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“Oh, call me Sarah,” she says while bringing a chair between us. “I insist.”
“So, how are you liking Aurora?” I ask when Rachel doesn’t say anything.
Sarah claps her hands together, looking overly excited for someone who’s only visiting a college campus. “Why it’s absolutely beautiful! I haven’t seen too much of it, since I wanted Rachey to show me around, but the mountains are so lovely.” She chuckles while turning towards Rachel, who looks like she just wants to melt into her chair and disappear. “I can see why you love this place so much.”
“Yeah, it’s the best,” Rachel says awkwardly with a slight shrug.
Sarah looks between us for a moment, her smile dipping as concern floods her face. “Am I interrupting anything?”
“No,” Rachel rushes out while I shake my head.
“Not at all,” I add.
Rachel gives me a concerned look. I don’t understand why she’s acting like a spooked doe about to flee at any moment. Her mom seems so nice. We continue staring at each other in awkward silence. Rachel’s eyes keep moving from me to the door, and I realize she wants me to make some sort of escape. Maybe that’s for the best. Besides, Alex is here, which is absolutely crazy. Maybe I can try to meet up with him and see what’s going on in his life. Seth is definitely not going to be happy when I tell him the news.
“Well,” I say, grabbing my cup and slowly rising. “I guess I should be-“
“Oh, don’t leave,” says Sarah. “Stay. Let me get to know you. I want to know everything about Rachey’s roommates. She, of course, tells me nothing.”
Oh, if only you knew Mrs. Miller.
Rachel gives me a desperate look, but I shrug and sit back down. Part of me is also a bit curious about Rachel’s family life. She doesn’t speak about her parents at all. I don’t even know if she has siblings. Hunter and Seth’s family I know pretty well. I haven’t met Seth’s family per say, but I know he has several brothers and sisters, and his mom is on her own, trying to raise them. I knew Hunter’s parents since my first semester at Aurora. His mom used to bring us cookies all the time.
Rachel’s life before moving in with us seems so secretive.
“So, what would you like to know?” I ask while looking between Rachel and Sarah.
Sarah looks so much like Rachel, it’s shocking. If it wasn’t for the crow’s feet marring Sarah’s green eyes, or the wrinkles around her mouth, I’d say they were twins.
“Oh, the usual,” says Sarah with a bright smile. “What are you studying? What year are you? What are your intentions with my daughter?”
“Mom!” Rachel shouts.
I cover my mouth with a hand, holding back my laughter. Sarah sure does like to get to the point. “I’m a senior. I was studying political science, but I plan on going into writing after I graduate.”
“Writing?” Sarah wrinkles her nose in distaste. “My husband is a writer. You certainly don’t make much money with that.”
“Dad does pretty well,” says Rachel, her gaze darkening on her mother.
Sarah shrugs. “Eh.”
Great, another parent questioning my passions. I decide to ignore it. Perhaps Rachel’s parents are fighting and that’s why her mom decided to take the trip out here. Or maybe she’s right. But I’ve already made my bed, and now I have to lie in it.
“And as far as your daughter is concerned, I-”Deeply care for her, is what I want to say, but Rachel interrupts.
“He’s just a friend, Mom,” Rachel says without looking at me.
I frown and lean away from the duo. Just a friend? My heart twinges as the words repeat in my head. I know I shouldn’t care. She doesn’t want her mom to know about us. Fine. But somehow, I feel like cupid has stabbed me through with an arrow, and not the good kind; like the kind that makes the heart shrivel and burst into a million tiny pieces.
“Right, Lucas?” Rachel asks while turning towards me.
I’m vaguely aware of my head bobbing up and down. “Right.”
“Well, we should get going,” Rachel says, quickly rising and turning away from me. “What do you want to do today, mom?”
“Oh, I thought we could do a little shopping.”
My body moves on its own as it trudges towards the exit. My gaze narrows on something resting on the cafe’s counter. “Oh,” I say, my eyes widening. “They’re hiring.”
