Hmm?
@theanswerisno:
Today would have been my dad’s 57th birthday.
I blinked, and an entire week flew by.
With the promotion being dangled over my head at work and my mother needing me to fix up her current house, I wasn’t coping. Add to that my new office mate, and I should be declared a national emergency.
Despite doing her best to respect my focus sessions and hone her skills, Elizabeth still managed to fail at both by being incredibly distracting and her work requiring a fair amount of correction and guidance.
And I wasn’t the only one she was distracting. There were whispers in the office wherever she went.
But that was a weekday problem, and today was Sunday.
The front door at my mother’s new home flung open. I hopped out of my truck and met her halfway. She pulled me in for a gentle hug. “Lincoln, it’s so beautiful. Even more beautiful than I dreamed.”
With those words, every worry washed away. Every hour worked was worth it.
“Are you sure it isn’t too much?” She released me and smoothed out my T-shirt.
“I was about to pay for it by myself, but your boyfriend swooped in with the ultimate grand gesture and helped out.”
At the mention of herboyfriend, she smiled.
“So, in a way, I got a huge discount,” I said.
This time, she laughed.
Her misty eyes cleared. “I adore it.” She spun on her heel and practically skipped inside. “Come see what I have in mind.”
I followed her inside with limbs that couldn’t decide if they felt light or heavy. Part of me longed for my childhood home, which was still waiting to be packed up and handed over. It was weird knowing that, in a few weeks, it wouldn’t belong to the Cardens—weirder knowing that my mother would be living here with another man.
After nineteen years, I was happy she’d finally found someone.
At some point during a tour of the house I’d already seen twice, Daniel arrived. My mother hurried outside, and I gave them a few minutes to greet each other before joining them.
I walked out to the front yard, where a pickup truck was parked in the driveway next to mine. Daniel stood with an arm around my mother. He jumped away the second he noticed me.
“Lincoln, hi.” He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. His cheeks were flushed red as though I were the scary father and he was the naughty teenage boy.
“Daniel.” I reached out and shook his hand.
My mother turned to me. “Daniel picked up all the wood he needs for the closet, but he could use some help putting it together.”
Main quest: Help mother unpack. Side quest: Bonding exercise.
My mom had been doing this to me for years. It was how Claire and I had become friends. Claire was our neighbor, andMom asked her to help me tend the garden. Of course she agreed. And she did it every Sunday morning with me until… I guess until we bonded.
But it was somewhat more awkward as adults. Daniel pushed up his glasses. Instinctively, I did the same thing.
He smiled. “It’s really good to spend some one-on-one time with you, Lincoln. Your mom tells me so much about you.”
I nodded. I was terrible at small talk. Ask anyone. But I couldn’t leave him hanging, because he seemed about as uncomfortable as I was. “Good stuff, I hope,” I replied. A cliché, but surely it was a cliché for a reason.
Daniel chuckled. That was a good sign. “Well, she mentioned your promotion. Congratulations, that’s impressive.”
“Well… it’s not… mine yet,” I said, my discomfort rising.
