All My Stars

14

"What do you think about this one?" I'm barely paying attention to my mother and she notices.

"Hello!" She waves her hand in front of my face quickly, startling me.

"I don't care about the cake, just choose something already"

"What do you mean you don't care?" She's practically hysterical, drawing attention to our table in the otherwise quiet cake shop.

I grab my phone not even thinking twice before pressing call.

"Hey" She answers after two rings.

"What kinda cake do you like?"

"What?" Natsumi questions.

"Cake" I don't elaborate, too irritated to say much more.

"I like cheesecake"

"Wait you do?" I didn't know that, I don't know alot of things actually.

"Yeah, I have a sweet thooth" Even though I can't see her, I can imagine the soft smile she wears.

"What kind is your favorite?"

My mother looks at me expectantly and I roll my eyes before getting up to find somewhere private to talk to Sumi.

"The plain ones with cherry" Her voice lilts at the end as if she can taste it in that moment.

"Why'd you wanna know?"

"For our wedding cake" It feels surreal to even say it.

"You should get something you like too" She points out.

"I don't really care much for cake" I brush off easily.

Jayla's words from a few days ago pops into my head and I'm already talking before I can even process it.

"Hey, what are you doing over the weekend? Are you working?"

"No, I don't work weekends unless I have to" She answers softly,  I can hear her rifling through papers.

"Do you wanna go do something then? I mean only if you want-"

"Yeah"

"It's kinda stupid, it's just some party"

" I want to" She affirms

"Okay" It's silent on both ends for a moment before the conversation picks up again.

"You agree so easily" I tease.

"To you, only you" Her words are spoken at the same octave as the rest of the conversation but something about it seems intimate like she'd only meant for me to hear it.

I don't know how to respond,  clutching my phone closer to my ear until my mother's voice begins grating on my nerves again as she babbles about how we need to get this done.

" I gotta go..."  I trail off softly.

"Okay" She doesn't argue, sounding relaxed as she responds to me.

"What time are you coming home?"

" Maybe 2 or 3 hours" A soft sigh leaves me as I look out at the already setting sun but I agree nonetheless.

"Okay, I'll see you at home"

"Yeah" It's quiet but neither of us hang up and I grip the phone as I listen to her breaths.

"Navi" My mother calls for me impatiently.

" I actually do have to go now so..bye"

"Bye" The mirth in her voice is palpable, even after the call has ended I can still remember it.

"I think we can go from here Mrs.Khan" Amelia turns to my mother.

"Excuse me?" She looks absolutely flabbergasted, the drama queen that she is.

" I mean no offense, I just think that we'd be able to get through this easier if Navi was relaxed" 

"She looks fine to me"

I muster up the blankest stare I could and directed it at her.

She scoffs angrily, snatching her purse up hastily and standing.

" I know how to leave when I'm not wanted but I won't be here when you need me"

" Somehow I don't find that surprising since you never were before" Her eyes narrow further and her mouth opens to retaliate but she sucks in a sharp breath and straightens, giving us one last look before leaving the shop.

Above everything, appearance is the most important thing to my mother and I don't think anything will ever change that, not even trying to defend her neglectful behavior to her own daughter.

I watch her go for a moment before turning to my wedding planner.

"Sorry" I say plainly.

"That's alright, so have you decided on a flavor" Amelia does her best to divert the conversation from the previous confrontation and I'm glad.

"Yeah, cheesecake. You know the regular ones that have cherries"

"Okay, do you have any decorating specifications?" She jots things down in her folder, adjusting details as we go.

"No not really, I just want it to be pretty"

She chuckles, writing the word 'pretty' in bold letters and underlining it several times, " Got it,  make it pretty"

As we're wrapping up to leave, Amelia goes over the last of the details for the cake.

"Alright so I'll send you the designs that they come up with later and you can decide or if they aren't exactly what you want just let me know and I'll have them adjust it, okay?"

"Yeah, thank you"

"No problem" She answers easily and just as I go to leave she stops me again.

"Hey um, Jayla invited me to a party... but I won't go if it causes like a conflict of interest here" She rambles nervously and I grip her shoulders to get her to relax.

" There is none. I'll see you there, yeah?"

"Okay"  She nods along excitedly and I wave goodbye as I make my way out of the shop before turning around and heading right back inside.

Amelia looks up in surprise from her conversation with the Manager and I wave her off before heading up to the counter.

"Can I have a slice of cheesecake with maraschino cherries please" The worker smiles at me before bagging the dessert.

"Would you like anything else?" He asks politely.

"No thank you, that's it" I pay before grabbing the bag and leaving once again.

My home is quiet when I pull into our garage, a vast difference in comparison to the bustling sidewalks at the entrance to our gated community.

I head inside and prepare a bath to unwind before starting my homework.

The hot water soothes my muscles  and I sit there longer than I have to, playing with the bubbles to the point where I don't hear Natsumi until she's opening the door to our en suite.

" Hey " She squats beside the tub balancing on her toes to greet me with a smile.

"Hi" The bubbles conceal most of me but her eyes still drag across the surface of the water for a moment before meeting mine again.

" I thought you weren't gonna be home for a while"

" I wasn't but then you sounded so sad" She's not even trying to tease as she moves to caress my neck for a moment.

"Oh"

"Mhm" She retracts her hand, meeting my eyes again and I sit up in the tub slightly, leaning forward more out of pure instinct.

She meets me halfway, staring at me as if deciding what to do. Her eyes are hooded as she gazes down on me and I tilt my head more up to her.

She inhales deeply as if fortifying her resolve before standing once again and I sink back into the tub.

"Finish your bath" her hand drums against the rim of the tub before she's gone again.