Missed Me, Missed Me, Now You Gotta Kiss Me

The Call

So the day finally came to where I had to tell my parents about Liam and I—not that we slept together, but that we were together; God, I wasn’t crazy enough to tell my parents that their daughter wasn’t as perfect as they thought.

  My mom simply nodded, rubbing her swollen stomach. It drove me nuts when she would just pat her stomach like the babies could actually feel it. Besides, I wasn’t all that sure they would appreciate being pet like kittens.

  “I figured as much,” she said.

  My dad looked like he had just been hit by a train. He stared off with wide eyes off into space. I think he was so relieved that David and I were over, he thought I would wait a long ‘till I got another boyfriend. In a second or so, he voiced as much.

  “Liam’s not just another boyfriend, Dad,” I said. I smiled dreamily at nothing in particular. “I love him.”

  My dad just stared at me in an astonished sort of way.

  “Honey,” my mom said. “Do we need to have a talk?”

  “About what?” I asked her.

  She shifted uncomfortably, not meeting my gaze.

  I stared back at her. “Mom, no!” We had had the sex talk before when I was fourteen and it had been very uncomfortable. I remember asking my dad at fifteen if I could wear makeup, and how that conversation somehow turned into a talk about breast implants and masturbation. I shuddered to think of what they would come up with now.

  “Well, honey, you’ve never really been in love before,” my mom said tentatively. “It’s different than having a normal boyfriend.”

  I really appreciated the fact that she didn’t tell me I was too young to know what love was. Quite honestly, I was a bit surprised by it. “I’m starting to figure that out,” I said.

  “I don’t have anything against Liam, Piper, you know that,” my dad finally said. “But all that boy wants to do with his life is live here.”

  “Want’s wrong with that?” I asked, getting a little defensive.

  “Aren’t you going to college in Arizona?” he asked.

  I sighed. “I don’t know. I don’t know what I wanna do with my life yet. I’ll figure it out.”

  “I’m just saying. There’s more to life than horses and—”

  “Oh for Pete’s sake, hun,” my mom said, cutting off whatever it was my dad was saying. “No one’s saying she’s gonna go off and get married,” she scolded.

  “Are you going to marry him?” was my dad’s question, but two pair of eyes watched me anxiously for the answer.

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. Not tomorrow or anything.” How did I explain to them how eager I was to say ‘yes’ whenever Liam asked me? If he asked tomorrow, I would say yes. So was my answer a lie?

  They stared at me, looking like they just got the wind knocked out of them.

  I was suddenly glad I kept my answer so simple. “Well, you know…I just wanted you guys to know.” I shrugged helplessly, desperately wanting this conversation to be left at that.

  Finally, Mom cleared her throat. “Well…..Your father and I are very happy for you.” She grasped my dad’s hand as he opened his mouth to say something. “You’re almost an adult, now, so we trust you in making your own decisions. However, it is my duty as a mother to tell you to be careful.” She grinned. “But I don’t think that boy will ever break your heart.”
  I was shocked, to say the least. Thank the heavens for hormones! To be fair to my mom, she had always adored Liam. I just had to keep working on my dad; who also loved Liam, but…Dad would hate any guy I was with. That was his duty as a father.