Chapter 62: Family Ties and First Impressions, Part Three

Saturday, October 1st, 2005

Josh and Katie sat at the kitchen table, quietly eating their simple meal of ramen, the warmth of the broth doing little to ease the weight lingering from dinner. The knock at the door broke the silence, and Josh exhaled, setting down his chopsticks. He figured it was Larry or maybe his mother, Dorothy. As he made his way to the door, he prepared himself for a familiar face—but when he opened it, he was met with the unexpected sight of Joel, William, and Beth standing on the porch.

Josh’s expression hardened instantly, a flicker of anger tightening his jaw. “What do you want?”

Joel, having been thoroughly chastised by Dorothy and Larry, had spent the last hour reflecting with Beth and William on how they had treated Josh and Katie. Their initial reaction had been clouded by their biases—they had seen only the age gap, unable to look beyond it. But after hearing other perspectives, the weight of their mistake had settled heavily on them.

Joel cleared his throat. “Can we talk?”

Josh hesitated. Every instinct told him to shut the door in their faces. But what if this was an honest attempt at reconciliation? Or were they just here to smooth things over to please their mother?

Against his better judgment, he exhaled sharply and stepped aside. “Fine.”

He motioned for them to enter and led them into the living room. As they walked in, Katie’s voice came from the kitchen. “Who was at the door?”

“Joel, William, and Beth,” Josh replied, his voice betraying his frustration.

Katie appeared in the doorway, her gaze sweeping over them. Josh motioned toward the couch, silently inviting his siblings to sit, while he lowered himself into Leonard’s old recliner. Once everyone was settled, he spoke.

“Before we start, does anyone want something to drink? Coffee, iced tea, water?”

There was a collective murmur for coffee. Josh turned to Katie. “Would you mind taking care of that?”

Katie nodded. “I know where everything is.”

Josh’s expression softened slightly. “Thanks, beautiful.”

As Katie disappeared into the kitchen, Josh turned his attention back to his brothers and Beth. The room was thick with tension. He studied them, waiting.

Joel’s posture was tense, his shoulders hunched, fingers tapping restlessly against his knee. He looked like a man struggling with the weight of his own guilt. William, though clearly uncomfortable, managed to meet Josh’s gaze. Beth sat rigidly, her hands clasped in her lap, her expression unreadable.

The silence stretched, heavy and expectant. Josh leaned back, arms crossed. He had to remind himself that, despite their certainty, they were still in their twenties. They didn’t have the years of experience he did. Outwardly, he looked nineteen, but mentally, he had seventy-four years of life behind him. Even Katie, at thirty-four, had far more perspective than any of them. That realization made their initial reaction feel almost predictable.

William was the first to break the silence. He exhaled and unfolded his arms. “Look, Josh, I’m sorry for how I reacted to Katie’s age. We found out, and we just locked onto that detail without thinking about how we were treating you both.”

His gaze briefly dropped before meeting Josh’s again. “I was worried—worried that you were making a mistake, that Katie was caught up in something she didn’t fully understand. But then I started thinking about who you are. You’ve always been responsible—the one who took care of things. You cooked our meals, helped Mom with the cleaning, helped us with our homework. Then you excelled in school, graduated early, went to college before I even knew what I wanted to do. Then you moved into Mr. Johnson’s house, kept pushing forward. You always seemed ahead of us, like you had life figured out. So when we found out you were dating a fifteen-year-old, it just ... it didn’t make sense.”

William sighed, rubbing his hands together. “I don’t know how else to put it, but it caught me off guard. I’ve looked up to you, Josh. You’ve always been ahead of the curve—more responsible, more driven. Seeing you with someone so much younger didn’t fit the image I had of you, and I reacted without thinking it through.”

Joel, sensing William’s struggle, stepped in. “Look, Josh, as much as I hate to admit it, I looked up to you too. I never stuck with Aikido—I couldn’t get into all that balance and flow stuff—but you? Everything you do, you commit to one hundred and ten percent. So when you finally bring a girl around and immediately tell us you’re getting married, it felt like you were moving full speed ahead again, like you weren’t seeing the big picture. Then we find out she’s only fifteen, and we panicked. We saw trouble.”

As Joel finished, Katie returned with a tray carrying a coffee pot, mugs, and sugar and cream. She placed it on the coffee table and handed Josh a prepared mug, made just the way he liked it. He took it with a quiet “Thanks, beautiful,” before Katie picked up her own and perched herself on the arm of the recliner beside him.

Joel, William, and Beth fixed their coffees in silence. Then, after a pause, Beth looked at Katie, her expression shifting to something softer, almost hesitant. “Thank you for the coffee. And ... I owe you an apology.”

She stirred her drink, not quite meeting Katie’s eyes. “I was in a relationship back in high school. I was a freshman, and he was a senior. He got what he wanted from me, then dumped me. Spread rumors. I ended up with a reputation I didn’t deserve, and it followed me for a long time. So when I heard you were fifteen and marrying Josh, all I could think about was how easy it is for someone older to take advantage. Josh, I worried you were doing that, and I judged you for it. But before we found out your age, you two seemed like two people madly in love, like you had been together for years. After seeing how much you mean to each other, I know I was wrong.”

William and Joel exchanged glances before turning to Katie. “We were wrong too. We were worried, but we should have handled it differently. We’re sorry.”

Josh took a slow sip of his coffee, giving himself a moment to process their words. A part of him wanted to believe them, to accept their apologies and move forward. But another part still clung to the sting of their accusations. Were they truly seeing things differently now, or were they just trying to patch things up for the sake of keeping the family together? He exhaled, setting his cup down carefully.

“I appreciate you three coming over and apologizing. That takes a lot of maturity. And I’ll admit—I lost my temper. I felt attacked by my own family, like you weren’t even giving me a chance to explain. That frustration got the better of me, and for that, I’m sorry.”

His gaze was steady. “That said, Katie and I aren’t changing our plans. We’ve already gotten her parents’ approval, and we’re looking at the long run. This isn’t some impulsive decision—we know what we’re doing.”

A silence followed, but this time, it wasn’t as heavy. Joel let out a slow breath, his shoulders relaxing. William leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. Even Beth, who had seemed rigid before, took a slow sip of her coffee, her gaze softer than before. The tension hadn’t fully dissipated, but something had shifted. Maybe, just maybe, they could start rebuilding from here.

Joel leaned back in his chair, eyeing Josh. “Well, after we finish these coffees, you wanna head back over to Mom’s? Might as well finish getting to know Katie.”

He shot a look at William and smirked. “And check on Amanda.”

William, who had just taken a sip of coffee, nearly choked, coughing as he hastily set his mug down to avoid spilling. His eyes widened in panic as realization hit. “Shit, I left Amanda alone with Mom!” He rubbed the back of his neck, his mind racing through all the embarrassing childhood stories Dorothy was probably unloading on her. “Yeah, let’s get back. No telling what Mom and Larry are telling her.”

Joel chuckled. “That’s on you, man. You’re the dumbass who left her over there. Larry’s probably got her cornered, talking her ear off. No telling what kind of dirt she’s getting on you.”

Josh smirked and turned to Katie, who was still perched on the arm of his recliner, sipping her coffee. “What do you say, beautiful? Wanna head back over?”

Katie looked at him, a soft smile playing on her lips, and nodded. “Yeah, let’s go.”

With that, the group made their way across the street to Dorothy’s house. The living room was filled with the low hum of conversation, but as soon as they walked in, Amanda shot William an amused look.

“So nice of you to remember me,” she teased.

William sighed, running a hand down his face. “Yeah ... sorry about that.”

Amanda smirked and stood up, walking over to him. “It’s fine. Gave me time to get all sorts of dirt on you from your mom and uncle.”

William groaned dramatically, casting a glare at Dorothy and Larry. “Damn you both.”

Larry just laughed, taking a swig of his beer. “What? Just educating the girl on who she’s really dating.”

Dorothy winked. “I only told her the good stories.”

William muttered something under his breath as Amanda kissed his cheek, clearly enjoying his discomfort.

Once everyone settled back into the living room, the limited seating forced some of the ladies to sit on their partners’ laps. Katie ended up nestled in Josh’s lap, his arm resting comfortably around her waist.

Amanda turned to Katie, curiosity in her eyes. “So, what’s the plan? I mean, getting married at sixteen while still in school—how’s that gonna work?”

Katie met her gaze without hesitation. “I’ll be switching to homeschooling. After the wedding, I’ll move in with Josh, and we’ll handle everything from there.”

Josh nodded in agreement. “I’ve already spoken to my lawyers. We’ve got the legal side of things sorted. Katie will finish school on her own schedule, and we’ll make sure everything is taken care of.”

Beth, who had been quiet for a while, spoke up. “Speaking of plans, we just found out—we’re having a girl.”

The room filled with excitement as congratulations were passed around. Though everyone had already known Beth was pregnant, the news of the baby’s sex added fresh excitement. Dorothy clapped her hands together, beaming. “A granddaughter! Oh, Beth, that’s wonderful.”

Joel grinned and pulled Beth close. “Yeah, we’re pretty excited. Now we just gotta start baby-proofing everything.”

As laughter and lighthearted chatter filled the room, the weight of earlier tensions gradually lifted. The warmth of shared memories and the ease of casual conversation created a sense of normalcy, as if the family had found its rhythm again. William talked about work and how he was nearly finished remodeling his house. Plans were made for everyone to visit once it was done. Dorothy made sure to embarrass her kids at every opportunity.

The hours slipped away in easy conversation. Katie found herself relaxing more, enjoying the way the family bantered and shared memories. Amanda fit in effortlessly, her quick wit making it clear she wasn’t intimidated by the group’s teasing nature.

As the night drew to a close, goodbyes were exchanged, accompanied by warm hugs and tender “I love you’s.” The tension that had permeated earlier dissipated, replaced by a profound sense of unity.

Josh and Katie made their way back across the street to their house, shutting the door behind them with a tired but satisfied sigh. Josh rolled his shoulders, loosening the tension that had settled there throughout the night, while Katie kicked off her shoes with a quiet groan, stretching her toes against the cool floor. The weight of the evening finally lifted, leaving behind only a quiet sense of relief. Katie leaned against him, her head resting on his shoulder.

“That could’ve gone worse,” she murmured.

Josh chuckled, pressing a kiss to her temple. “Yeah, but at least it ended on a good note.”

They headed to the bedroom, peeling off their clothes and stepping into the shower together. As the warm water streamed down, washing away the tension of the evening, Josh let out a slow breath, his fingers tracing gentle circles on Katie’s back. He thought about how different this night could have gone—how easily things could have unraveled. But here, in this moment, with Katie close, he felt anchored. No matter what happened with his family, this was where he belonged. The warm water cascaded over them as they stood close, their foreheads touching.

“I know it was hard hearing everything they said earlier,” Josh admitted, brushing wet strands of hair from Katie’s face. “But I think they’re starting to get it.”

Katie sighed, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I hope so. I don’t want to be the reason you and your family drift apart.”