AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Cash! Come on! You can fight with Jackson later! If you get grounded too, who am I going to hang out with?”
I laughed, “Go be with your other loser friend.”
“At least I got a girl. Two, actually.”
“Cash! I mean it! Bring your hide!”
He backed away, leaving me there.
God, I hate him.
The entire ride home was quiet, other than my mom saying I needed to head straight to the shower and then meet her in the kitchen after.
I did exactly that, hoping maybe my dad wouldn’t be waiting with her when I came back down.
He was.
Crap.
Dad ordered, “Sit down, Son.”
I nodded, taking a seat across from them at the island.
“Your mom is very upset with you, Jackson. I can’t say I’m happy with you either. Especially since you know your mom has been stressed and overwhelmed this last year.”
He was right. I did know that.
My mom was always the best mom she could be, but over the last year, she’d started forgetting things. Like picking us up from school or picking me up from football practice. She’d forget games, doctor appointments, even small things like her purse or car keys.
It wasn’t like her at all, and I think it was because she took on too much. She never told any of us no, not even my dad. We were her whole entire world, and she never said this out loud, but I knew I was her favorite. I spent the most time with her, watching her stupid chick flicks, cooking with her. Anything she wanted to do, I was down for.
She was my mom, and I loved spending time with her. We had a special bond.
But nothing could have prepared me for what happened next…
Nothing.
Mom took one look at me and opened her mouth to say my full name, at least that’s what I assumed, because every conversation when I was about to get grounded started that way. But nothing came out.
“Mom… are you okay?”
She just stared at me, almost like she couldn’t get her mouth to say what she wanted. It didn’t make any sense. She knew my name. She was my mom.
She named me.
“Mom…”
My eyes flew back to my dad, and for the first time in my life, I saw a look in his eyes I would never forget…
Fear.
And I just knew…
Our lives would never be the same again.
6
HARLEY
