“Yes, Mom,” I say, only because I really want to know.
“I don’t remember them verbatim, but for six months there’s absolutely no smoking or drinking, which I don’t think you do, but I’m gonna say it anyway. No talking to folks from the past, including Desiree—sorry, but that’s firm. And no social mediauntil I say so. We also have some house rules to go over when you get here.”
“So, no being a regular teenager, basically?” I ask.
She clears her throat.
“I’m kidding, Mom. I’m just ready to get out of here,” I say, softening.
“And we are ready for that too,” she says. “Good job, honey, I’m proud of you. I also have news.”
I brace myself, though I’m not sure what for.
“Trav, is it okay if I tell her?” Mom says.
I hear a muffled “of course.”
“We’re getting married!” she cries.
My jaw drops but no words come out.
“Jasmine? Hello?”
“I’m here,” I manage.
My mom laughs nervously. There’s whispering in the background. “We wanted to wait until you got out. Travis and Kayla are so excited to meet you,” she says.
I shake off the initial shock and try to find some words for her news. I don’t want to ruin this for her. “Wow, Mom. That’s great. You sound really happy,” I say.
“Oh, Jasmine, I am. And you will be too, because guess what? We’re having a destination wedding in Aruba. We’ll be on the beach in less than two months!”
I perk up immediately when I hear Aruba.
“Now we can have that beach vacation we’ve been talking about for years,” she says.
I can’t help but smile as my mom continues, the shock giving way to a strange excitement. The fact that she’s waiting until I get out to do something that’s important to her means thatI’mimportant to her, too.
“You didn’t have to wait for me, Mom,” I say.
“I wouldn’t do this without you, Jasmine. Oh, and Travis says congrats.”
Dr. Rose opens the door to tell me my time is up.
“I gotta go, Mom.”
“Okay, I love you. Keep being a good girl, please.”
“Love you too, and I will,” I promise.
For a while, I was afraid to make promises to my mom. But for the first time in a long time, I feel like I can keep one.
I’m going home.
16
We usually hang out at one of the girls’ houses on Saturday before spending the rest of the weekend with our families. Today we’re at Deanna’s, but I can tell she kind of wishes we weren’t. She seems relieved when Kenny, Mel, and Alice mention leaving to catch the Nordstrom sale. Alice asks the rest of us to come along, but Deanna quickly declines. Kayla tells Alice she’s tired and opts out for me too. The girls take off.
Kayla gets a text and rolls her eyes. “My dad wants us to pick up his order from Home Depot before we come back,” she says.
