Meet Me in the Water

Chapter Three

Nicholas retreated to the bedroom after dessert. I wanted to retreat somewhere too but I was forced to stay back and help clean up, and then I had to say goodbye to my brother when his friend came to pick him up. After the coleslaw incident, the evening became filled with awkward silences. Maybe if Nicholas wasn't such a wiseass, then none of that would've happened.

"Whatever feud that's going on between you and Nicholas," Mom said as we brought some dessert trays into the house, "it stops now. We want to have a nice vacation and you boys are just causing us stress."

"He started it," I told her, placing the trays on the counter in the kitchen. "He's annoying."

She held up a hand to stop me. "I don't want to hear it. If I hear any arguing come from that bedroom, then so help me, you won't be studying abroad."

"Mom, you can't make that decision for me!" Studying abroad was my finish line for that next year. I spent countless hours doing research and talking to my guidance Counselor to figure out how we could make that happen.

"I can," she said sternly. "I could make sure of it. Remember? I agreed to pay half of the tuition."

I groaned. "Come on, Mom-"

She stopped me. "You are going to grow up and not ruin this vacation. You have six weeks. Learn to get along with him."

Hell, I spent seventeen years pretending to be straight. What's six weeks of pretending to get along with him? "Fine, but I'm doing this because I love you."

She made a face and pinched my cheek as if I was a fucking toddler and not an over six foot eighteen-year-old. "I love you too, sweetheart."

"Mom," I began quietly, "do you think I'm making a mistake? With taking a gap year, I mean."

She quickly shook her head. "No, not at all, hon. Many high school graduates take a gap year. It's an opportunity to grow as a person and take the time to decide what career path you want to take. You have an amazing plan, Seth. I'd hate for you not to work towards it."

"Are you disappointed that I'm not as smart as Kyle? He has no problem rubbing it in my face." Kyle was our very own golden boy. Perfect grades and perfect SAT scores. Being right behind him, I felt compared to him my entire life. His report cards were the ones that ended up on the kitchen fridge. Mine ended up in a folder stuffed in a box in my mom's closet. He got amazing comments from his teachers during parent-teacher conferences. My comments were full of things saying that I was sarcastic and had trouble paying attention in class. Then there were those teachers who said why I couldn't be more like my brother. Um, because he was a stuck up narcissist who didn't give a shit about anyone else but himself.

"You're street smart," Mom told me. I didn't know whether to be flattered or disappointed that she didn't think I was also book smart. I mean, I wasn't. But, she could have pretended. "You're smart in a way your brother will never be. You know how to handle the harsh realities of the world. Kyle is stuck in his little fantasy land." That made me feel a whole lot better. "You make dumb decisions a lot. Example is tonight. But, I have no doubt that you will make your place in this world."

Smiling, I wrapped her in a hug, happy when she hugged back. "You have no idea how much I needed to hear that."

She leaned up and kissed my cheek. "Just don't cause anymore disasters during this trip," she told me, leaning back. "You can cause all the disasters you want when we get home. For now, act like a civil boy."

I chuckled. "That's going to be hard for me, Mom." I leaned in and whispered, "I'm already pretending to be straight. I think now you're asking too much from me."