AllFreeNovel
Share Us
16
Bobby
Meeting The Matriarch
Iwalk through the front door, kick my shoes off, and toss my cap onto the side table on my way through. “Hello? Where are you guys?”
Kit has spent the entire week freaking herself out about dinner at my mom’s tonight, and in the process, has worked her way through the five stages of grief.
Monday was denial.‘No, it’s fine. We don’t have to go. We could just break up. No big deal. I’m not that attached to you, anyway.’
Tuesday, anger.‘Why do you even have to have a mother, Bobby? We don’t need them! It’s time to grow up and cut the damn cord, you big wuss!’
Then bargaining.‘What if you just go? Tell her I have meningitis and my brain turned to a carrot. She won’t question it. Plus, meningitis means isolation. She can’t even go to the hospital to prove the story false.’
Thursday was depression.‘I hate my life. Kill me now, I’ve lost the will to live.’
And then finally, acceptance.‘Whatever. I don’t care. Don’t touch me.’
I worked hard all week to not mention a damn thing to my brothers.
Especially not Jimmy.
I need tonight to go off without a hitch, and his teasing ass riling everyone up won’t do me any favors.
So mum’s the word, so to speak, since Kit spent all week mid-emotional breakdown.
“We’re in the kitchen,” she calls back in a reasonably cheery mood, which means we’re still in acceptance. I’ll take it. I walk in to find them both at the dining table with school books spread all over and Jack bent over his books.
I found out soon after I moved in, that the nights they don’t train, they’re working on his schoolwork.
He didn’t want me to know.
They packed their shit away like they had a fire to get to every time I walked in, but when you live with people, you can’t keep those secrets for long.
It gave me a new appreciation for them both.
For Jack, for working hard to better himself, for making up for years of laziness at school while their dad dropped the ball.
And for Kit, who’s so fucking selfless, I’m terrified of tarnishing her. She works so hard to make Jack’s life better – even when he didn’t want or appreciate the help.
Since learning of their dirty little secret, I asked about his grades only to find out he’s gone from C’s and D’s to A’s and B’s. Kit was proud as hell to share this information, but Jack shyly kept his head buried in his books, only popping up to mention the lashing that Kit gave that asshole Reeves.
Funnily enough, that was when she buried her head.
She’s just as much the mama bear that she fears my mom is, and fuck if that doesn’t have me thinking about the kids we could raise together – something else that’s never crossed my mind before meeting her.
I walk across the room and drop a kiss on the crown of her coconut smelling hair. “Hey babe. How’s it going in here?”
“Shit.” Jack angrily flicks his pen against the table. “It’s going shit.”
“Don’t swear.” Kit slams her hand down on the aggravating pen. “He has a quiz on Monday and he’s a little nervous. He’ll be fine. And it’s time to pack up, anyway.” She stands and stretches her arms high above her head. Her spine cracks and a groan slides up her throat. I collect her dirty dishes so her brother doesn’t get pissed at my thoughts, and dumping them in the dishwasher, I turn back to watch him throw pens into his backpack and snap his textbooks closed. He tosses them in his bag with a filthy scowl and tears the zipper closed.
He’s definitely done for today.
Neither of them is dressed for dinner, and I risk a beheading, but, “You guys remembered dinner tonight, right?”
We have to leave in about forty-five minutes if we don’t want to be late, and usually, chicks take longer than that to get ready.
