New York City

It's a blur

Sarah, me, Matt and Frank. We'd grown so close that I was surprised with myself. I had managed to find some amazing friends who loved and cared for me. Not only friends, I had found a lover in my friend, Matt.

And of course my mom had to know all the details.

She had decided to come and give me a surprise in NYC. It was a surprise indeed. And it did not go well. At all.

It was something like this. I can't remember because I was drunk. It's a blur.

Me and Matt were having one of our wild nights' rendezvous. Matt carried me to the door and banged me hard on it. Our mouths were working furiously. I put my hand inside my pocket and took out the keys. Matt put me down and fumbled with the keys. He opened the door and threw the key across the floor. I jumped back on him after shutting the door with a loud bang.

It was all going great till I heard a cough. I immediately pushed Matt back and turned around.

My mother was standing right there, looking unnerved. I turned to the colour of beetroot.

My mom managed to squeak, 'The guard gave me the duplicate keys when I said I was your mother.'

I nodded my head and turned around to face Matt. Matt looked like he had been hit by a brick wall and been stomped by a giant thrice. He looked completely out of his senses.

Fortunately, he managed to shake it off. He finally said, 'I should get going. I'll crash at Sarah's. Nice to meet you, Mrs. Fisher.'

'Alright!' I said. 'Bye, babe.'

Matt's mouth was shut in a thin line. I realised my mistake and shut up too.

After Matt had shut the door, my mom went in a frenzy.

'Oh my god! Babe?' My mom exclaimed. 'God, that was some serious kissing. When did you get a boyfriend? And why didn't you tell me!? Oh my god, Libby! What am I going to do with you!'

'Mum, relax. We just got together. And I wouldn't have come barging in like that if I'd known you would be here! Don't ever do that again! You know I hate surprises!'

Mom looked a little hurt. I immediately regretted saying what I did.

'Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. It's all just a little too, overwhelming, I guess.'

Mom smiled, 'Don't sweat it, honey. I probably should have informed you. I just missed you a lot. Oh, and I got some Chinese take-away from a store nearby.'

She pointed at the dining table. I quickly looked at the name of the store and groaned.

'Mom, this is worst take-away Chinese restaurant in New York City. But it's fine, we can survive it.'

Mom laughed. 'Look at you! You know so much about this place already! I'm sure you're doing great, hon.'

'I am, trust me,' I said, setting up the plates on the dining table.

Mom sat on one of the chairs and took out the chopsticks from the take-away packet.

'So how's everything with Nate?' I asked as I took out the dumplings.

'He's fine,' Mom said a little too cheerfully.

I looked at her from the corner of my eye but didn't say anything. I took out the prawn noodles and served it. Meanwhile, mom served the dumplings.
I sat down and started eating rather reluctantly. Mom, obviously, noticed this.

'Honey, tell me honestly, have you already eaten?' she asked.

'Um, yeah,' I said sheepishly. 'But I didn't want you to eat alone, so I thought I'd eat again.'

'You don't have to! Go on, get up. I'll put your share in the fridge. Have it tomorrow, okay?'

I nodded.

'So,' I said, steering the topic elsewhere. 'Am I going to see Nate any time soon?'

'About that,' mom said, 'I actually came here to tell you this. I'm not sure how you're going to take this so—'

'Mom,' I said, 'Spill the beans.'

'He's coming here. Nate. Nathan's coming here. For treatment. And he'll obviously need a place to crash. That's why I'm actually here. To ask you if he could stay here, with you.'

'Mum, of course he can! You really thought you needed my permission? He can come here whenever!'

'Really?' Mom asked.

'Really,' I said.

'Good. Because he's coming tomorrow.'

'Wait, what?'

'I thought you didn't mind,' Mom said looking at me innocently.

'Um, yeah, I do. I do if you pretend to ask for my permission when you've made your decision already! I mean seriously, who does that? Oh, I know. YOU!' I said angrily. I felt like I had been stripped of all my dignity.

Okay, now I'm exaggerating.

Anyway, mom continued speaking. 'Honey, it's not like that! I just wanted to see if you were okay with—'

'Oh, no, you don't get to "honey" me! What the hell, mum? Just because you get one kid back doesn't mean you forget the other! I mean if I knew he was coming I'd have made arrangements! UGH! WHY!?'

I was fuming and my mom just stared at me.

'Sorry,' she said.

I let out an exasperated sigh and sat on the sofa with a thump.

'Great! An apology solves everything, doesn't it?' I said sarcastically.

'Aren't you happy?' Mom asked softly, sitting down beside me.

'Mom, of course I am. It's just that,' I shook my head. 'It's overwhelming.'

'A lot of things are overwhelming today, aren't they?' Mom smiled.

I laughed. 'Yes. Yes, they are.'

'I think, we should go to bed,' Mom said. 'It's getting pretty late.'

I looked at the clock and sighed. One thirty a.m.

'I'll sleep on the couch,' I said.

I went to fetch my blankets while my mom made her way to the bedroom.