Morose ✔️

24

My life had changed drastically in more ways than one in the course of a few months. The first change was the worst, and the hardest to adjust to, but I was recovering from the shock and loss slowly as I adjusted to the next change. The days were spent mostly alone, studying and working on assignments, while I was never alone on the evenings and nights.

I hadn't spent a night alone in months. Helix slept over at my place most of the time, but when he worked late at the shop, or there'd been a party or gathering, I stayed in his room at the clubhouse, mostly already asleep when he climbed into bed next to me.

There was a knock on the door just as I shut my laptop off for the evening, and I jumped up, going to open it up right away. Jesse stood there with two large bags of groceries, and behind him, was Tish James, Helix's mother. She was beaming at me and as soon as Jesse had gone into the kitchen to start putting the groceries away, she held her arms up and hugged me tightly. "I'm so happy to finally meet you!" she exclaimed, holding on a little tighter than probably necessary, but I returned it.

"Me too," I replied, smiling practically from ear to ear.

"Helix didn't lie when he said you were beautiful, oh—" she pulled away and put me at arms length, still smiling widely as she took me in, "my God, gorgeous." She was about my height, which meant Helix must have gotten his height from his dad, and her hair was pretty, bleached blonde with dark roots and her smile— well, it was impossible for her to lie her way out of being Helix's mother.

She was dressed in a denim jacket, a pair of jeans and a flowery blouse which suited her perfectly, and I'd never met a boyfriend's mom I liked better instantly. She took a step back and picked up a few bags of her own and I let her in. She'd brought flowers and decorations, and she'd sent Jesse a list before he went shopping, and he met her at the bus station and brought her here using my car.

Everything was planned perfectly.

"I hope you like flowers, Olivia," Tish said as she unloaded the nets she had with her, "because I'm not taking them back with me." Her laugh was infectious, and I nodded.

"I love them," I replied, helping her set them down here and there to brighten up the space.

She then pulled out a pack of golden balloons, some string and tape, and we got to working on setting up the apartment for the tiny surprise party.

After about an hour we had so many balloons blown up and hung everywhere, some alone, and some tied together with strings like a garland, we had pizza dough rising on the kitchen counter, and Jesse had surprised both me and Tish by whipping up some delicious-looking cupcakes made out of carrot-cake batter, and cream cheese frosting that I stole some of to taste. If I'd known he could bake, I might have tried to get him out of the bro-zone long ago, but I felt a lot safer having a boyfriend who could cook real food instead.

There was still half an hour until Helix was coming. We planned to meet here for a quiet night of pizza and a movie, and I failed to mention that his mom and best friend would be there too. I just hoped he'd appreciate the surprise. I told my guests that I would get ready and let them handle the last minute preparations, while I went into my bedroom with a tiny anxiety attack.

My palms were clammy, my lungs hurt a bit, and I was so, so nervous and afraid something would go wrong, or that I'd done something wrong.

I tried my best to take deep breaths and remind myself that it was okay. There was no reason for why I'd think I was in the wrong whatsoever, but any rational thought just vanished any time I felt like that— including my ability to think logical. I wiped my hands on my thighs, before taking another very deep breath, and started to get ready.