accident.”
“Willow, I’m your mother. It’s impossible for me to forget that you’re ill. Especially when I learn that you’ve stopped taking your medication.” She watches me closely as she drops that little bomb. How did she know?
I know the answer. And it infuriates me.
Sage.
“Mom, I’m fine. I feel fine, I’ve been doing fine. I’m fine . This was just an accident.”
I try to keep a lid on my growing impatience.
“You wouldn’t tell me if things weren’t fine,” she accuses.
“Probably not, but that’s not the case here. I really am fine. I have been for a while now. I am just as healthy and normal as everybody else. I just had to grow up. People mature and change, Mom. And one day you’re going to have to accept that I have.”
“But your sister told me about that man. It sounds so much like—”
My temper rises. “Mom, stop. Stop right there. Sage has no business telling you stuff like that. It was a misunderstanding. That’s all. She’s just as prone to overreacting as you are.”
“She’s just concerned about you, Willow.”
“No, she’s not. It was her stupid prying that even got me into this mess!”
“What mess?” I can see that my mother’s agitation is rising in direct correlation to mine, so I purposely take a deep breath and back track.
“It was just a misunderstanding, Mom. I told you that. Nothing to worry about. I’m just tired and cranky, and my head hurts.”
“Let me get the nurse,” she says, moving toward the door.
“No, no need. She was just in here. She said I needed rest. That’s all.”
I hope my pointed remark makes its way through my mother’s thick skull.
“Would you like me to leave then?” She looks wounded, which only makes me feel that much worse about this whole thing. I’m sure on some level she means well. It’s just that she’s always been more worried about appearances than anything else and it’s hard for me to let that go.
“No, but I doubt I’ll be able to rest knowing that you’re here when you should be asleep. Why don’t you get some rest, too, and I’ll just see you in the morning?” I try to be as gentle as I can, conjuring a smile for added effect.
“I really don’t mind staying…”
“I know you don’t, Mom, but I’d feel better if you got some sleep after coming all this way.” My parents live over two hours from Tucker, and she was probably already zonked when the accident happened, which means this is far past her bedtime.
“If you’re sure...”
“I’m positive. Where are you staying?” I ask.
“Well, I thought I’d stay with you and your sister.”
Oh shit!
Two things happen as my mother speaks. Number one, I realize that she has no idea that Sage is gone. Number two, I remember why I have this dark-cloud feeling hanging over my head.
Sage.
She’s coming home in two days.
And my world will come crashing down around me.
TWO- EBON
Upon waking Tuesday morning, one of my first thoughts is of Monday night at play rehearsal. Willow Masters.
She seems determined to wiggle her way under my skin no matter how much I try to keep her out. If I had a single grain of intelligence, I’d tell her that I no longer want to read her story and put an end to all this madness.
But I can’t. Or I won’t. I’m not sure which it is; I only know that I’ll keep reading if she keeps writing.
That’s not my only worry now, though. Along with the added layer of complexity that the most recent portion of her story has brought, I’ve started to feel a growing sense of unease, like I’m missing something that should be evident. I hope there isn’t something going on with Willow that could end in her getting hurt. I’d hate to have neglected seeing the signs of some sort of emotional distress all because I have an insatiable lust for someone I can’t have. That would be pretty damn hard to live with.
The
“Willow, I’m your mother. It’s impossible for me to forget that you’re ill. Especially when I learn that you’ve stopped taking your medication.” She watches me closely as she drops that little bomb. How did she know?
I know the answer. And it infuriates me.
Sage.
“Mom, I’m fine. I feel fine, I’ve been doing fine. I’m fine . This was just an accident.”
I try to keep a lid on my growing impatience.
“You wouldn’t tell me if things weren’t fine,” she accuses.
“Probably not, but that’s not the case here. I really am fine. I have been for a while now. I am just as healthy and normal as everybody else. I just had to grow up. People mature and change, Mom. And one day you’re going to have to accept that I have.”
“But your sister told me about that man. It sounds so much like—”
My temper rises. “Mom, stop. Stop right there. Sage has no business telling you stuff like that. It was a misunderstanding. That’s all. She’s just as prone to overreacting as you are.”
“She’s just concerned about you, Willow.”
“No, she’s not. It was her stupid prying that even got me into this mess!”
“What mess?” I can see that my mother’s agitation is rising in direct correlation to mine, so I purposely take a deep breath and back track.
“It was just a misunderstanding, Mom. I told you that. Nothing to worry about. I’m just tired and cranky, and my head hurts.”
“Let me get the nurse,” she says, moving toward the door.
“No, no need. She was just in here. She said I needed rest. That’s all.”
I hope my pointed remark makes its way through my mother’s thick skull.
“Would you like me to leave then?” She looks wounded, which only makes me feel that much worse about this whole thing. I’m sure on some level she means well. It’s just that she’s always been more worried about appearances than anything else and it’s hard for me to let that go.
“No, but I doubt I’ll be able to rest knowing that you’re here when you should be asleep. Why don’t you get some rest, too, and I’ll just see you in the morning?” I try to be as gentle as I can, conjuring a smile for added effect.
“I really don’t mind staying…”
“I know you don’t, Mom, but I’d feel better if you got some sleep after coming all this way.” My parents live over two hours from Tucker, and she was probably already zonked when the accident happened, which means this is far past her bedtime.
“If you’re sure...”
“I’m positive. Where are you staying?” I ask.
“Well, I thought I’d stay with you and your sister.”
Oh shit!
Two things happen as my mother speaks. Number one, I realize that she has no idea that Sage is gone. Number two, I remember why I have this dark-cloud feeling hanging over my head.
Sage.
She’s coming home in two days.
And my world will come crashing down around me.
TWO- EBON
Upon waking Tuesday morning, one of my first thoughts is of Monday night at play rehearsal. Willow Masters.
She seems determined to wiggle her way under my skin no matter how much I try to keep her out. If I had a single grain of intelligence, I’d tell her that I no longer want to read her story and put an end to all this madness.
But I can’t. Or I won’t. I’m not sure which it is; I only know that I’ll keep reading if she keeps writing.
That’s not my only worry now, though. Along with the added layer of complexity that the most recent portion of her story has brought, I’ve started to feel a growing sense of unease, like I’m missing something that should be evident. I hope there isn’t something going on with Willow that could end in her getting hurt. I’d hate to have neglected seeing the signs of some sort of emotional distress all because I have an insatiable lust for someone I can’t have. That would be pretty damn hard to live with.
The
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