“Are you saying I’m not nice?”
Those innocent eyes gleamed her way.“I never said that.Here come your parents though, so we should both be nice.”
Twisting around, she greeted her mom and dad with a big hug each.Once her mother gave Evan a hug, her father started in on baseball talk, both of them pulling out their phones for stats and whatnot.
“Leave them to their fun,” her mom said.“Let’s get your bag in the house and you can help me with a few things.”
Mercedes took her bag from the back seat of her car, which was more compact and had better gas mileage than Evan’s truck, and followed her mother inside the house.
“Your father will talk all day about baseball.We have better things to do.”
She laughed.“I’m not sure either of them would agree there’s anything better than baseball.Evan is quite the player.I’ve seen a number of his games, and he almost always has several runs batted in and a good catch or two to get the other team out.”
Her mother tipped her head as she took a bowl of dough from the fridge.“Help me roll these cookies into a ball so I can bake them.”
As they worked side by side to get the dough on the cookie sheet, her mother chatted more about Evan.Was it something Mercedes should worry about?
“Are you also becoming fixated on baseball now?”
Mercedes shrugged.“Not really.I simply want to be a supportive roommate to Evan, and the games are only around the corner from the apartment.It’s a nice break on a Saturday afternoon.”
“What else are you normally doing on a Saturday afternoon?”
“Sometimes laundry or reading a book.It’s great that I get to check out any of them from the college library.”
“Like father like daughter.How’s the roommate situation going so far?”
Mercedes shook her head.“Everyone’s been asking us that question.It’s going well.He’s cleaning better than I thought he would.Of course, I threatened to toss him on the streets if he didn’t.I do most of the cooking, but I also did with Carli because I get home earlier.Plus, I love cooking.Something I have in common with my mom.”She grinned at the woman next to her.
“And your relationship hasn’t changed at all?”
“Changed how?”Was her mother implying what she thought she was?
“Anything between you two?Not that I’d say anything to anyone, especially his grandparents.They’re old school and quite old fashioned in that way.”
“No, there’s only friendship there.”
Her mother stared intently at her.Had she given something away?
“You sound almost disappointed.”
Her mother always taught her to be truthful.“Maybe I am.Can you blame me?Look at him.”
Her mother got a devilish look in her eyes.“Yes, he is scrumptious.”
“Mom!”
“For you, dear.I’ve got all I can handle with your father around.”
Once the cookies were in to bake, her mother set the alarm on her phone.“Let’s go see if we can get the boys to do something besides baseball talk.”
Evan’s grandparents had come outside and were chatting with him and her father.They both knew some signs, though were hardly as fluent as the rest of the family.However, since their son was deaf, they’d taken the time to learn a language he could use.Unlike many hearing parents with deaf children.She’d heard lots of stories from the Jamesons about friends whose parents never learned ASL and had difficulty communicating.
Gram and Pops, as Evan called them, knew enough to get by.They also made sure to face the person and pronounce their words clearly.
“Mercedes,it’s wonderful to see you again.”Gram pulled her in for a hug, then she got one from Pops, too.
“Thanks for letting Evan bunk with you tonight.It meant I didn’t have to drive all this way by myself.”Even though they were hearing, she hated to talk in front of Evan without signing.
