Does he know what a razor is? Has he ever heard of a magical drink called “water” before? The weathered skin and bloodshot eyes would suggest that he doesn’t consume something unless it has an ABV label on the back.
The man shoulders past me, his absence waking up Mom…who has also seen much better days.
“You look terrible,” I tell her.
“That’s what unlimited vodka and partying until the birds start singing does to you.”
“You know you have free will, right?”
“Right.” With great effort, she manages to prop herself up in bed.
I suspect she’s also naked, judging from the way she’s fighting to keep the bedsheets above her chest.
Something red and lacey catches my attention on the floor—her lingerie. The same crimson red as the shoes I almost tripped over.
She sees where I’m looking. “They match my new shoes. Cool, eh?”
Totally, if she wasn’t buying new killer heels with the money she’s supposed to be buying my school textbooks with. Since our household is well under the financial threshold, the high schoolgave us scholarship money so I could afford the books that are mandatory for my finals next semester.
“What else did you spend my scholarship on?”
“Oh, honey.” My mom sits up in the bed, her back pressed against the headboard. “We still have enough, don’t you worry.”
Her speech is slurred, as usual.
The late afternoon sun streams in through the sheer curtains, illuminating her tired face. She was young when she had me, my father an unsolved mystery.
Even Mom doesn’t know who he was. She was too drunk.
I’ve always thought that was for the best. Any man who decides to sleep with an intoxicated woman is an asshole in my books. I don’t want a dad who takes advantage and probably impregnates multiple women a week.
But I also don’t want a mom who’s on a downward trajectory to becoming mentally unstable.
And that’s putting it lightly. I’m pretty sure she’s already there.
But ignorance is bliss and all…
“Stay in tonight. Let’s watch a movie,” I plead.
“I can’t.”
Like watching a movie is more of an effort than getting dressed to the nines and hooking up with random guys.
“Why not?”
“I’m meeting Tim’s friends tonight.”
“Tim?”
Mom pats the space next to her. “Tim. He’s going to hook me up with some of his friends from Texas.”
“Friends? Like, multiple?”
Mom cracks a tired smile. “You only live once.”
“You can say that again,” I mutter under my breath.
“Did you say something, honey? Sorry, my hearing’s not like it used to be.”
