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I held my arms out for a hug from Mom, and she swatted my shoulder with her purse. “Aiden, how dare I find out you made it to Leeks through the gossipy women in town. How did you not stop by our place before prancing through downtown? My goodness, you were out here hugging strangers before your own mother.”
I pulled her into the hug she was fighting against and held on tight. I kissed the top of her head as her small figure settled into my embrace. “Sorry, Mom. I was hoping to come straight to the inn but got noticed.”
Mom returned the hug, then pulled back and playfully tapped my cheeks with her hands. “Of course, you were noticed. You’re Superman!” Her eyes started tearing up as she said those words. “You’re Superman, Aiden!” she exclaimed. I hadn’t seen my mom in person since the news came out that I’d be the next in line tackling a worldwide favorite fictional character.
“Don’t cry, Mom.”
“I’m not crying,” she said as she wiped away the tears leaking from her eyes.
“Telling your mother not to cry is like telling water not to be wet,” Dad said, interrupting the hug Mom and I were sharing to pull me into an embrace of his own. Unlike Mom, I didn’t tower over him. Even though I’d put on a good amount of muscle mass over the past few years, Dad still had me beat in height.
He pulled away from me and nodded once with a smile on his face. “Superman.”
“I still haven’t wrapped my head around it yet. I can’t believe it.”
He placed his hands on my shoulders and squeezed. The small affection spoke volumes of his thoughts. It was his way of saying he was proud of me. Then before he could get overly emotional like Mom, he pulled back. “I wish we would’ve talked about this temporary break you and your mother came up with behind my back,” he said. “I’ve been doing a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff to make sure it works.”
“And it does,” Mom argued quickly. “Filming for the movie doesn’t start until next year. He earned this break.”
“That’s not exactly how this industry works, sweetheart,” Dad told Mom.
“Well, I don’t care. My son needed a break, so he’s taking one.”
I smiled. Mom would always go to war for me.
“I was hoping to come over to your house before the festival tonight for dinner,” I said, trying to turn the topic around.
Mom combed her hair behind her ears. “Of course, you were. I already have dinner planned out. But for the time being, we are going to lunch at the diner. I’ve got our corner booth already reserved for us.”
I laughed. “Since when does the diner take reservations?”
“Since my son became Superman. Now, you get ready and meet your father and me downstairs.”
She headed downstairs as Dad stood in my hotel room, looking around. His brows were knotted as he crossed his arm across his broad chest. “You sure you don’t want to stay with us? We have more than enough room.”
“It’s no big deal.”
“This inn gets a bit drafty sometimes, I’ve heard.”
“It’s fine. I’ve got blankets.”
“Sure, sure. Makes sense.” He brushed his thumb against the bridge of his nose. Something was eating at him.
“What is it?”
“Nothing. I get you want to take a break, Aiden but… Just don’t take your life for granted. Many don’t get the level of success you have. If I were you, I would’ve eaten these opportunities up. If you change your mind about this long hiatus, I can get us up and running quickly. You have something millions of people would dream of, Aiden.”
He reminded me of that on the regular—to count my blessings. In a way, I was living out his own dream, so I felt a responsibility to give it my all, even when I didn’t love my career as much as I should’ve.
“Is this my ‘with great power’ speech?” I joked, nudging Dad in the arm.
“You’re Superman, not Spider-Man, which is kind of disappointing. I’m more of a Marvel guy.” He chuckled, shoving me. “I’m surprised you chose to stay at this inn,” he mentioned, shifting the conversation.
“Why is that shocking? It’s the only place to stay in town.”
“Yeah, but I figured once your mother told you…” He narrowed his eyes and grumbled. “Your mother didn’t tell you, did she?”
“Tell me what?”
