Midnight, the Stars and You [ G. Impact ]

five | V

╭─━━━━━━━━━━─╮

Against your better judgment, you did what Zhang recommended and called your mom.

You leaned your forearms against the balcony of Wangshu Inn and scrolled until you found her contact. While you hesitated, you let yourself leisurely observe the scenery around you.

Low-hanging clouds were dusted pink and orange, outlined with the silhouette of the dying light. They remained stagnant in the sky as there was no breeze to push them along. Subtle scents of grilling food wafted by from the outdoor restaurant nearby. Sucking in a breath, you pressed the call button.

It rang a little longer than usual and raised your hopes that she might not answer. Those aspirations were quickly thwarted.

She sounded out of breath when she picked up. "Hello?"

Your index finger picked at your vicinal thumb. "Hey, Mom."

"Oh," your name followed her realization. "I didn't realize you got a new number."

You realized you had forgotten to text her.

"Yeah, uh... I dropped my phone in the ocean a few days ago. Zhang got me a new one."

"Did he?" She chuckled lightly. "The ocean, huh? Sounds like you're having a good time up there."

"So far so good. Now that I'm older, I can understand the jokes he makes that used to go over my head."

"That's great."

"Yeah," you said. A short silence took over and you began to pick at the railing. You heard muffled voices from the other side of the speaker and you quickly checked your clock app.

She should have been off work by now. The time difference was slight, but enough to where your mother should have gone home hours ago.

"Are you still at work?" you asked, hardly able to hide the animosity in your voice.

Your mother sighed. "A few things needed my attention and I lost track of time."

"I see."

"How's the new phone?"

She sensed your irritability and did her best to avert the spotlight from herself. You rolled your eyes behind closed lids and answered briefly.

"It's fine. Same model as Zhang's."

"I'm surprised you went down without a fight. You never budged an inch when I tried to get you a new one. Why is it different all of a sudden?"

"It was beyond saving. You'd be surprised how damaging the saltwater is."

She paused. "You know, I've always told you that you need to let go. It's been three years already."

"As if you're in any place to preach," you spat. "Look at you, even now. Work won't distract you forever."

"We've gone over this. I'm doing my best as a widowed mother. I work to support us—to support you. There's only so much I can do now that I'm alone..." Her voice broke near the end. You almost felt bad for her, but you've heard this same spiel over and over again. This was old news.

"You weren't alone. You had me."

She scoffed and you resisted the urge to hang up on the spot. "I couldn't put that weight on your shoulders when it was barely upheld on my own. I did what I thought was best, to keep you away from that part of me and to be strong for your sake. How can you resent me for that?"