"You have to come with us to get tattoos this weekend. If you don't want to get one then at least just come watch." Katherine pulls on my arm like the child she really is.
"No, Kate. I already told you, I'm not leaving my dorm at all this weekend unless it's to pee or shower. I have so many tests next week and you know I need to keep—"
"Keep your grades up so you can keep your scholarship." She finishes the sentence for me while rolling her eyes and giving me a playful smile.
"It'll just be a few hours and you can bring your big textbook and library card if it'll make you feel better. I'm sure the tattoo artist would love to quiz you about.." She pulls the book out of my hands, "What the hell is this.." She holds up the romance novel my aunt sent me in a care package.
I quickly snatch it back and tuck it in between my other books, "My aunt sent it to me."
"Does your aunt know you're not a middle-aged soccer mom with four kids and minivan?" We start walking down the sidewalk towards our dorm.
"It's the book she's reading for her book club. She always sends me a copy; it's her way of saying she misses me."
"Most people send their kids a text or they call them. Your aunt sends you mommy porn." She turns around to face me and stops us from walking, placing her hands on my shoulders, "So will you come with us? I'm not letting you move from this spot until you say yes so either you agree or you stand here and piss a bunch of already irritated New Yorkers off. Your call."
We've only been standing here no more than thirty seconds and I've already been bumped into.
"Fine, but just for an hour and after that I'm leaving."
She claps her hands and bounces on her heels. She's so youthful; it's fascinating yet frustrating.
"Alright, now let's go before these people start cussing at us." She grabs my arm and pulls me along the crowd back to our hall.
—
"How was class today?" My aunt asks me as we watch each other finish our dinners through the computer screens.
"Same as always. Kate's getting a tattoo this weekend, she wants me to go." I wrap my noodles around my fork.
"To get one or for moral support?"
"Both, but I'm just going for moral support." I shrug
"You don't want a tattoo?"
"You'd be okay with me getting one?" I look at her in surprise. My aunt was never a strict woman or one with traditional values. She's open-minded when it comes to others, but when it comes to handling herself, she prefers to be conservative.
"Darling, you know you're old enough to do whatever you want. I don't understand how you can move so far away and still ask for my permission to do things." She smiles, "If you want a tattoo, get a tattoo. If you want to strip and run across the Brooklyn Bridge, by all means, have at it. Granted I'm not taking a train all the way out there to pay your bail. You make your choices; the only thing I ask is that you're smart about them." She shrugs.
I nod in understanding and look down at the broth in my styrofoam cup, "Kate and I found an apartment. It's a bit of a shoebox, but we're going to go look at it this weekend."
"Oh? By when do you have to be out of your dorms?" My aunt asks seriously.
"Kate and I want to be out by the end of May so we can settle in quickly and go back home for the summer."
"Well, I for one can't wait to have you back home. It's still strange to me not having you around. We miss you." She smiles sadly.
"Has she--," I begin but the look of disappointment and sadness tells me everything I need to know, "Oh." I say as if it's not a big deal.
I don't feel hurt or pain or anything my aunt's facial expression displayed, but rather a sense of familiarity. I'm used to the situation; I've learned to handle it well for everyone's sake. However, that doesn't stop the silence between us that is never absent when the topic of my mother comes up. It's a heavy silence that feels like it will never stop, but it does. It always does.
"Hey, " My aunt smiles, "Do you want to see the scarf I'm knitting?"
"In April?" She gives me a look that says 'stop being a smartass and say yes, ' "Sure." I smile back.
YOU ARE READING
(And I Like You)
Fanfiction"So," he looks at me nonchalantly. "So what?" I shift onto my other foot. "Are you getting in the chair or not?" He looks down at the worn leather chair. My eyes go wide and I scoff, "W-what?" "You wanna talk, right? Well I only talk to paying cu...
