nothing ; ksimon

something; 8

simon didn't really expect to be greeted with the sight of his boyfriend's mother standing at his restaurant's reception when he left his apartment today. and he most certainly did not expect her to be carrying what seems to be a bouquet of lillies and roses in her slender hands.

the middle aged woman stands at the reception desk, her curly hair stopping right at her shoulders which are clad in a dark purple dress, her lips painted maroon which sport a hesitant smile.

she seems a little lost, her gaze running along the very few people present in the restaurant at such an early time. simon doesn't know how to quite approach since he's only met her once and even then they didn't converse.

"may i help you ma'am?" it seems josh has beat the taller boy to it as he walks past the desk and spots the hesitant woman.

"uh-" she stutters when the attention is diverted to her and simon decides on walking up to the duo just then, clearing his throat.

"i can take it from here, josh." he says just as recognition dawns on the older woman's face.

"simon, is it?" she questions, a slight accent in her tone.

"yes ma'am." he replies, silently reassuring the questioning glances josh sends his way.

"oh, is it okay if i take some of your time?" her tone is really reluctant, almost afraid and the cerulean eyed boy doesn't understand why.

"sure." he says, "why don't we sit down?" he then proceeds to move to a table nearby the door and he hears the clicking of the latter's heels following after him.

"so simon," she sighs, placing the bouquet she was carrying on the table and passing him a smile. "i can't tell you i've heard loads about you because jj rarely talks to me."

simon nods, unsure of how to react.

"but i decided to drop by and see what has got jj feeling so happy these days." the brunette boy feels his heart swell in his chest at the mention of making jj happy and he smiles now, soft.

"i'd say it's more like him making me  happy but-"

"oh shush! i'm his mother and i have never seen him glowing as he does when he sometimes visits me." she remarks, the awkward tension somewhat dispersing. "but that's not what i'm here to talk about."

simon gulps, eyebrows furrowing and not knowing what to expect. in his mind, from what he heard jj's family wasn't particulary that nice as one should be. however jj vaguely mentioned his mother and complained more about his brother and father at most.

"it'a nothing too bad," she reassures once she notices simon's expression changing. "it's more like a thank you..."

"a thankyou? for what?"

"i-" she sighs, leaning back in the chair she was seated on. "-well, jj's always been someone who was neglected most of his life."

and oh, the taller boy can sense where this is going.

"i'll take full blame that maybe i got so caught up in my husband's business," her tone turns bitter for a second, "and didn't pay mind to my children that much. but it wasn't just us who left him behind, society did too."

simon decides it's best not to interrupt and listens intently.

"i remember multiple occasions where in his school, friendship groups, teams, he was held back."

"held back?" he questions.

"yeah, you know being a black kid and all. his teachers didn't want to admit but there were times they didn't pay mind to him due to his skin colour-"

"-times have gotten better, but racism still exists and some assholes still differentiate between black and white and so. i remember one time when he got kicked out of the football team and his spot was instead given to a white kid, jj was truly heartbroken."

the blue eyed boy imagines a young jj, sitting alone and heartbroken and his heart clenches.

"there were many other occasions too, like when he got in trouble for pulling a prank which wasn't his plan rather than his white friend. what i'm saying is, he really didn't get everything served to him with a silver spoon."

he nods in understanding.

"but he still stood upright, my son's gone through a lot and he still shines as bright as ever." she smiles, sadder now. "maybe being neglected is the reason deji is how he is and i expected jj to be similar to him too but he's not."

"he really isn't." he finds himself agreeing.

"i never get to tell him this but i am very proud of him and who he is. so down to earth and lovely." simon hums in agreement, his chest swelling with something like pride. this was his boyfriend she was talking about.

"i guess you know what he's been through, with his ex and all. i'll admit i've never seen him as devastated he was when it happened. it was like he went spiralling into this pit of depression, until two months ago when he started being happy again."

the pale boy feels his breath hitch, his subconcious telling him that he did that; he is the reason for someone's happiness. his cerulean eyes glint with adoration and he looses eye contact with the latter, instead fumbling with his fingers.

"thank you, simon." yinka says, her tone soft as she reaches forward and grabs simon's wrist. "thank you for making my boy happy and thank you for being his family when none of us could."

the brunette boy feels a lump in his throat, he swallows, looking up to find the middle aged woman smiling at him. a smile makes its way onto his face as well and he thinks that his life could not get better.

_________

hi

here's a filler chapter after so long lmfaooooo, i'd be surprised if people still read this but this story is gonna end in like 3 more chaps prolly :)

we also got a hater today saying i dont portray simon as he is irl. its almost as if this is a fic and not based on real life 🤧😔✊