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I look away, blinking at the sudden swell of emotion her words bring. Something must seriously be wrong with me. Now I’m tearing up at sentimental shit? She squeezes my shoulder, knowing what I’m not voicing. That I love her and clearly can’t handle this conversation right now.
My mom remains quiet as she coats the popcorn in her infamous hot chili seasoning. I grab us sodas from the fridge while she takes the popcorn to the couch. We pull up her favorite streaming service since it’s her night to pick the movie.
“Pick our poison,” I say as I flick through the options on the screen.
My mom throws popcorn at my head for that. “You love Disney movies. Don’t be smart with me.”
“Yes, Mama.” I chuckle, eating the popcorn that fell on my chest.
She settles on Monsters, Inc., and as the film plays, we find a rhythm where we talk for spurts or remain quiet as we focus on the movie.
Moments like these are my favorites. I love spending time with her, more so now because I know once I get drafted and she gets married, I won’t be able to see her as often.
So I cherish these moments, just her and me.
But about halfway through the movie, Aurora knocks on the door to pick up allergy meds for her dog, Pickles. I thought it was about to be a quick stop, but she and my mom haven’t stopped talking in the doorway. Aurora fills her in on how playing for Team USA is going and that she’s visiting for the weekend since it’s Cameron’s cousin Finn’s birthday.
I didn’t mind the interruption until my mom gets a call from her work and tells Aurora to come on in to talk to me. Aurora walks into the living room, a bright smile on her face.
“Hey, Ryker, how’s it going?” she asks, sitting on the couch a seat over from mine.
“Good. You?”
Her demeanor deflates at my clipped response, blowing out a breath. “What did I do to make you hate me?” she asks, throwing me off.
I know she has a knack for saying what’s on her mind, but I wasn’t expecting her to say that at all.
I sit up now, putting the bowl of popcorn on the coffee table in front of us. “Aurora, I don’t hate you.” I look her in the eyes, hoping she can see the honesty in mine.
“Then why can’t you talk to me like a normal person? Hell, we’re about to be brother and sister, but you treat me like I’m an inconvenience.”
“I’m sorry. I tend to be an asshole,” I admit.
Her lips quirk at that. “You got that right, but it’s not all you are. I only learned one piece of a puzzle. I’d like to get to know the others.”
The ones I keep hidden beneath that defense mechanism, she means. The ones I’ve begun to show Camille.
“Why?”
Aurora leans over, scooping some popcorn into her mouth before she speaks again. “Wow, this is good.” She sighs. “Why what?”
Slightly irritated, I repeat my question. “Why do you want to get to know me?”
“Because we’re going to be a family, Ryker. Whether you like it or not, it’s happening.” She pauses, her hazel eyes softening. “You know, it was hard for me too to accept my dad dating your mom at first.”
My eyebrow arches at that, intrigued. “How come?”
“You’re aware that my mom isn’t here anymore, and I was worried that my dad was trying to replace her. Force me to call someone else ‘Mom’ and move on. But that wasn’t the case at all, and I love your mom. She’s the sweetest person and I’m happy they found each other.” She smiles, and something inside me loosens hearing how much she adores my mom.
“Yeah, your dad makes her happy too. I’ve never seen her like this before,” I comment, thinking about how she started singing in the shower after they met, something she hadn’t done since my dad left her.
“Our parents deserve to be happy, Ryker. I think we sometimes forget that this is their first time living too, you know?”
I never thought of it that way, that our parents are experiencing this thing we call life one day at a time just like us. It doesn’t erase the fear and the reason why I’m not exactly thrilled about this marriage.
“They do, but I’m scared.” The words fall out of my mouth before I can catch them, and I can’t take them back. I don’t know what it is about Aurora, but I find myself wanting to vent to her.
Aurora’s face contorts into confusion for a beat, then softens as if she gets it. “It’s okay to be scared. It means you have something you care about. Be grateful it’s there to be cared for.”
