I know she’s an independent woman who can take care of herself.
But I want to take care of her too… if only she’d let me.
My phone starts to ring and I pull it out of my back pocket, my insides tensing when I see Mama’s name on my screen.
“I better take this, man.” I head for Wily’s door.
“Yep, cool.” He waves at me. “Thanks for your help.”
“No problem.” I swipe my thumb across the screen and head for my room. “Hey, Mama.”
“Hey. How’s my boy doin’?”
“Yeah, good. Just helping Wily pack up his room.”
“Oof. That’s a job right there.”
“Don’t I know it. The guy has so much junk and doesn’t want to get rid of any of it.”
She laughs. “And how’s your packing going?”
“Yeah, I’m getting there.” I walk into my room, staring at the pile of neatly stacked boxes by my closet. My walls are clear, all the posters taken down, and I can’t get over this impending sadness weighing on me.
I thought I’d be more ready than this.
“We’re so looking forward to having you with us again.” I can hear the smile in Mama’s voice, and I don’t want to squash it, so I force out all the right answers.
“Yeah, it’s gonna be great.”
“And I agree that having a few weeks off before looking for a job is a great idea. You’re never gonna get that opportunity again. But when you’re ready, Dad’s already got that contact lined up for you. I can’t see why he wouldn’t want to take you on, but if he’s gone and lost his damn mind, there’ll probably be some jobs available at the factory. Also, one of my girls at work has got a friend in the landscaping business, and then we have that other connection with the building company I told you about a while back.”
“Yeah.” I nod, hating the way they’re mapping out my life for me.
“You can earn some pennies while you look for the job you really want.”
I don’t want some boring nine-to-five. I want to travel. See the world. But how do I tell you that?
With a thick swallow, I keep bobbing my head and making appropriate murmurs of agreement until she changes topic.
“Now, graduation. We’ll be arriving on Friday morning. And the ceremony is at three, right?”
“Yep. Do you need me to come pick you guys up?”
“No, you’ll be busy getting yourself ready, so we’ve rented a car. We should be there by one, at the latest. We were going to come on the Thursday originally, but your dad still isn’t great, and I don’t want to put more pressure on him. I don’t think he should be coming at all, but he’s insisting that he wants to see his boy graduate.”
“Tell him I appreciate that, but if he can’t make it, I understand.”
“Of course he’s gonna be there. If I can’t stop him, you sure as hell can’t.”
I snicker. That’s true. Mama’s a powerful force in our house, which means Dad must be really digging his heels in.
“He’s proud of you.”
I nod, appreciation making my throat swell.
Shit. They need me right now. I can’t be traveling the world or staying in Nolan. I have to go back to Dallas, no matter where my heart is.
“I’ll make sure he’s well taken care of while he’s here.”
