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She nods again. “She does, but my mom would make all da funny noises yous supposed to do. When my Unca Colt comes over and weads to me, he makes da funny noises too.”
Even the mention of his name sends a sharp pain to my chest. It takes effort, but I manage to keep the smile on my face.
“That’s great, sweetie. I bet you love that.”
She nods enthusiastically. “I do.” She leans forward, like she’s telling me a secret. “And he bwings me candy. Gwanma doesn’t know about it.”
I laugh and ruffle her hair. “Just make sure you don’t eat any after you’ve brushed your teeth.”
“Unca Colt says da same fing. I wait till the next morning.”
I get up from my crouch when Mrs. Maverick walks through the door. She’s an older woman that has to at least be in her fifties, but could easily pass for early forties with her thick, gray-free black hair, and body that is still in very good shape. The wrinkles you normally see for a person her age are not present, but you can tell it’s natural, and not from cosmetic surgery to help her stay young.
I nervously look at her. I’ve met her a few times when she’s come to pick up Lizzy, but it’s normally Mrs. Morris that greets her. I’ve avoided her as much as possible, not ready to meet her as the mom of the guy I was dating. She’s been very nice, and I wonder how much Colt has told her about me. This is the first time I’ve been near her since he and I split up, and I’m not quite sure how to act.
“Hey, honey, you ready to go?” she asks Lizzy, bending down to place a kiss on the top of her head.
“I’m weady.”
When Mrs. Maverick stands back up, her eyes land on me and she gives me a soft smile. “Hello, Abigail. How are you?”
My gaze turns weary with her question. I’m not sure if she’s just asking to be nice, or if she’s trying to inquire about my well-being because Colt has told her about our breakup. She doesn’t give anything away with her expression, so I answer like she’s just being polite.
“I’m well, thank you. How are you?”
Her smile remains kind when she answers. “I’m wonderful.”
Needing something to do other than look at Mrs. Maverick, I walk over and grab Lizzy’s bag from a hook and bring it to Lizzy. I bend when she turns, and help her slip it on over her shoulders. Lizzy turns back and leans in to give me a hug. It’s a very sweet gesture she does every day before she leaves.
“I’ll see you Monday, Lizzy. You have a good weekend.” I kiss her cheek and get up from the floor.
When I’m standing, my eyes catch Mrs. Maverick watching us with a soft expression.
“She talks about you a lot at home,” she reveals. “She really likes you.”
“Oh, well…” I’m not exactly sure what to say. Lizzy always seems to gravitate more toward me than any other caregiver here, but I didn’t realize she liked me enough to talk about me once she was home. “I’m glad I made such a good impression on her. She’s a wonderful little girl. I really enjoy her company.”
“Sometimes, I catch her and Colt talking about you.” She catches me off guard, and my eyes widen fractionally. “Especially this past week.” I look down at my hands, hoping she doesn’t see how much her words affect me. My hope is dashed when she continues. “I see I’ve caught you by surprise.”
Forced to look up at her, she has a knowing look on her face. Fuck me. She knows, or she at least knows me and her son had a relationship. She also knows it’s over between us. Her smile turns sad, and I inwardly cringe. The man I love’s mother, the man I broke up with because I can’t keep my body in check, is standing in front of me, looking at me with pity. I want to crawl in a hole and die when
I realize she probably knows more than I’d like her to.
Damn Colt, and his close relationship with his family.
“I… umm…” I stammer and shuffle my feet like an idiot. What the hell am I supposed to say to her? I don’t know how much she knows, and the whole topic is very uncomfortable for me, given who she is and all.
“Sometimes, the things we worship and cherish the most are the things we must fight for the hardest,” she says quietly. “Sometimes, things appear impossible to obtain, but if it’s something we honestly want with our whole hearts, we learn to look past the impossible and make it possible. We push past the fear and our insecurities, and do whatever is necessary to get that thing we want. And the rewards afterward are endless, and worth any pain we’ve had to endure to get there.”
I’ve turned into a complete mush the last few days, and Mrs. Maverick’s words just prove it to me all over again. My eyes fester with water, and although I force the tears back, I know she sees them.
Thankfully, she doesn’t wait for a reply from me. She gives me a smile full of sadness and leads a waving Lizzy out the door.
Colt.
I’ve thought of him as Colt from the moment I realized he was in my bed last weekend, and the pain of him not being where I needed him to be when I needed him to be there. It’s Friday, so it’s been six days since I’ve seen him. And every day, the pain in my chest gets worse, squeezing my heart so tight that sometimes it’s hard to breathe. Every day that I go without seeing him is another day that the string he has wrapped around my heart gets tighter. I keep waking each morning, expecting the pain to lessen, but it doesn’t, it only gets worse and worse, and I’m so fucking scared it’s going to eventually destroy me past the point of return. I’m scared his touch has ruined me for all other men.
“You look terrible, Abby.” Mrs. Morris walks up, telling me my nights of sporadic sleep is catching up with me. “Why don’t you head on home and get some rest. There’s only a couple more things that need to be done here, and I can take care of them.” Before I can protest, she holds up her hand. “Go, shoo. I’ve got it here.”
