It All Started with a Beanie

(11)

Erin

I'm glad Neil was able to come over. We weren't able to finish the puzzle so I slip it into a cover and tuck it away in the corner of my room so we can maybe finish it some other time.

You want to spend more time with him?

No- I mean- I didn't hate the time we spent together, but I'd definitely pick anyone else over him to hang out with.

Even Tori Micklen from eleventh grade?

Okay, maybe not anybody, but he's way down on the list.

I walk into the living room and find Mom messaging someone on her phone, a slight smile on her lips.

"Who are you talking to?" I say, sitting on the opposite side, grabbing the remote and turning on the TV in the process.

She quickly turns her phone off, setting it beside her. "No one," she says quickly, acting very secretive.

"That smile seemed like you were talking to more than just 'no one.'" A smirk plays on my lips but I'm just joking. Mom and I don't keep secrets from each other, but I do recognize she has her own personal life and I don't want to overstep.

I notice a slight blush show up on her cheeks. "It was just someone I met, nothing worthy of talking about."

"If you say so." I say this in a sing-songy voice and leave her be, clicking the Nickelodeon channel and watching SpongeBob.  

For the next hour or so we sit in silence together. She continues messaging someone and I sit and enjoy the comedy on the screen. 

Out of the blue, Mom interrupts the silence. "Hey, Erin? I have a question."

"Yes?" I say, turning the volume down and looking to her. 

"Would it be okay if I went out sometime soon?"

"Out? As in a date kind of out or just out by yourself?"

"With a friend." She begins to blush again.

"Mom, you can go out whenever you want to. You don't have to ask." I say this with a slight chuckle. I know Mom is worried about something happening when she leaves me alone, but I don't want to be the one to prevent her from living her life. I mean, she is only thirty-seven.

"You sure? I don't want you to feel like I'm abandoning you."

"Mom..." I scoot closer to her and grab her hand. "I'll be fine. You go out with your 'friend' and I'll invite Elliott or some of my new friends over so I'm not alone, if that makes you feel better, okay?" She nods and I pull her into a hug. "You've never made me feel abandoned and you never will." I feel her squeeze tighter and I know she's taking my words to heart. 

She pulls away and a smirk lands on her face.

"So Neil seems like a pretty nice guy." She winks at me and I roll my eyes, causing her to laugh.

"We're just friends." 

"That's what I said and then you came along." An uncomfortable silence emerges between us. We both begin to think about Dad. Mom thinks differently about him than I do. I remember the good and she remembers what happened behind closed doors.

"Hey, Mom?" She gives a 'hmm' as an answer, deep in thought.

"How did you and Dad meet? You've never told me the story." She snaps out of her bad thoughts and smiles.

"We met in biology class, my junior year. Every one knew of me, but I wasn't exactly popular."

"That's how I am at school."