Mother ➳ Ally Brooke

twelve

They were all gawking at my Mom and her friends. I didn't want to alert them that I was there because I wanted to hear what they were saying. I sat down on a bench away from their field of vision, but close enough to hear every single word they'd say.

"You see that one?" The blonde one, aka Hayne, said. The other guys nodded and he continued, "She gotta fat ass. You think she's got kids?"
One of Ronnie's other friends smirked, "Definetely. She got them hips. What do they call them? Child bearing or something? I dunno but I wanna see what else she can bear." He laughed.

Ronnie rolled his eyes and pulled his phone out to hear the ringtone go off. He pulled the phone up to his ear and walked away from his friends to talk on it.

I kept listening to his friend's conversations, feeling extremely disgusted at how ignorant and vulgar they sounded. Hayne put his arm on his friend to stop and point. "The short one is going over there. You dare me to go over and try to get it in with her?"

Short one? Shit. That's my Mom.

"Hell yeah. I got your back, man." His friend replied giving him a high five. They started walking and I kept contemplating if I should follow them or not.

Should I go? What if they hurt her? I mean, I'm not much bigger than her but I can help, right? I need to protect her.

I got up from the bench to try to find them as they made their way into JC Penny's. I lost them within the crowds and I started to panic. What if I don't find them in time?

I walked in a circle past the men's department then back to the bed & bathroom department which is where I saw Hayne's blonde hair and his friend's red snapback.

I quickly crept behind them to see the guys watching my Mom from a safe distance at first. My Mom was looking at blankets, which I'm guessing she needs because she's recently been complaining about how cold the bus gets at night. Short people like us have issues with the cold.

They were just standing there and staring for a while until Hayne started moving towards her. I needed to get close to Mom before they did, but when I tried to get to the other side of her, I noticed that they blocked it off with a couple of tall shelves.

I could hear them from the other side once he got close enough to my Mom to speak, "Hey there." The familiar voice said to the small Latina.
Her peppy voice for fans was turned on, "Hi." She paused for a second then spoke up again, "Am I in the way? I can move now. I just needed to grab this."
Hayne stopped her, "No. No. I'm okay. I just thought I'd come by and say hi, and that you're really beautiful." Oh gross. He's trying to hit on my Mom.
Mom took it as a complement, "Aw, well thank you."
"Can I ask what your name is?" Hayne asked sounding more innocent than he was only moments ago when he was swooning after everyone else.
"Ally Brooke. And you are?" She hesitated a little when she answered but kept her confidence.
"I'm Hayne, and this is my friend Isaiah." The blonde boy said.
"Nice to meet both of you. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to find my friends and daughter." Mom said in the most polite way. At least she mentioned me. I guess that's a good start.
"Woah, woah, woah. Um this is weird and all." He stopped her and continued to talk, "I was just wondering if you'd wanna go out for coffee or something."
Mom laughed, "That's funny. You know I'm old enough to be your Mother, right?"
"That's why we came here. We like older women." His words were crooked and gave me a bad vibe.
You could hear in her voice that my Mom felt it too, "Oh, well. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I'm happily married."
"Where's your husband?" The other boy asked with a deep vocal range.
"At home." She replied a little more coldly than before.
"Exactly. He doesn't have to know, Ally."

I had no way of getting over to the other side in time if they were going to do something.

I pulled out my phone to start calling Aunt Lauren. I know she will scare the shit out of anyone who gets near us, but I kept my attention to my Mom.

"I'm sorry but I'm really not interested." I could hear her try to push past the guys but they stopped and made her go back. "I really have to go." She said to them.
"No you don't." Hayne told her.
She sounded more terrified now. "Please leave me alone. I really don't-"
"Don't what? You've been with a old guy for too long. Let us show you how a real man feels." Isaiah spoke up.

I had no choice. I started climbing the tall shelf to stand on top and brace myself before I jumped down beside my Mom like Spider-Man. Thank God I'm wearing booty shorts and Converse because if I was wearing a skirt and heels, I'd be hauling ass to get to the other side.

"Get the fuck away from her." I stated with my hands on my hips.
Isaiah looked shocked and pulled on his friend's arm, "Let's get out of here, man."
They both started to walk away in defeat but not before Hayne eyed me down and winked like the fuck boy he is.

I turned to see my Mom shaking violently. I pulled her into a hug and let her set her head on my shoulder. I could feel her shudder in my arms. I rubbed circles into her back with my hand to soothe her.
"Thank you, Mija." She breathed out.
I nodded and squeezed her tightly before letting go, "Anytime, mama."

I grabbed Mom's hand and held it while we walked back towards the front of JCP. When we did, the girls were waiting out front in distress. When Lauren saw me, she pulled me in her arms and gave me a huge hug. "Why the hell didn't you answer me? You called and all I heard was you tell someone to leave you alone."
"I was telling someone to leave Mom alone." I admitted keeping my grip on her.

I may have a rough time with her but I still love her and want to protect her like she does for me.