I don't even have time to wallow in my weird feelings because as soon as I get to my car I get a call from Gayle saying something about mom and how I needed to get to the hospital. She was talking too fast for my brain to process and so deadly afraid that my mother was dead I race to the hospital.
"What's wrong?! What happened?!" I sprint into the room completely out of breath, only to have the wind knocked from me once more when I see my mom sat up, awake!
"Mom!" I don't care that I have a stitch in my side that burns as I rush forwards and throw myself into her arms. She laughs and holds me just as tightly as I'm holding her, "you're ok." I mumble into her shoulder before the day catches up to me and I just can't help but breakdown in her arms.
"Oh my sweet girl don't cry, I'm here. I'm here." She comforts me which oddly makes me cry more, I missed this, I missed her so much and I didn't know how much it'd truly been killing me till I was sat in her arms, getting comfort that I could never get anywhere else.
***
"I can't believe I missed so much." Mom mumbles when it's just the two of us, aunt Anna had brought her camera and we were curled up watching my graduation in her hospital bed. "I can't believe I missed your graduation, I've been waiting my whole life for this and god you look so beautiful but seeing you, on this tiny screen is just not what I'd always pictured." I wipe my moms eyes, "it's fine mom, when you get out of here we can recreate it." She smiles at me and kisses my head.
"Oh is that Peter? You guys look so cute together." She says making me roll my eyes, "Mom..." she laughs and clicks the next picture, "I don't know why you act like he's so horrid, you were the one madly in love with him during your adolescence."
"Was not." I mumble lamely as she smiles a stupid knowing smile at me. "Sure, but he's still such a lovely boy and I know that, if not romantically, he's someone you need in your life. The two of you used be so close, you don't see it but you need each other, you always have. You make each other better."
I don't say anything as I take her words in, he didn't need me, he was fine, I was fine. "Anyways, let's keep going through pictures." She says interrupting my thoughts, I settle in and comply the two of us going through all that she'd missed but every so often Peter would flash in my mind and I didn't know what it meant.
***
When I get to the hospital the next day in surprised to see Peter sat at my mothers bed side. "Peter?" He stands up his face flushing, "hi! I uh...I brought May and Anna, they just went down to the cafeteria." I nod and smile at his nerves as he sinks back into his seat.
"Peter and I were catching up seeing how I've not seen him in a few years. He's still absolutely delightful." I don't know why my mom was speaking as though he weren't sat right beside her or why she kept looking between us with a sly grin on her face.
"Uh, I'm just gonna give you guys a minute." Peter says rising from his seat in such a hurry once more. "Mom, what do you think you're doing?" I ask after his hasty exit. "What? I'm not doing anything." I so don't believe her phoney innocent smile right now.
"How you feeling?" I ask changing the subject, there'd just been too much Peter recently and I'd rather not have him take over my mind for the next hour. "I feel great, they said I can come home tomorrow." I beam at the thought, we hadn't told mom we bought a house yet and I couldn't wait to see her reaction, especially since she didn't have to work so hard anymore, not with Gayle and I picking up the slack.
"Myra?" I didn't release I'd got lost in my thoughts, "yeah mom?" She looks like she doesn't want to say what's on her mind. "You can ask me anything, provided it's not about Peter." She half smiles at my sentence before becoming serious again. "Have you..."
