Berrybog Boys (BxB)

Chapter XVII: The Teacup

"He's kicking you out?" Sinead furrowed her brows, bitter disapproval on her tongue. She could tell something was wrong the moment Ciaran stepped into her house for their weekly afternoon tea. He did his best to hide it, bless his heart, but she wouldn't be fooled. Not when the scones and drinks she laid down on the table in the living room were barely touched, sunlight reflecting on the golden rim of his teacup undisturbed. Hearing the details about his accident did little to calm her down, as did the information that Mr. Thompson got fed up with them living under one roof.

"Yep," Ciaran confirmed, his tone too perky for someone who was currently becoming homeless, "Can't say I blame him."

"Well, I think it's a bit harsh. Eviction for destroying some shrubs?"

"And a fence." Ciaran winced, remembering his accident from a week ago.

"Oh please, you fixed every appliance in that house at least once. Can't you repair the fence and they'd let this go?"

"Already did. The Thompsons don't care. They think I was driving drunk and they're lucky I didn't kill them," he laughed, but Sinead could feel the bitterness in his voice. "I appreciate how much faith they have in my car, but I doubt it'd be able to break through a stone wall and drive up the stairs into their bedroom."

Sinead gave him a small smile from behind her teacup. The joke wasn't funny and they both knew it, but it was the only comfort she could give him.

"I wasn't, by the way. Drunk, I mean," Ciaran added, avoiding eye contact.

"I know."

"I swear, these goddamn animals-"

Sinead let him talk. She was slowly drinking her tea, listening to his rant enough to figure out that it would give PETA a heart attack, but the rest of her mind drifted away.

She got an idea. She could use this problem to solve another problem. The problems would cancel each other out. Or, well, the whole situation would end up with murder, but isn't that just another way to solve a problem?

"So what are you going to do?" She asked when her son calmed down a little.

Ciaran cleaned his throat and looked around the room, avoiding her gaze. "Right. I wanted to talk to you about it. I'm going to look for a house to buy, but before I find one, could I stay-"

"No."

"Jesus, mom, you didn't even let me finish!"

"Do you really want to move back in with your mother?" She gave him a doubtful look. "Besides, you should be spending time with kids your own age."

"Ki- I'm thirty! Your best friend is younger than me! You let her stay here when she moved to Edenderry!"

"Yes, but Bernadette isn't my kid. She didn't have to hide cigarettes from me or come up with excuses why she's coming home in the early morning hours with crumpled clothes."

"Mom, we're drinking at the same pub! You paid for my beer like three days ago! I thought we're past hiding that I'm an adult who does adult activities!"

"And what if these adult activities include you wanting to bring home another young man?"

Ciaran stared at her with mouth slightly opened for a moment, trying to connect the meaning of her words with the casual way she said them. Finally it clicked and he threw his head back, hiding his face behind his palms.

"Fine. Fine, you're right." The words were muffled by Ciaran's hands. "I'll stay at Aiden's, I let him crash at my place when Sarah kicked him out."