!" he shouted. *** Jason was sitting in his car down the street, staring at the package in his lap, when he noticed a taxi pull up to the Fuller house. He opened the car door and got out, heading up to the house as he watched the man standing on the porch push his way inside the house, and a strange feeling came over Jason as he swallowed uneasily. "Uncle Ernie?" he asked himself. Indeed, it was Uncle Ernie, Harolds younger brother. As Ernie set his bags down in the hallway, he made his way into the kitchen and gave Ashley and Anna hugs, and then Betty got a hug. Ernie then stopped when their eyes came to meet Carl. He slid his hands into his pockets and smirked. "Well, look at you," he said, "You're all grown up now." "What're you doing here?" Betty asked. "My brother dies, I'm worried about his wife, his kids, I just wanted to come to town and see if you guys were holding up okay. What's everyone doing here? I actually only expected to find Carl and Bets at best," Ernie said. Just then Jason came into the kitchen, putting the package down on the kitchen counter. "Uncle Ernie," he said, making Ernie turn and face him. Ernie grinned and grabbed Jason, giving him a bear hug, as Jason continued, "What're you doing here?" "I was just explaining to your mother and everyone else that I just wanted to check in on you guys," Ernie repeated, "I know it's sudden, I'm sorry for not calling or some shit beforehand, but man, Harolds death hit me really hard and after the funeral I knew I just needed to see you guys. Betty, you're like the last connection I've got to my brother, you know?" "I understand," Betty said, "Well, we were about to sit down and play a game if you want to join us." "Shit yeah, that sounds like a nice way to catch up," Ernie said, following Betty and Anna into the living room, leaving the three siblings alone in the kitchen, all shaking their heads in disbelief at this happening. "I didn't know he was out of prison," Ashley said. "You know he's not going to be any better than he used to be," Carl said. "That's not fair, people change, right? I mean look at me, I'm changing, or trying to," Jason said. "Oh, is that what you're calling what you're doing?" Ashley asked, picking at her teeth as she and Carl exited, laughing. Jason grimaced and glanced back at the package on the counter, then followed them into the living room. The siblings took their seats on the couch, while Anna and Betty sat this one out. Seeing as Guess Who is only a two person game, and it was Carls birthday, it would be them facing against Ernie. Ernie sat on a small footstool across the coffee table from them, wringing his hands nervously, grinning. "God, it's great to be here," he said, "I feel like I haven't seen you kids in years." "You haven't seen us kids in years," Ashley said. "What're you all up to?" Ernie asked. "Well," Jason started, while Carl set up the game, "I took some time off after dad died, I went to Africa. I just needed to really look at myself and what I was doing with my life. The pregnant broad over there's Anna, she's my ex wife and our unborn child." "You got any other kids?" Ernie asked. "Yeah, we have a daughter named Belle," Anna said, and Ernie smiled. "That's real great, man, that's fantastic. Family is the most important thing in the world," Ernie said, then looking at Ashley, "What about you, sweetheart?" "Advertising, graphic design. Doing okay right now. Life's pretty boring otherwise," she said matter of factly. Ernie nodded and then looked across the table at Carl. "I can guess what you've been doing," he said, smirking. "You have no idea what I've been doing," Carl responded without looking up. "No need for attitude, I'm just pointing out the obvious," Ernie continued, "Ya know, my brother was a pretty feminine kid up to like, high school, so I'm not too shocked is all. You know, the world's becoming a more accepting place overall, but there's still some people that-" "Can we just play," Carl said flatly, starting the game. "Ya know," Anna said, scooping some ice cream from her bowl, "Guess Who had some flack in more recent years. That's probably why I don't see it in stores much these days." "Flack?" Ernie asked, taking his turn, "For what?" "Well, for one, it's got a 95% white male population for its characters," Anna went on, "There was only 5 female cards on the board for the longest time, and in fact, in the original, there was only one non white character, Annie, who was later redrawn as a white woman. Obviously the african american community, and women overall, were not very happy about this whitewashing." "Black people always need something to be mad about," Ernie said, scratching his beard, "It's how they get things done. They pick a cause, they fight for said cause and then they enact change, even when there's nothing really wrong with the thing they're attacking. Everyone needs a villain, ya know? So the people that're the so called 'minority' are always attacking those above them, because they perceive them as the villain, purely for having worked hard or simply having a different skin color." A quiet filled the air. Both Ashley and Jason were staring at one another in quiet disbelief. "I need...to...pee," Jason said, standing up and heading for the stairs, Ashley right behind him as Ernie turned and looked at her. "Where're you going?" he asked her, as she stopped, one hand on the banister, one foot on a step. "I...too...need to pee," Ashley said. "...you guys go to the bathroom together?" Ernie asked. Jason and Ashley glanced at one another and then back at Ernie. "I...can't go to the bathroom alone," Jason said, "Enormous fear of being alone. In fact, sometimes it's so crippling that instead of staying home and peeing, I'll often go out and go to a public restroom just so I don't feel too scared." And with that, the two of them headed upstairs as Ernie turned back towards the game, scoffing. "Strange kids you got, Bets." "You're tellin' me," Betty replied. Jason and Ashley got into the bathroom and locked the door. Jason leaned against it, exhaling, as Ashley sat down on the side of the tub, rubbing her forehead with her palms. After a few moments of this destressing, they finally looked at one another in awe. "What an asshole," they said in unison. "I mean, christ, now I know what I must've been like," Jason said. "No, trust me, you were never like that," Ashley said, "We can't allow him to stay here. He's toxic. He's a racist, and he's obviously uncomfortable around Carl." "Well what do we do? Mom needs help. Dad happens to be dead, remember?" Jason asked, and Ashley nodded. "Well, we could start splitting our time with mom, come over now and then to help her with things, make sure she's not alone. If that doesn't work well, we could hire someone. Like a...like a live in maid or something," Ashley said. "I'm not hiring some strange man to live with our mother," Jason said, "You don't know where that may lead." "I'm not talking about hiring a fuckin hunky cabana boy here, Jason!" Ashley said. Meanwhile downstairs, Ernie and Carl were in the middle of the game. Ernie was massaging his beard as Carl waited for him to make his move. Carl was looking at their cell phone, scrolling through some social media, all the while unaware that Ernie was taking a long time because they were staring at Carl, rather taken aback by their outward feminine appearance, and unsure of how to broach the subject. "Is that glitter on your nails?" Anna asked, making Carl look up from their phone. "Yeah, it's a clearcoat with glitter that goes over your color," Carl said, turning their hand over and letting Anna admire it. Anna got up and came to the couch, sitting beside them and taking their hand in her own, looking at it. "That's really cute," Anna said, "Where did you get that?" "I have a ton of it if you want your own bottle," Carl said, chuckling, "You can totally have one." "That'd be awesome. I've been trying to do something new with my nails and nothing's stuck," Anna said. "So Anna," Ernie said, interrupting and taking his turn finally, "Uh...you're not with Jason anymore?" "No, we split a while ago," she said, "It was a somewhat mutual decision." "Must've been quite a blow to lose his lady and his father all at once," Ernie said as Carl started to take their turn. "Well, Jason and I were having problems long before Harold died, so, it wasn't sudden or something," Anna said, "Anyway, we've moved past things obviously. He's doing his own thing, and I'm with Ashley and we're raising Belle just fine as friends and-" "Wait, what? You're...you're with Ash?" Ernie asked, starting to laugh, slapping his knee," Christ! I don't come to visit for a few years and Jason's a goddamned hippy, Ashley's eating rug and this one," they said, pointing at Carl, "Whoo, let's not even touch that one." Carl blushed and looked at the lap, feeling Anna stroke their hair. "It's been more than a few years," Betty said, "Just to be accurate, and I'd imagine it's rather hard to visit from prison." "Yeah, well, nobody came out to see me. I mean, even my own brother for chrissake wouldn't come see me! Jason did, but that's only 'cause he's a good kid. He doesn't abandon family just because we have political or ideological differences. Jason's a stand up guy." "Guess Who," Carl said, finishing their turn and turning their board around to show a character who looked exactly like Ernie, "Big surprise, it's an asshole." With that they stood up and headed up the stairs, just as Ashley and Jason were coming back down. "What's his problem?" Ernie asked, making everyone groan subtly before he turned to Betty, "Bets, there a guest bedroom I can throw my shit in?" "Yeah, I'll take you up there," she said. Ernie grabbed his bags and followed her up the stairs. Ashley, Jason and Anna all stood around in the living room, looking down at the character piece Carl had won with, and not saying a word. "He says you don't just abandon family because you have political or ideological differences, but I think that's just the excuse people like that use because they know they'd be utterly alone otherwise. They guilt trip people into not leaving them because they know people would in a heartbeat," Anna said, "What a disgusting person. What did he do, exactly, to end up in prison? And why the hell would you visit him? You've never really talked about him much." "That's another story for another night," Ashley said, pulling her jacket on, "Come on, let's get out of here. This place has a bad vibe now." "Carl was going to lend me some nail polish," Anna said. "I'll come pick it up from them tomorrow or something, I just wanna go," Ashley said. As she and Anna approached the front door, she turned and looked back at Jason, who was standing on the stairs, looking at the photos on the wall leading up to the second floor, cleared her throat and asked, "You leaving?" "Nah, I have something to do," Jason said. She nodded and shut the door behind herself. Jason went to the kitchen, grabbed the package off the counter and headed upstairs. As they reached the hallway, they found themselves face to face with Ernie coming out of the bathroom. "Hey kiddo," Ernie said, "Man...what happened to this family?" Jason shrugged and responded, "I guess we grew up. You don't stop growing when you reach eighteen years old, you know, you're supposed to always be growing and changing. Just because society says you're an adult doesn't mean you are. Hell, science says the brain hasn't even matured until you're well into your 20s, so for society to claim you're an adult when you're 18 is laughable, because you're so obviously not." "Let me ask you somethin," Ernie said, "You're not going soft on me too are you? I mean you got a sister sleepin with your exwife and you got a brother who-" "I don't have a brother anymore," Jason said, "And it's late and I'm too tired to discuss anything right now. I just have something to give to Carl and then I'm going home. If you wanna call me tomorrow and talk more, feel free." Ernie smiled and smacked Jasons shoulder, nodding, before heading off towards the guest room. Jason knocked on Carls door, and after a few seconds, just entered anyway. They found Carl sitting on their bed, looking at a photo album. Jason took a seat next to them and looked at the album as well. The photos were of Harold and Betty, and the kids, mostly vacation photos. "I took dad for granted," Carl said, "He's never going to be proud of me because he can't be proud of me. He's gone now, and no fucking game night is ever going to bring him back. So what if we 'honor his memory' or some shit. He's dead." "Tonight...wasn't great, but I do have something for you," Jason said, handing them the package. Carl took it reluctantly and started to unwrap it. Inside was a Cribbage board. They looked at it and then looked at Jason. "What do I look like, a 75 year old in a nursing home?" Carl asked, making Jason laugh. "No, uh...when I graduated college, dad gave this to me. He said his father gave it to him. He...he says it was the first real game he ever played, and he played it with his own grandfather, and then his father, and he taught me to play. He told me that Cribbage holds a special place among American submariners, serving as an "official" pastime. Apparently, the wardroom of the oldest active submarine in the United States Pacific Fleet carries the personal cribbage board of the World War 2 submarine commander and Medal Of Honor recipient, Rear Admiral Dick O'Kane on board, and that upon the boat's decommissioning the board is transferred to the next oldest boat. He says it's what taught him to love games. He called it the...the best thing his father ever gave him. He says it meant the world to him, and he wanted it to end up with someone he really loved and trusted." "Why're you giving this to me?" Carl asked, looking up from the Cribbage to Jason. "Because...because I think it's more important right now that you have something of Dads. He was proud of you. He saw the progress you made. I think he would want you to have this. Happy Birthday, Carl," Jason said, leaning forward and hugging them. "Thanks, Jason," they replied, tears in their eyes, "Thank you so much." *** Jason was standing in the driveway, hands in their pocket. It was soon after college graduation, and Harold was having a garage sale. Jason strolled up and down the driveway among the other people shopping and came upon an item. "Dad?" he asked, making Harold come over to him, "What's with this?" "Eh, it's junk, I mean, it was my grandfathers and my dads but, I don't really care about it all that much and honestly, it's not really a board game, so, I figured why not let it go," Harold said. "What if I buy it?" Jason asked, and Harold shrugged. "Don't think being family nets you any sort of discount," Harold said, and Jason smirked as he opened his wallet and gave his dad a five dollar bill. Jason held onto the Cribbage board for years afterwards, unsure of why he purchased it and what it really meant to him, until he decided to give it to Carl. He figured they could use it much more than he could. So what if he lied about its origins, or its importance to their father? All that mattered was he was able to make his sibling feel better, and that was the best birthday gift of all.
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Family Game Night follows the Fuller family, a (possibly too) tight knit family who meet every Thursday night to play board games...and air their dirty laundry. Archives
March 2019
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