Page 92 of True Blue

“How dare you—” Colleen squawks.

“Be your own damn person, and most importantly, for the love of God,” I raise my voice to emphasize, “Let go of me!”

Lily blinks, her face collapsing.

I feel nothing.

“Theodore, you don’t know what you’re saying,” Mom says, striding over to me, her eyes wild and voice desperate. “You’re just upset because Indie broke your heart⁠—”

“I broke hers first! I broke her heart,” the words are hard to say through my closed throat. “Over and over again, and she just kept putting it back together. Only for me to break it again. Mine was well deserved.”

“Whatever it is!” Mom snaps, her composure melting. “You’re not thinking rationally, Theodore—remember what I said—I can’t lose you, you’re my baby boy⁠—”

"For fucks sake, I'm not a baby, Mom! I'm a man. I'm a man in love with a woman named Indie, and for some fucked up reason, you hated that," I growl. "Is it because she encouraged me to actually live my life the way I want? Made me strong? Were you threatened by her?"

Her jaw tightens.

“God… you were,” I whisper. “You were threatened by Indie. By her intelligence. By her kindness.”

Mom laughs. “Threatened? By that insignificant little bitch⁠—”

I stomp up to my mother and hiss, "Don't call her that. You don't have the fucking right to speak about Indie. She's worth more than you ever will be. And the sad part is that it's all your fault. Because you had Nana, and Nana would have done anything for you, to support you⁠—"

"Your Nana," Mom sneers, and the venom dripping from her voice makes me pause. "Nana was a sad old woman who didn't know her place. Who couldn't stop butting into business she had no part of. 'Go to college, Dawn. Get a job, Dawn. Don't rely on any man, Dawn.'"

June and Robin try to stop my Mom, but she shoves them away.

"I wanted to be a wife and mother, and I did! I made my dreams come true, and she looked down on that! She told me I was too young, that I was making a mistake marrying your father, she told me we could go to the clinic if I wanted to⁠—"

She slaps her hand over her mouth, like she didn't mean to make that slip. And that, oddly enough, makes sense. I knew Danielle was born quickly after they got married. I didn't realize how quick it was, though.

And Nana, like always, was looking out for her.

Robin and June look shocked, but the uncles actually look entertained by this. Dad is still pale, but one hand is over his face like he's annoyed she let the truth slip out.

“She didn’t look down on you, Mom,” I shake my head. “She wanted you to be happy.”

“I am happy,” she snarls. “I am!”

I let that hang in the air. The saddest part is that I think she wants to believe that she is happy.

“I’m done,” I rasp, hefting my bag up over my shoulder. “With this family. With this life.”

“And where will you go, huh?” Mom snarls, her voice trembling with fury. “Back to your little whore girlfriend? That little slut who’ll let it spread for anyone and everyone?”

I just look at my mother—this monster who raised me.

Last June, Indie posted something in support of Pride Month, that Hyde Cancer Center was LGBT+ inclusive, and alluding to her bisexuality.

When Mom brought it up to me out of concern, I told her it was part of Indie, and I love Indie, so it wasn’t an issue for us.

“What if she cheats on you with a woman?”

“She’d never cheat on me.”

“You don’t know that for sure, Teddy,” Mom said, her nose wrinkling. “She has options.”

“And yet she chose me,” I grinned proudly and joked. “So it looks like I’m the best of the best.”