The grown-ups called it "enthusiasm." My mom said he was lonely. My dad said he'd grow out of it.
Every family has one. Ours just happened to be named Danny. my cousin the creep
And that's the problem, isn't it? We do know how Danny is. We've always known. But knowing doesn't fix anything if no one says this isn't okay . The grown-ups called it "enthusiasm
Because the creep in the family doesn't just make gatherings uncomfortable. He makes them unsafe. And it's not the job of the cousins to keep smiling through it. Would you like a shorter version (e.g., for social media), or one written from a more humorous or more serious angle? Ours just happened to be named Danny
I told my mom the next day. She sighed. "You know how Danny is."
So I'm saying it now. Danny isn't just awkward or lonely or socially clueless. He's a creep. And the rest of the family pretending otherwise doesn't protect me—it protects him.