“Kaya, can I come down?” my mother calls from upstairs. I have no idea what time it is, but it must be late if she’s out of her own bed looking for me.
“Sure,” I respond weakly.
“Kaya, baby, why are laying here in the dark?”
She flicks on the switch of one of the overhead lamps.
“I’m just tired.”
“Don’t you have work today?”
“Are you Mr. Solomon’s keeper now?”
“There’s no need for nastiness. Whether or not you like it, I’m still your mother.”
“I never said I didn’t like it, Ma.”
“But the way you talk to me sometimes, Kaya. When will you learn that I’m not the enemy?”
“You’re right, Mom. I’m sorry. I’m just in a crappy mood and I shouldn’t take it out on you. I don’t have any work to do today because I was able to complete quite a few things before the wedding, so Mr. Solomon’s letting me take the day off.”
“To do what?”
“To rest, Ma.”
“Should we talk about what happened at the wedding?”
“You know everything.”
“I know that Kyle and Brandon got into an awful altercation, and it has something to do with you. Can you tell me more about it? No one seems to want to give me any details, not even your uncle.”
This is a good time as any to start from the beginning.
“I didn’t want to give you any bad news before the wedding, but Elijah and I broke up.”
“You broke up?”
“Yes.”
“Aww, honey, what happened? I was rooting for you two.”
“It wasn’t my fault, Mom.”
“I didn’t say it was, Kaya.” She touches my shoulder. “I just know how much you really cared about him. Is there any possibility for reconciliation?”
“No.”
“May I ask why you broke up? Maybe I can help.”
I sit up on my messy bed, propped up by the pillows against my headboard.
“Elijah was not a nice guy, mom. He had a girlfriend who he was cheating on me with the entire time we were together.”
“Oh, my!” She exclaims. “He did that?”
“And he used to call me fat.”
“You’re not fat!” she says in disbelief.
