Before she could respond, Terrance and Bodhi joined us, beers in hand.
“Thanks for letting me stay here tonight,” Bodhi said, raising a bottle to my parents.
“Oh, of course,” Mom replied. “I so enjoy harboring fugitives.”
“You heard about that, huh?” he asked, with just the hint of a smile.
“It’s all over the news. I think people in Mongolia have heard about it.”
“So what’s the verdict now? Am I dead or alive?”
“First you were dead. Like candlelight vigil dead,” Mom said. “But now you’re alive and the world can rejoice once more.”
“She’s mocking me already?” He laughed.
Before I had a chance to answer, Mom mused, “I’m warning you, though. You may want to lay low for a few days. Maybe go to a movie in a darkened theater or a family reunion with people you don’t know. Stuff like that.”
I flashed her a warning glare. Thankfully, Bodhi had no idea what she was babbling about. Still, he seemed amused by the whole exchange with my parents. Which was encouraging. At least he wasn’t running away.
“Anyway, I made up the bed in Breeze’s old room. I assumed the two of you would want some privacy.” She winked at Bodhi. “And fresh sheets.”
“Mom? Not cool. Boundaries, remember? Is it too late for us to book a hotel?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Anything you can do in a hotel, you can do better here. Terrance and I don’t judge, do we sweetie?”
“No, we do not,” he replied. “The two of you can feel free to—”
“Nope.” I covered Terrance’s mouth with my hand. “I think you’ve said plenty. Bodhi gets it. Now, can we change the subject please?”
“I’m actually thoroughly enjoying this conversation,” Bodhi said.
“Oh, I’m sure you are. But I’m also convinced it’s getting close to bedtime for these two chatter bugs.”
“Are you kidding?” Mom said. “We’re just getting started. Terrance and I are binge watching Orange is the New Black. Very informative. Lots of lesbian sex.” She tossed us a smile. “You really should watch it.”
My cheeks ignited with the fire of a thousand suns.Kill me now.
As Terrance took care of the other animals, Mom grabbed Bodhi’s arm and steered him toward the front door. “I’m sure you’re starving. I have dinner all ready. Come in. Oh Breeze, wave to the Ring.”
“The what?”
“The doorbell.”
“You have a Ring doorbell? What do you need that for?”
“Packages I get from online shopping. It records thieves. Very useful.”
“Huh, that’s high tech for you, Mom.”
She laughed me off before leading the two of us through the house. To my surprise, the place was spotless and the typical nonsense clutter was nowhere in sight. I did a quick scan for the bobble-headed plastic turtles and the Mario Kart toy collection, but… nothing. Even the blue Aladdin genie Terrance insisted was modeled after him was gone.
What happened to my McDonald’s Happy Meal living room?
Shabby chic coastal designs had replaced the bric-a-brac, and on the wall—no way—I took a step closer to examine the smart TV.
“What happened to all your …. stuff?” I ran a hand over the fabric on the sofa. “And the old suede couches? And the black and white television set?”
Mom beamed. “I hired an interior designer. You like?”
