Linger

N I N E T Y

"Are you sure it's okay that we left everyone so soon?" I asked Daniel as we walked up to the field where the Blue Jackets were playing.

With summer right around the corner, the sun shined warmly above us, bringing a smile to everyone's faces watching the game as we past them on the way to the bleachers.

"Trust me, things weren't going to get better if we stayed any longer," he replied. "Especially with my mom there."

"What--"

"Maddie!!"

My heart dropped. I slowly turned around to see my mom holding a pastry bag. "Mom. Uh . . . hi. W--what are you doing here?"

"Katie's playing. I brought her here," she explained simply. She then tilted her head. "What are you doing here?"

Katie's playing. Of course she's playing. She plays here every Saturday. I just haven't gone to enough of her games to actually remember that.

I looked toward the field to my sister high-fiving her teammates, feeling a slight tug on my heart.

"Maddie?"

I glanced back at my mom looking at me expectantly. 

"I--Uh, wanted to surprise you!" I laughed weakly. "Uh . . . surprise . . . !!" I told her with what I hoped sounded like enthusiasm but in all honesty, I wanted nothing more than to disappear here in this moment.

"How have you been, Mrs. Parker?" Daniel stepped up next to me and I let out a sigh of relief.

My mom's eyes shifted to Daniel. "Dan! Oh! Everything's been selling like hotcakes! Or should I say cupcakes?" She laughed as she headed toward the pastry table already set up by the bleachers and we followed. "Poor Jackson was getting swamped so I stepped in to help."

"Thank you so much, Mrs. Parker," Daniel told her as he took his place behind the table "I'll take it from here so you can watch your daughter play."

"Let me know if you need anything else!" She nodded at him with a smile before turning to me. "Maddie, are you going to come sit with us?"

"Uh, yeah. I'm just going to get some pastries from the table then I'll meet you there." I gave her a quick smile.

"Okay. We'll save you a seat!"

I held my breath as she left and turned to Daniel.

He kept his head down, arranging the pastries on the table before lifting his gaze. His eyes shifted from my mom walking away to me. "Everything alright?"

"I don't like lying to her." I fiddled with my necklace as I stayed on the other side of the table. Although I knew it wasn't necessarily lying . . . it wasn't exactly being honest either.

"Sorry I couldn't exactly help you. I'm not sure if anything I say would make things better."

I shook my head, glancing toward the bleachers where my mom was now sitting with my dad and brother. "She's going to find out." My mind began to spin with endless possibilities of how this could turn out. "She's going to ask why I'm over here and not watching Katie."

"Maybe coming here wasn't such a good idea . . ." Daniel trailed off, lifting his eyes to me. "I didn't realize your parents would be here too."

"Yeah, neither did I," I replied faintly, keeping my eyes on my family before turning to Daniel. "But you have to be here! Your table is here." I nodded to the various delicious pastries displayed neatly on the table.

"Yeah but--."

"Maddie!!"

I turned around to see my mom walking up to us. "Thought I asked you to grab a few more popcorn treats?" She gave me a bright smile as she stepped up next to me. "Didn't you get my texts?"