The Lovable Jerk (boyxboy)

Chapter 2

Arlo

"Mom, I got the job!" I exclaimed as I got in the house holding some groceries she had begged me to come with. "And the groceries!" I added but no one answered.

The house was too quiet. Mom should have been home. I put the bags in the kitchen and looked for my mother in her room but she was not there. Then I remembered she promised to pick up Tobias, my brother, from soccer practice which ended an hour ago. She should have been home a half hour ago.

Maybe they were just running late. While I waited for them to show up I decided to make dinner. Minutes later I heard the front door open.

"I'm back!" My mom exclaimed.

I grinned, running to her and giving her a hug.

"Someone's happy to see me." She laughed, holding her shopping bags tightly.

I wondered where she got the money to shop from but quickly forgot about the thought and smiled at her as I let her go.

"I got the..." I stopped and looked behind her noticing there was no Tobias. "Where's Tobias?" I asked and she looked at me confused.

"Aren't you the one who picks him up?" She asked walking ahead and putting her shopping bags on the couch.

I noticed that everything she got was either clothes, shoes, or deodorant. So instead of buying necessities like soap which was running out, she went ahead and bought clothes that she already had enough of. Last time I checked she did not have that much money to spend this carelessly.

But then again shopping was the only thing that seemed to make her happy. Funny because she would always complain about how broke we were almost every day after my dad left.

"I told you I had a job interview...Oh my god! I left the chicken in the oven. Please take it out when the timer rings!" I exclaimed, grabbing her car keys from her hands and running out.

I can not believe Tobias was there alone for two hours. Alone. My mom can be so selfish sometimes. I got in the car and drove to my little brother's school. I found him sitting alone on a bench just outside the school and judging from his facial expression he seemed bummed.

I sighed getting out of the car and walking towards him, knowing he was beyond angry now.

"Hey, I'm sorry I'm late," I said as I picked up his bag from the ground.

"I know mom was supposed to pick me up because of your interview, Arlo. So stop apologising." He said, rolling his eyes and entering the car.

"Sorry...she forgot," I said putting his bag on the back seat and entering the car.

"So how did it go?" He asked and I looked at him confused. "The interview? How did it go?"

"Oh, I got the job...You should have seen the guy I was competing with Tobi, he was so--"

"Please, don't say hot or I'll puke," Tobias said, already making gagging faces.

I rolled my eyes at him. Ever since he discovered I was gay, he would make such comments knowing they would make me laugh or comfortable. I say discover because with my little brother, Tobias, I did not need to come out. He figured it out alone, honestly, I still do not know how...He just entered my room one day and told me he knew with a bored look like I was so obvious and to be clear I was not obvious mom still did not know about my sexuality and it was not a talk I was ready to have with her.

"Scary...I was going to say scary but he was not bad looking. Anyway, that doesn't matter...I have Xander, my boyfriend, remember?" I said as I started driving.