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“In some ways, I feel over-prepared, and in others, I feel like I know pretty much nothing.”
Her friend Thomas shook his head, as he straightened his spectacles on the bridge of his nose. “The test is going to be a walk in the park for you.”
“You’re just being nice because you used to push me into puddles in the playground,” she teased.
Thomas nudged her with his shoulder. “You know it.” He adjusted his spectacles again, a gesture that she’d come to recognise as nervous.
“I’m so grateful for all your help, Thomas,” she said. “Let me get us some coffees?”
He nodded. “Sure. You know I’ll always go for something caffeinated.” They pushed into the café they were walking past and Jane placed their order.
“So the test starts at nine o’clock?” She asked for the hundredth time, causing Thomas to laugh.
“Come on, Jane. You’re ready. What you really need is to go out and unwind.”
She shook her head. “I’m too nervous to unwind.”
Their coffees were called and Thomas grabbed both, handing hers to her once they were on the street. “You still haven’t told me what you’re going to apply for.”
“I don’t know,” she said with a desperate expression on her face. “I’ve spent the last year going through all Anita’s text books and all I’ve learned is that I can’t stand the idea of medicine. Or anything scientific.”
Thomas grinned. “You and me both.”
“I need to see her through her own application process before I can even start thinking of my own.”
He sipped his coffee. “You know, Anita is old enough to manage on her own.”
“She’s a kid!” Jane contradicted forcefully.
Thomas stopped walking, just a block short of their apartment block. He put his free hand on her shoulder. “She’s the same age you were when you took control of her life, as well as your own.”
Jane nodded jerkily, “Exactly. And look how well that turned out for me. I dropped out of school altogether because I couldn’t cope.”
Thomas frowned. “I’m not talking about putting everything on Anita’s shoulders. But she can handle her own stuff now. And you did cope, Jane.”
“She’s going to be doing medicine at an Ivy League college. I don’t want her thinking about anything except her studies.”
“You’re selling her short, as well as yourself.”
Jane shook her head. Why do you say that?”
“You’re coddling her like a helicopter parent. You don’t think she can do it on her own, but you’re protecting her to the point it might actually end up doing her a disservice.”
Jane shook away from his hand, but his words swarmed in her brain. Was he right?
As if sensing a weakening in her resolve, he pushed his point. “You cook all the meals. You clean. You make her bed, for God’s sake. If she goes to Harvard next year, she’s going to get a pretty rude awakening.”
They began to walk towards their apartment building, without speaking. As they approached the door, Jane slowed her step. “So what? What should I do?” She valued Thomas’s advice hugely. It was one of the reasons she’d enlisted his help in preparing for her SATs.
He looked at her earnestly. “Take off the floaties.”
“Floaties?”
“Floatation devices? Never mind. Let her go. You know what you’re feeling right now, Janey?”
“What?” She asked huskily.
“What every single parent goes through when their first kid’s about to go off to college. You’re empty nesting. But you’re not doing any prep for Anita, and she’s going to land on campus with no idea how to tie her shoes.”
