Page 13 of So This Is Love

you have to go pretty far down my page to find this gem

The bubbles that indicate she’s typing appear then disappear and reappear again. Finally a message from her pops up.

withlove.laila

it’s a nice picture. your mom is beautiful.

Her response catches me off guard and makes me laugh, leaving an amused grin in its wake when I’m done. X glances my way but just shakes his head and keeps driving.

sonny

you’re right, she is.

sonny

what are you up to today? other than stalking me?

I wait in anticipation for the little bubbles to reappear to indicate that she’s responding, but minutes pass by and they don’t. The GPS shows that we only have about 20 minutes left for our drive. I close Instagram and open my notes app. Last night I couldn’t sleep and as usual when I’m up too late, song lyrics found their way to me. I look at what I have written and it’s bare bones, just a part of the chorus and a verse so I spend some time going over it, adding things, taking things out, until I like the direction that it’s going.

***

Xavier rolls down his window and leans over to type in the code to the gate. The wrought iron gates slowly slide open to grant us access into the community. The weather has warmed slightly in the past few days, so the nice white snow that blanketed the ground has turned into muddy slush. Xavier pulls into the driveway of my mom’s house and kills the engine. I use my key to let us into the side door and almost immediately a little body flings themselves at my legs.

“Uncle Bryce!”

My nephew RJ’s arms are wrapped around my leg and he looks up at me, grinning. I reach down and pick him up and give him a big hug.

“What’s up little man?” X says. X holds out his hand and RJ gives him an enthusiastic high five.

I set RJ back down and he runs off. Xavier and I take off our shoes and leave them by the door as I head further into the house in search of my mom.

My mom stands in the kitchen, one hand on her hip the other stirring something in a pot on the stove.

“Hey ma,” I call out.

She turns and smiles when she sees me and Xavier. I walk into the kitchen and she leaves the stove to give me a hug.

She hugs Xavier too. “How’s your mama doing?”

“She’s doing good, I’ll let her know you asked about her,” Xavier replies.

Xavier leaves the kitchen and goes to sit down on the couch in the family room where RJ is playing with a train set. RJ picks up one of the trains and hands it to X to get him to play with him.

“I didn’t think you’d be here until a little later.”

“My meeting wrapped up a little early so I just decided to come now. Is that okay?”

She stops stirring the pot and turns to give me one of her ‘mom’ looks. “You have never had to ask permission to be home and you don’t need to start now.”

My mom walks to the fridge and opens it, pulling out more ingredients for whatever she’s making.

“Do you need any help?”

“Nope I got it, but thank you for asking.”

I pull out one of the barstools at the island and sit down to spend time with my mom while she cooks.

“Are Lauryn and Shannon here too or just RJ?” I ask in reference to my older sisters.

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