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“Mom, be quiet.”
“Oh, sorry, am I embarrassing you?”
“Yes.”
“Hey, Rowan, right?” Mom swivels around once more in her seat, one hand shooting into the air as Jason and Rowan hang up their jackets and step inside. Rowan looks in our direction, confused. Then she spots me, and something dark drapes over her expression. She whispers something to Jason, who nods, looking annoyed, but then follows the waitress to their table. Rowan, however, comes walking in our direction, and for the first time in my adult life, I feel like I’d rather be swallowed by an unrelenting tidal wave.
“Um, hi,” Rowan says, stopping at the table. Mom is actually getting out of her seat to stand up and hug Rowan.
“Do you remember me?” Mom asks her. “I’m Matt’s mother, Melanie Nelson. We were just talking about you.”
“Oh,” Rowan says with a hint of surprise, her eyes landing on me. “I hope it was nothing bad.”
“Oh, no, sweetie, not bad at all.”
“Mom, sit down please,” I say between clenched teeth. Across the room, Jason is glaring at us with venomous hate. “Rowan, we’re sorry to keep you. Say hi to your boyfriend for me.”
“Boyfriend?” Mom repeats, looking past Rowan and at Jason. “I’m sorry, dear, I had no idea—”
“No, no, it’s fine,” Rowan assures her, squeezing my mom’s hand. I can see the way Rowan looks at my mom now; it’s the same way everyone who knew her before looks at her now. “Mrs. Nelson, how have you been? It’s certainly been a couple of years since I saw you last.”
“She’s fine,” I snap. I’m overwhelmed right now, unable to keep the simmer of rage from reaching boiling point. I’m angry to see Rowan with Jason, and even angrier that Rowan is standing here talking with my mom and me like we’ve been nothing but good friends the last six years of our lives.
“Matthew James, if you take that tone with me on more time tonight, I’ll smack your mouth,” Mom says, wheeling on me viciously. “Keep that attitude checked, son.”
Rowan smirks, just a little bit, but I can’t say anything to this, or even defend myself, because everyone knows my mom is not the person you want to mess with. She’ll take you out before you’ve even realized what’s coming.
“Sorry,” I mutter instead. Mom turns back to Rowan.
“I’m fine, dear, nothing relevant to bring up.”
Yeah, except your fucking cancer, I think. Even Rowan knows better than that, but she doesn’t push it either.
“It was really good to see you, Mrs. Nelson,” Rowan says, giving my mom a final hug. Her eyes float to mine, and I know she still wants to punch me after our run-in earlier.
As Rowan walks over to her table to join her geeky boyfriend, my mom sits back down in her seat and focuses her eyes on me.
“What in the hell was that?” she asks. “Who taught you to be so damn disrespectful?”
“Mom, I said I was sorry, okay?” I run a hand through shaggy hair and sigh, folding my arms. “Things are still kind of touchy with her, you know?”
“Yeah,” Mom agrees, glancing over her shoulder at Jason, who is still sneaking stabbing glances in my direction. “Her boyfriend probably could have told me that.”
“As far as I know, they’re not really dating. If I didn’t know any better, I’d assume that she’s with that idiot just to make the rest of us jealous.”
Mom shakes her head, lips pursed again. “You need to figure out where you stand with her, and she needs to figure out where she stands with you,” she says to me. “But more importantly, you need to figure out with Dereck and Bryce if it’s worth losing many, many years of close friendship over.”
“I know.”
Mom smiles at me across the table, finally done reading me the riot act. She reaches over the table once more and rests her cold hand on top of mine.
“You’re a good man,” she says. “So act like one, son.”
