“Good morning,” I greeted Jay when he opened his eyes on Saturday.
“Good morning,” he returned groggily. “What time is it?”
“It’s eight o’clock.”
“Have you talked to your mom? Did she leave at five?”
“She actually left last night and didn’t tell us. She was able to leave her shift early so instead of having to wake up early, she got to town late. She’s sleeping in, but she’ll be here at ten o’clock,” I informed him.
“Okay, I’ll get up at nine thirty to shower.” He pulled the covers up and over his shoulder and then stopped abruptly, sitting up a bit. “Unless…”
I smiled coyly. “As tempting as you are, I need to cook breakfast—”
“Cook breakfast?!” He reacted dramatically.
I rolled my eyes and stifled a laugh. “Yes! Don’t do that. Don’t act like I’ve never cooked!”
“Yeah yeah yeah,” he mumbled through a yawn.
“I’ll show you!”
I showered, prepped my hair, and then cooked a breakfast of bacon, eggs, and pancakes. By the time my phone rang, and I saw it was my mom, I just finished setting the table.
“Hello?”
“I’m parking now,” my mom announced. “After a six-and-a-half-hour drive and then sleeping like a log in that hotel room, I’m hungry! I’m going to need more than coffee!”
My mom’s voice brought a smile to my face. “I cooked breakfast!” I laughed.
Two minutes later she knocked on the door. When I swung it open, we both let out excited squeals. After a long, dramatic hug, Mom started to cry.
“You look beautiful,” she said, cupping my cheeks. “I’ve missed you. I’ve been thinking about you so much—even more than usual. I just can’t imagine what the Yates family is going through right now. I could not even fathom losing you.”
My heart hurt as I pulled away. I hated to see her cry. And then I realized that she was going to be even more devasted by the news I had to tell her.
“Mom, stop crying. It’s okay.” I squeezed her hands. “I’m here. You’re here. And I made breakfast.”
She wiped the tears from her eyes. “Is it edible?”
We laughed.
“Go dry your tears.” I pointed to the bathroom. “I’ll get the drinks.”
She took off her jacket and handed me her handbag.
“Hey, Mrs. Cage,” Jay welcomed my mom as he walked down the hall.
“I don’t know how many times I have to tell you to call me Pamela!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms open for a hug.
As they made small talk, I washed my hands and grabbed the orange juice.
“This looks good,” Jay commented as he came and took a seat at the table. Looking over his shoulder to make sure my mom was still in the bathroom, he leaned over and kissed me. “You look good, too.”
I was wearing a pair of black leggings and one of his white UFIT t-shirts. He was wearing a pair of black basketball shorts and a white UFIT t-shirt.
“James, we match.”
He looked down and laughed. “Wow, I didn’t even notice.”
“Mom is going to think something is up.”
He made a face. “She already thinks something is up.”
“Yeah, but this”—I gestured emphatically between the two of us— “looks too cutesy.”
“Whose fault is that?”
“Yours! I was dressed first,” I argued.
“And you stole my shirt,” he countered with a raised eyebrow.
I nodded. “You’re right.”
We burst out laughing.
“What are you two laughing about?” Mom asked as she joined us at the table.
“Your daughter stole my shirt,” he ratted me out immediately.
I shook my head. “Let’s eat.”
Breakfast was delicious. I didn’t cook often, but when I did, I did it well. Once Jay finished, he excused himself. He said he was going to get dressed for the funeral, but I knew he wanted me to use that time to talk to my mom about what was going on.
As much as I wanted to tell her everything, I thought it would be best after the funeral. I wanted to give her time to process and give us more time to talk. I didn’t want it to be rushed.
Or that’s what I convinced myself I was doing.
Instead, I only told her about one part.
“I’m going to be staying with Jay for the rest of the semester. My housing assignment was messed up and then after what happened at the Cheer House, it made the most sense to stay with someone I love and trust.”
Mom peeked down the hall and then lowered her voice conspiratorially. “You love him,” she teased. “Oooooooooo!”
“Mom,” I laughed.
She shrugged. “One of these days you two are going to realize it. But let me tell you, don’t get pregnant. You two may be friends now, but when you realize you two love each other, make sure you have condoms and you use them every single time. It only takes one time to slip up and get pregnant.”
“Mom!” I yelped, swatting at her arm playfully.
“Are you okay though? Did they say why your housing assignment is still messed up?”
I shook my head. “But I’m going to worry about that after the funeral.”
Her hand covered mine. “I understand.”
We talked for a few more minutes before I turned on the television and left her to get ready.
Donning a formfitting black dress with my hair pinned up elegantly, I followed my mom and Jay out of the apartment. The church where the funeral was being held wasn’t far away from campus. It was a famously old, restored church perched on a hill. Behind the church, at the bottom of the hill, the famed cemetery was situated. We anticipated a lot of people in attendance, so we left early. But we were not prepared for the traffic we encountered.
“This is the Yates family church?” Mom asked as the church loomed in front of
