Mixed Up

2

* * *

   "Ding Dong!" went Brady's obnoxious doorbell.
   "I got it, mom," whispered Brady to his mom, who was laying on the living room couch.
   "Ok--okay, swe--sweetie," his mom said through her coughing.
   Brady opened up the door to Tiana stuffing her face with the rest of her omelet. Brady just looked at her with a brightened smile and chuckled.
   "Hey, Brady Bunch!" Tiana shouted through her chewing while entering his home. "Can I come i--"
   "Shhhh, Ti," interrupted Brady with a whisper pointing to his mother on the couch.
   "Oh . . . right. Sorry," Tiana whispered with sorrowful eyes.
   "It's fine," laughed Brady quietly.
   "Is that Tiana I hear?" said Brady's mom from the couch.
   "Yeah . . . Hey, Mrs. Thompson," Tiana chuckled. "How are you feeling?"
   "Well," she coughed with a smile, "I'm living."
   Tiana half smiled at Mrs. Thompson and then looked at Brady. He was looking down at his mother with a gloomy, depressed look. She hated seeing him like that, so she tried to cheer him up. She said smiling, "Don't worry, Mrs. T. I'm sure you'll kick cancer's ass for good this time!"
   Brady and his mother looked at eachother and laughed. Then Brady looked at Tiana with a half smile that indicated his thanks to her for making him laugh.
   "Well, hun. I sure hope so," Mrs. Thompson said coughing.
   Brady looked down at his mom again and then looked back at Tiana. He asked her, "So what's up, Ti?"
   "Well . . . I was just wondering if you asked your mom about the 'End of Summer' party tonight," Tiana said knowing that this is probably the first time Brady has ever heard about it.
   "Wh---what party?" Brady said clueless.
   "You know. The party I texted you about," Tiana said winking.
   "I have no idea what you're talking about. I haven't even checked my cell toda--"
   "Oh, Brady cut it out. If you want to go to the party, just ask, sweetie ," laughed Mrs. Thompson.
   "No, mom," Brady said, "I literally don't know what she's talking abo--."
   "Can Brady go to this "End of Summer" party tonight, Mrs. Thompson?" interrupted Tiana with a smirk.
   "Of course, he can," Mrs. Thompson coughed. "I trust that you won't do anything stupid," she laughed.
  "I won't because I'm not going," Brady said towards Tiana with a firm look.
  "Oh come on, Brady," Tiana smiled at him, "You're mom said you could go."
  "I'm not going," he said continuing to be firm.
  "Son, go have some fun tonight," said Mrs. Thompson.
  "No, mom," Brady said concerned, "I'm not leaving you here alone. Not while you're like this."
   "Brady, you need a br--break," she said through coughing.
   "No. You're worse than yesterday, mom," he argued back to her.
   "I'll be fine," she continued coughing.
   "No! See you're coughing like crazy---"
  "Brady Elijah Thompson, I will be fine. Your father will be home from work later. He can take care of me."
  "Yeah, not if he doesn't drink himself to sleep first," he said angrily.
  "Brady--," said Tiana as she grabbed his tense arm with concern. He looked at her with calm eyes.
  "Watch it Mr.," Mrs. Thompson said firmly to him.
  "Mom," Brady responded with a sigh, "I just want to take care of you. Is that too much to ask?"
   "And I just don't want you to throw your life away being cooped up in this house all the time—"
   "and I'm not throwing my life way, I'm just making sure that you keep yours! And plus, I go to school. That counts right?"
   "Brady, I am your mother and I'm telling you to go to that party. Now stop being so stubborn like your father."
   "I am NOTHING like dad. I wouldn't leave you sick on the couch—."
  "Now, stop it!", demanded his mom, "Listen, I know that you and your father aren't on good terms, but he's working his butt off trying to keep us afloat." Then, she started coughing again.
   Brady looked away from his mother, shook his head, and rolled his eyes in disgust and anger at the thought of his father. Tiana tried to calm him down by rubbing his arm. Then, Brady looked at her with melancholic eyes. He managed to push out a half smile, but then his mouth became sad again. Mrs. Thompson just looked at the both of them gazing at eachother and chuckled. "Brady," she said reaching out for his hand, "I love you so much, hun. You always are putting others before yourself. And for that, I am so grateful . . . " Brady, holding her hand, looked down at his mother and smiled with watery eyes. She continued on, "But it's about time I put you before me. I want you to go to that party. You've done so much, the least I can do is let you have fun at a party. And besides, your eighteen now. I know you know what's the right and wrong thing to do. You only live once right, Tiana?" she laughed.
   "Oh yeah, Mrs. T.," Tiana also laughed while looking at Brady, who finally laughed as well.
   "Okay, mom . . . ," Brady said still laughing, "I'll go, but I'm not leaving this house until dad gets home."
   "Okay, sweetie . . . I—I love you," she said squeezing his hand then letting go of it as she continued to cough.
   "I love you too," he half-smiled.
Tiana looked at them with a melancholic smile because she remembered how close she and her mother used to be. She missed having those moments with her like Brady and his mother have. Even though she was having a moment of grief, she quickly changed her expression to a smile when Brady looked at her in order to hide her real sadness. Typical Tiana.
   "Awww, Brady's a momma's boy," Tiana joked while shoving him playfully.
   "Shut it, rat," Brady laughed while playfully shoving her back.
Mrs. Thompson laughed at them and said playfully, "Now . . . will you two shut up and go somewhere other than the living room? I'm trying to sleep here!"
   Tiana and Brady laughed. Then, Tiana said, "Sorry, Mrs. T. We'll be going now," as she grabbed Brady's hand and dragged him upstairs to his room. Brady was caught blushing by his mom.
   "You two are the cutest. No rough housing up there, okay?" Mrs. Thompson said with a wink and a cough.
   "Ew, gross, mom!" Brady shouted as he and Tiana disappeared up the stairs. "You know me and Ti are just frie—."
   "Oh, we'll try not to, Mrs. Teeee!" Tiana playfully interrupted Brady to his mom from the top of the stairs.
   Then, Mrs. Thompson heard Brady's door shut, laughed, and finally closed her eyes to relax.

* * *

   "Are you crazy? My mom probably believes you," laughed Brady to Tiana as he watched her stretch out on his bed.
   "Aw come on, Brady," Tiana laughed, "she knows we're just friends."
   "Yeah, but she still has this slightest bit of hope that we will end up together," he laughed.
"I'm sure the whole world does. But you and I both know that we see eachother as nothing more than besties."
   "Besties, huh?" Brady laughed as he laid down on his bed right next to Tiana.
The two of them looked at eachother with smirks on their faces and busted out laughing.
   "Yeah, BFFs for life," Tiana said looking into his eyes with a smirk.
   "Yeah . . . for life," repeated Brady as he looked at her lips and then up at her eyes. He kissed her on her forehead as she chuckled in order to draw attention away from that long pause between them. Then he shook his head with a nervous laugh.
   "What's so funny?" Tiana asked.
   "The fact that your dad is even letting you go to this party tonight."
   "What's that supposed to mean, huh?"
   "It means that this is probably the only time you've actually asked him to go to a party."
   "No, it's not," lied Tiana.
   "Oh come on, Ti. You're telling me that the rest of those parties that you've been to were parties that you didn't lie to your dad about? Parties that you didn't sneak out to go to? Parties you've actually asked to go to?"
   "Hey, goody two shoes," Tiana said knowing she was guilty of sneaking out to parties, "you can't tell me that you've never done anything rebellious in your life too. You and you're dad for instance?"
   "Okay. . . you got me there. But at least I'm honest to my parents."
   "I am honest. . . sometimes."
   "Sure, you are," Brady chuckled sarcastically.
   "Shut up, okay?" she said playfully shoving him.
   "Ouch, okay . . . But . . . you do remember how you are at parties, right?"
   "How would you know, you never come to any of them with me."
   "Well, true, but what I do know is that after every party, I get a phone call from some random saying I should come pick you up because your not sober enough to drive yourself home. Which, you don't even have a car to drive anyway, so I don't know how you even get to those parties in the first place and how you haven't gotten caught yet!"
    "Okay, okay, you got me there. But my dad trust you so that's why this time, you're coming with me, so I won't screw anything up . . . this time. Also, to address your previous sassy comment, my dad is almost always sleeping whenever you pick me up, so sneaking back in is pretty easy."
    Brady rolled his eyes and laughed because he knew Tiana too well.
    "Okay, then . . . Well, I'm really hoping you don't screw anything up tonight," he smiled at her with a slight bit of concern and disbelief. He was really hoping that he wouldn't have to bring her home early from a party this time. Especially since today is the 10th anniversary of her mother's death.