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“It’d be easy to get used to this, wouldn’t it?” she whispers.
“The having help or the peacefulness?” I ask.
“Both.”
Over the next few days, mom settles in at the Sunshine Center. Yesterday she attended her first GED class. Clover helps run the literacy component of the program, and this evening she offered my mom some one-on-one support.
The three of us are gathered at a table. BJ lent me his laptop so I can type up my assignments wherever I am. My mom and Clover are sitting beside each other, sharing a set of earbuds. Clover’s introducing her to audiobooks, so my mom can listen and read at the same time.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I pull it out to check the message.
lessons done, I can pick u up if ur still at TSC. Parents r out w friends. I need to make good on TFT, which still applies since it’s Thursday.
I glance over at my mom and Clover, who are focused on the reading tablet in front of them. I snap a quick pic.
at the library. How adorable is this?
?? Mav is here so we’ll head ur way in a bit
sounds good
I slip my phone into my bag and finish the final question for my assignment.
“I like this narrator’s voice,” Mom whispers. “It’s almost like I’m part of the story.”
“He’s a personal favorite. He could read a grocery list and I’d listen all day long,” Clover says with a smirk.
“His voice really is lovely.”
Clover and I share a smile. It’s nice to see this side of my mom, one where she’s not on edge, worried about pissing my dad off, or figuring out how to afford groceries and pay the bills.
I’ve just electronically handed in my assignment when the peacefulness is broken.
“Lucy! I know yer in here! Where r’you?”
I stiffen at the obvious slur in my father’s voice. I haven’t seen him over the past week, careful to avoid the Sunshine Center when he’s visiting.
Mom yanks out her earbud, eyes wide with panic. “Is that Clay?”
I nod, and my mom’s face falls, her voice dropping to a whisper. “He sounds drunk.”
It’s Thursday night, which is payday at the ice cream factory. He always stops at the Town Pub for a few pints before he comes home.
A buzz comes from my bag, but I ignore it.
Clover glances between us, as my dad stumbles around the corner. He bumps into the stacks and sends a pile of books tumbling to the floor.
His unfocused gaze settles on my mom. “D’er you are.” He sneers. “The fuck you doin’ in a li-berry?”
Another library employee comes around the corner, eyes wide, phone in her hand. She’s a summer hire, a student returning to college in the fall. I remember her from high school.
I brace my palms on the table, ready to put myself between my parents, but BJ and Maverick appear behind the library employee.
“Isn’t this cute.” Dad weaves a little. “Ya finally learnin’ how to read.”
“Clay, you’re in a library. You can’t be drunk, and you can’t be noisy.” Mom’s voice wavers.
I stand as BJ and Maverick step in front of the poor girl I went to high school with. She brings the phone to her ear and takes a couple cautious steps backwards.
