The door bell rang and it did at the exact moment I was about to win. I muttered, reluctantly took off my headphones and put my computer into sleep mode, leaving my video game paused.
Christina was bringing her boyfriend, Matt, home for dinner that night. Dad declared we would all be fully present at the table and on our best behaviour.
Aside from guests and special occasions, we hardly ever ate together as a family. Usually, everyone appeared when food was ready, collected and disappeared into our rooms. Only Mom and Dad ate together.
I came downstairs to find Mom being kissed on her cheeks by a well dressed young man. Tall, sleek black hair and dressed in a navy blue suit. He stepped back, slipped an arm around Christina's waist and stretched out his hand to greet Dad.
I watched him and smiled to myself. I could see through Matt but would reserve my comment until after he was gone.
But I didn't wait that long.
After I shook hands with Matt and the cook announced that dinner was served, Dad and Mom headed towards the dining room. I lagged behind and that was when I saw Matt lean towards Christina and whisper something. Her eyes widened and she shook her head.
I frowned and watched them for a while. Matt grinned mischievously and reached behind the flowers on the side table to pick up Mom's silver box.
“No one ever notices. Trust me,” he whispered. “It's a prank I play all the time and return their stuff when they least expect it.”
Ah, so my instincts were right.
We had just sat at the dinner table and were about to eat when Mom got up abruptly. “One moment, please. Go on. Start eating.”
She hurried into the living room and the next moment she was calling for Dad and the housekeeper. “Where is my silver box?”
I stared pointedly at Matt who had gone pale then. So had Christina as she kicked him under the table.
“George!” Mom snapped and I almost choked. “You'll be sorry if you took my box.”
What? Me? What exactly had I done? So Matt, the culprit, was not under suspicion but I, the innocent person, was? Granted, I had played several pranks on Mom in the past but that was history. This was profiling and wrong. I sighed, pushed back my chair and walked up to Matt who looked at me with a frown.
“Let me have it,” I said through clenched teeth, holding out my hand. He stuttered and mumbled words I didn't understand, his gaze shifting to my sister. Christina looked like she wanted the floor to open and swallow the dining table.
Matt gently placed the silver box in my palm.
“George, please,” Christina pleaded with gentle eyes as I turned away.
I said nothing, walked up to Mom and gave her the box. “Here, Mom. I found it on the table in the hallway.”
“Oh,” she smiled apologetically. “I could have sworn I left it on the coffee table.”
Dinner was quiet that night. Christina broke up with Matt after it. I thought he deserved it (and my sister deserved better) because I had spent the night being treated like a criminal when I hadn't even done anything.
I hope you enjoyed reading this short piece. It's inspired by the Freewrite #dailyprompt phrase "not under suspicion”.
Thank you for visiting my blog.
Image by congerdesign from Pixabay
