Page 33 of Four Weddings to Fall in Love
“She doesn’t believe in marriage?”Mom screeches.“What are you doing to change her mind?”
Freddie shrugs.“Nothing.”
“Don’t you want to get married and have children?”
Dad pats Mom’s shoulder and says something quietly.He’s probably telling her to make less of a ruckus in the restaurant, but knowing her, that will just make her louder.
“You don’t need to get married to have kids,” I point out unhelpfully.
Mom opens her mouth and closes it a bunch of times.When she finally speaks, she turns her attention to me, unfortunately.“You haven’t dated anyone for a while.”
“No, I haven’t.”
“Maybe you should get back together with Troy,” Dad says.
Mom nods.“Yes, I liked him.”
“No, you didn’t,” I say.“Not particularly.”
“But he’s the best you can do, and I want at least one of my kids to get married.”
“The best I can do?I could do a hell of a lot better than Troy—”
“Don’t swear, Kim.”
“—if I were trying.”
“Then try!”
I look down at my teacup.I never told my mother that I swore off relationships; I’m not prepared for the chaos that would result.But could it really get much worse?
“What are the best apps for dating?”Mom asks.“I’ll make a profile for you.”
“No—”
“Tinder?Is that the best one?”
Freddie laughs into his teacup, and I refrain from telling my mother that I already have a Tinder profile.
“Susan’s daughter used a matchmaking service.”Mom clucks her tongue.“It was very expensive, but if this is what we need—”
“No,” I say.
A lot of conversations with my mother involve me saying “no” and her not listening.
“Relax, Mom,” Freddie says.“I’m sure Kim has it under control.”He’s the only person who can tell my mother to relax without her completely losing it.
Mom shakes her head.“I’ll ask my friends if they know any nice single men for you.”
“Please, no,” I say, but I can’t stop Max from popping into my head.If my mom had any idea what happened with him, I’d probably expire on the spot.
She ignores my response, as usual.“Don’t worry, I’ll ask.”
I sigh.I’m tired of fighting.It was nice to have Mom’s attention on Freddie for a little while, but now she’s back to fretting over me.
The server sets another bamboo steamer on our table, and I focus my attention on that.Maybe if I stare at it hard enough, I can disappear.
Wednesday at work, I get a text from Freddie.He asks if he can come over tonight and sleep on my couch, much to my surprise.We never hang out without Mom and Dad, and we rarely even text each other.
