Rory carried his dishes to the kitchen. He cleaned them along with the rest of the kitchen. It sparkled by the time he’d finished.
Settling on the couch, he pulled out his knitting set. He’d just got into a nice pace when the phone rang.
He sighed and put the knitting to the side to answer the phone.
“Hello?”
“Hello, Rory.” His mother’s voice came through.
“Hello, Mother,” he said.
“How are you doing, dear?”
“I’m doing okay. How is everything at home?”
“Oh, everything is fine. I just wanted to check on you.”
“Thank you.”
“So, how’s the new diet? Have you lost weight?”
Rory groaned. They attended two services a week together, and he ate lunch with her and his father every Sunday. She still brought up his weight every week. He’d been the same size since he was twenty-five. Six feet and three hundred pounds. He wished she’d leave his weight alone. He loved himself at this size. No one would make him ashamed of his body, which included his mother. He wanted to tell her to stop but decided against it.
“No, I haven’t lost any weight since last month.”
“Hmm,” she said. “Well, I’m sure you’re trying.”
“Thank you, Mother.”
“So, how’s school going? Are you done yet?”
Another thing his mother brought up. She believed he should have finished his degree within eight years of starting. It took Rory twelve years to complete his bachelor’s and master’s. His parents gave him enough for full-time tuition, but he wanted to live alone. He used the rest to rent his apartment.
“I finish in May,” he said.
“Oh, finally. Now you can get a proper job,” she said. “Well, I’m glad we could catch up. I’ll see you at the service tomorrow night.”
He had a proper job. He taught two classes at the college. It wasn’t extravagant money, but it paid the bills. It was work he enjoyed.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Good night.” She hung up before he could say he loved her.
Rory sat on his couch, knitting a sweater for his niece. She loved lavender, and she’d love anything her Uncle Roro made for her.
He left the TV on the American Movie Classics channel while he worked. The background noise helped him focus.
An hour had passed when Rory warmed up one of his brownies. He put a scoop of ice cream on top and took it into the living room.
His mother’s voice interrupted him.Is this really the way to lose weight? You’ll never find a nice girl looking like this.
He turned onJeopardyand ate his brownie.
Is my mother right? Am I going to be alone if I don’t lose weight?
He cleaned up his dish and headed to the bedroom, Mina trailing behind.
Rory dressed in his pajamas and lay in bed. Mina found her way to the open area between his legs and curled up. Rory grabbed his Bible and read passages for thirty minutes. Same as every night.
