Chapter 13: Let’s Taco Bout It
It's fucked up how love and fear can occupy the same space in your heart. Standing on my own front porch, takeout bag gripped in my sweaty palm, I feel like I'm about to face a firing squad instead of my own mother.
The weight of the day sits heavy on my shoulders. Getting a job at QuickMart. Becoming Sabrina's boyfriend.
Today's her first day as a professor at the university, and despite everything, I'm proud of her. Proud enough to brave this twisted tension between us.
"You got this," I mutter to myself, fishing my keys from my pocket. "Just be normal. Talk about her first day. Don't think about her hand on your dick."
I cut that thought off real quick, taking a deep breath before sliding the key into the lock. The door swings open with a familiar creak, and I step inside, the smell of home hitting me like a physical force.
"Mom?" I call out, my voice steadier than I expected.
I follow the soft rustling of papers to the living room and freeze in the doorway, the sight before me temporarily short-circuiting my brain.
Mom sits cross-legged on the couch, surrounded by stacks of papers. But it's not the papers that make my heart stutter, it's her. She's wearing slim glasses I've never seen before, perched delicately on her nose as she reads. Her white hair is pulled back in a high ponytail, a few stray strands framing her face. She's dressed in a crisp white blouse and pencil skirt, looking every bit the professor she now is.
She glances up, those blue eyes magnified slightly behind the lenses and smiles. "Hello, sweety."
My heart melts in my chest like ice cream on hot pavement. This new look, professional, sophisticated, yet somehow still her, hits me in ways I wasn't prepared for. The glasses make her look smarter, the ponytail younger. The combination is devastating.
"Hey, Mom," I manage, lifting the paper bag. "I brought home dinner."