Under The Lights

Twenty-four- Titan Pierce

I set a plate of food in front of Records mom as she takes a cautious seat beside her daughter.

I sit back down on the other side of her.

The resemblance between her and her mom is insane. She's shorter than Record though and she doesn't have her mom's eyes. Her mom's hair is in a big afro with grey streaks as she wears professional attire.

"So what do you do for work?" I can tell her mom is hesitant to speak but she does anyway as she cuts into her waffle.

I swallow my bite. "I own a book cafe. It's called Cafe Chronicles. Spend most of my days as a chef there."

"Book cafe?"

Im about to speak but Record beats me to it. "It's a library on one side with its own door and a cafe on the other side. They sell more than dessert and breakfast, they do lunch and dinner too. It's popular in town."

She just hums as she takes another bite. "A better profession than a tattoo artist." I furrow my eyebrows at the sudden dig.

I see Record roll her eyes like shes heard this a million times.

I can tell she doesn't like me but i see her trying for her daughter, even if she does shit on her daughter's profession.

"Tattooing is a very skilled profession. Record is very talented."

She ignores my comment."How long have you too been together?"

I open my mouth but Records quick to intervene again. "A couple months." She lies.

"Im asking him."

I clear my throat, looking between the two for a second. "Yea, a couple of months."

I understand why she would lie. I think her mom would be upset if she found out the real timeline. She'd probably drag me out of the house.

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-six."

"Record could you leave us for a second? I want to talk to him alone."

Record looks between us for a long second and i give her a nod telling her I'm okay. She slowly gets up and goes upstairs.

Once shes out of earshot Mrs. Lee takes Record's seat and i put down my fork, giving her my full attention.

She looks me straight in the eye with a very serious expression and it's a little scary.

"Are you serious about Record?"

I immediately nod. "Very."

Shes raises her eyebrow and clasps her hair together. "And she's actually letting you take care of her?"

"Yes?"

"Are you financially stable?" She asks.

"..yes."

"What kind of person are you?"

I furrow my eyebrows scratching my head. "I don't really know how to answer that."