Spiro gathered the rest of the ingredients and laid them out in order of processing. “We’ll do it slowly, to enjoy the process.”
Whenever I prepared a meal with him, I wouldn’t rush and noticed that helped immensely with my clumsy incidents.
I connected my phone to the speaker in the kitchen and turned on a holiday-themed playlist. We sang and prepared the meal without a care in the world until the soup was done and Spiro began working on another dish.
“Your phone has been vibrating like crazy.” I pointed to the device in the far corner after a while.
“It’s the Christmas group chat. The one my extended family is in as well. They’re all meeting at my parents’ house today.” Spiro wiped the counters and made the place look like it had never been used.
“You’re not curious about what they’re saying?”
“I’ll check in a moment.” Spiro scooped me up and carried me to the couch, leaving the pork and caramelized potatoes in the oven.
“I should text my fam too.”
Situated comfortably on Spiro’s lap, I stared at the contacts list on my phone. My mouth was dry, so I gulped half a glass of water from the table and sat back. This would have been easier if we had a group chat. But we wouldn’t use it, anyway. I sent a happy Christmas message to my mom first, then Dad, followed by my siblings one by one. The day had never been a big event in my household, so the only one worth remembering was the one I spent with my great-grandparents, who were now gone.
“Are you okay, Kitten?” Spiro looked up from texting furiously.
I nodded and laid my head on his pec.
“I’m gonna call Cillian.” I was about to click his name in my contacts when my phone rang in my grip. Huh? “It’s my mom.”
“Do you need privacy?” Spiro asked, placing a hand on my shoulder.
“No. Unless my talking would bother you.”
“Of course not.” He leaned back and continued chatting to his family.
I took a deep breath and picked up. “Hi Mom. Happy Holidays.”
“I got your text. Are you still staying with that man from your videos?” She asked quickly as if she were in a rush. The dull hum on her end suggested she might be calling from the car.
“Yes. His name is Spiro.”
“And you’re okay there?” Her voice was full of doubt.
Where was she going with this? Was she worried? That would be a first.
“Yeah, it’s great. My posts are blowing up, and I’ve had so much fun here in Chicago.”
“Mmhmm. Well, looks like you’ve found a saint if he’s willing to endure your brand of clumsy.”
Here we go.“Mom—”
“You’re so high maintenance honey. Did you manage to hide it better this time? Remember what happened with Mira and Derek. Although they look good together now.”
“I—” Words got stuck in my throat. Whenever Mom talked to me in her condescending tone, I reverted to being a scared, insecure teenager again.
“Can I interrupt, please?” Spiro touched my hand gently.
“Uh sure.” I shrugged and handed him the phone.
“Hi. It’s Spiro. It’s very lovely to meet Kaos’s mom. I’m sorry, but I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. Kaos is charming, and I haven’t found a single downside to spending time with him for three weeks every day. So I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
He did. I knew that, but he said those nice things to my mom, anyway.
“Are you serious?” My mom’s voice went high.
