Last One Standing (wattys2017) (UNDER CONSTRUCTION)

There's No Need To Fear, Wingwoman Is Here

I came down the stairs Friday morning to find a woman standing in our foyer.

For half a second, I thought she may have been one of my brother's summer flings, a real girlfriend at best. The thought quickly dissipated when I saw she was old enough to be our mother.

"Alexis?" the woman straightened out, her slanted eyes revealing some sort of Asian ancestry.

"Do I know you?" I questioned skeptically.

"My name is Jennifer Fisher. I've been informed your my son's closest friend." she stated, sounding so polite that I had to resist the urge to laugh.

"Toby sent you here?" I clarified what she was saying, "Is he alright?"

"Tobias is fine. I have come with a proposal for you, dear." I started to head toward the kitchen and pulled out a chair for her, making a gesture for her to sit down. With a curt nod, she took the seat and crossed her hands on her lap.

"A proposal?" I repeated.

"As you know, Tobias finds it difficult to acquire friends. Mr. Fisher and I hoped it was become easier as he got older. It did not. His brain excelled too quickly and most of his peers resented him for his perfect grades. He has made it very clear that he has taken a liking to you over the years." I nodded, making sure to keep my body from slouching in her presence.

It still amazed me that after ten years, I hadn't met Toby's mother until now.

"I have relatives visiting from Taiwan, my mother and Tobias' cousins. If my son hasn't already told you, my family can me quite judgmental. They expected me to be more than I am here in America and I have failed in their eyes." she waved off her comment, "My proposal is that you attend our family dinner on the day of their arrival. My sister's boys have both brought companions and I feel that I shouldn't give my mother and sister more to judge me on."

I thought through what she said for a moment, trying to figure out a reason why she couldn't have had Toby ask or explain what was going on.

"You want me to be Toby's date?" my eyes narrowed, "Does he know you're here?"

"He doesn't." she sighed, "But I was planning on telling him as soon as I got back to our house. Do you think you can think through the proposal and get back to me with your answer?" she rose from her seat and headed for the door, awaiting my answer.

"Yeah." I cleared my throat, "I mean, yes, of course." she bowed her head once in acknowledgment before stepping out the door and shutting the door gently behind her.

It wasn't until after I had grabbed a water from the fridge and headed back for the stairs that I questioned which of my brothers had let her in and where they had disappeared too during the strange conversation.

*

"I said if you died one more time, it was my turn." I ripped the controller from Mason's grip and threw myself down on the couch between Eliott and Ethan, both too preoccupied with watching some stupid stunt show on Youtube to notice the sudden divide between the two of them.

"You're such a guy, Alex." Ash muttered from the ground, restarting the game.

"I love you too, Bozo." I flicked the back of his head, my eyes lingering on the loading screen. The green bar hesitated for a moment before shooting across the screen and finishing off entirely.

"Alex!" Johnny shouted from somewhere in the house. I tried my best to ignore the irritating yell, but he made sure to turn himself into a broken record player until I finally tossed the remote back on the couch in frustration and stalked down the hall to his room.