Page 85 of Reaching Avery
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Later that evening, after I’d dropped Avery off and went home, I went into the living room where my mom was reading. She looked up from her book—probably another Nicholas Sparks one.
“Hey, sweet pea,” she said, placing the marker in her book. “How was rehearsal?”
“Great.” I plopped on the couch belly down and grabbed a pillow to rest my chin on. “I have some news. You know Avery? The friend I’ve mentioned a few times? Well, he and I are—”
“Karen, have you seen my cufflinks?” Dad asked, walking into the room with his awesome timing.
Mom looked up at him, clearly a bit irritated at the interruption. “They should be on the dresser in the silver box. Why do you need them now?”
“I don’t,” Dad said. “You and I are going to dinner at the Harrison’s tomorrow night, and I’m just trying to prepare.”
“Since when are we going to dinner?” Mom asked, and her irritation only became more noticeable.
I couldn’t blame her. Dad was always making plans for them without consulting with her first.
“Since today,” he answered, not reacting to her irritation because he was used to it. “Is that okay?”
Turning my head, I saw him smiling at her. They often argued, but they really did love each other.
“Whatever,” she answered, but I saw her smile too. Once Dad left again, she looked at me. “What were you saying, honey?”
“Avery and I are dating. I asked him last night.”
“And when do I get to meet this Avery?” Mom asked, narrowing her eyes. “You know your dad will want to meet him too.”
Yeah, that’s what I was worried about.
Dad hadn’t been mean to Chris or anything when they’d first met, but the way Chris dressed—wearing eyeshadow and even lip-gloss sometimes, as well as wearing feminine clothing when he wanted—had caused Dad to be overly judgmental of him. I’d even heard my parents talking a little after Chris and I started dating, and Dad had said, “Why can’t Mav date a normal gay?”
His statements had been ignorant because he didn’t understand. And when I tried explaining, it seemed to just go in one ear and out the other.
The idea of Dad meeting Avery didn’t bode well. Not with Avery’s emo-styled hair, black eyeliner, and gothic way of dressing. Just the thought of it made me uneasy.
“You’ll meet him soon,” I finally answered her. “I’m going to invite him over for dinner one night, if that’s okay.”
“Of course,” she said giving me the mom look, as if she could see right through my smile and to the underlying nerves. “Let me know when.”
I nodded and got off the couch. After kissing her on the top of the head, I started walking out.
“And don’t worry about your dad,” she said, stopping me. “I’ll handle him.”
I smiled before going up the stairs to my room. I had the best mom ever.
