Standing for Weirdo

Chapter 22

When I arrived at my place that night and closed the door, I stood for a moment in the foyer, trying to wrap my mind around it. My boyfriend. It didn’t sound quite right, because Trevor was way too important to fit with such a commonly used term, but still. I couldn’t find anything better on short notice, and I needed to start acknowledging our relationship.

I also needed to start breaking it to my parents.

I walked into the living room, where Mom was reading a novel and listening to soft music on the stereo. Dad wasn’t home yet, and I relished the chance to open up little by little. Taking a deep breath, I entered the room and sat down in a cushioned armchair.

“Hey, Mom,” I greeted her.

She immediately put down her novel, sat straight up and gave me a concerned look.

“Hi, sweetie. Is everything okay?”

Her reaction took me aback and I went into defensive mode. “Yeah, why wouldn’t it be?”

“You always head on straight to your room when you arrive before dinner.”

Note to self: try to expand your family conversation time.

“No, it’s cool. Today we finished practice a little early, because the first two Acts are already good to go.”

“Already? That’s wonderful, but…”—she checked her watch—“aren’t you a bit later than usual? If you finished early, that makes it extra late, too.”

“Yeah, I stayed behind talking with the guys,” I said, unrepentant at the white lie and gathering the needed courage to blurt the news out of the blue. “Trevor's a nice guy, after all.”

“Nice guy” didn’t quite translate into “and I think I might love him” but I had to start somewhere, right?

“Trevor Bennett? Are you two talking again?” Her eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“What’s wrong with it?” Defensive again. I was acting way too insecure with this whole issue.

“Nothing’s wrong, Alice. Actually, I’m glad you’re picking up whatever might remain of your friendship.”

Okay, that wasn’t what I expected.

“Really?” I stuttered.

“Why wouldn’t I be? I know we distanced ourselves from the Bennetts when they most needed our support, and I’m not proud of it,” she said, averting her eyes, “but he looked like a nice kid. I don’t know why you’ve avoided him all this time.”

“Mom. He’s got silver-streaked black hair, paints his nails black and is known to occasionally use eyeliner.”

She blinked, and if I hadn’t just burst her happy bubble—and my chances that my parents would accept my new boyfriend—I’d have found her expression comical.

“He… what?”

“Yeah, Mom. He used to be considered weird by the goth kids.”

“Goth… Those are the ones in black with all the skulls and chains, right?”

I nodded.

“Well, why are you talking to him, then?”

“I just told you; he’s nice.” Not the best time to proceed with my full confession.

“If you believe so… Oh my, he used to be such a kind boy,” she said, more for herself than for me, still in shock.

“He’s still kind.” I bit my lip and then pulled out a trump card. “Stella and Josh are over.”

“Why?” The change in topic helped her recover, except, it wasn’t exactly a change.

“Josh got possessive. The kind of possessive that grabs and shoves.”

My mom put her hand in front of her lips, as if trying to hold in the surprise and horror, and I dropped the bomb.

“Actually, it was Trevor who stepped in and protected her.”

“Did he? What happened?”

“Josh hit Trevor. Taking into account that he’s got a head and about thirty pounds on him, Trevor didn’t really stand a chance and he knew it from the get go. Still, he did the right thing and confronted Josh.”

I felt bad for using Stella's troubles and Trevor's bruises like this, but it worked. Mom seemed thoughtful and mollified. “You can’t judge from looks alone, I guess.”

“That’s what I did all this time, and I think I was so wrong, Mom.”

“I might have been wrong in my reaction, too.” She smiled at me, still unsure, but supportive. “If you say he’s nice, I’ll just have to trust your opinion. You’re the one who has talked to him, after all.”

I grinned. “Thanks.”

I don’t think she realized how much her words meant to me, but I bounded up the stairs with a huge weight off my shoulders.

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