Love, Scars, & Shooting Stars

Chapter Thirty-Six

Finn emptied his dirty laundry into the hamper and kept one ear trained toward the door, listening for his mother's footsteps on the stairs outside. She had been waiting at the bottom of the stairs when Mrs. Gibb had brought him home—still in her pajamas and drinking a cup of coffee, the picture of casual calm—but Finn knew right away that something was up. Her smile was a little too wide, her tone just a bit too cheerful.

Easing the curtain aside, Finn peeked out through the front window. His mother was standing in the driveway making small talk with Mrs. Gibb, so he probably had at least ten minutes to figure out what he was in trouble for this time. Because that had to be it, right? What else could it possibly be?

Finn felt the blood drain from his face, and he raced to his room, breathing a sigh of relief when he found the Victoria's Secret catalog underneath his mattress, right where he had hidden it. The blond model on the cover gazed up at him with a seductive smile, something that would never happen in real life, not that Finn cared all that much. Girls made him nervous, especially real girls, and he wasn't even sure why he had kept the catalog in the first place, other than to keep Brandon from thinking that he was a wussy. Brandon had an extensive collection of Victoria's Secret catalogs that he had filched from his mother's mail, and when he had offered to let Finn keep one, well... it would've been impolite not to accept, right?

Tucking the blond model and her colleagues back beneath the mattress, Finn returned to the front room to peer out the window again. His mother was waving Mrs. Gibb off, so he flopped down onto the couch to await the storm that was coming his way. Whatever punishment his mother had in store for him, he wished she'd just get it over with.

In a backhanded answer to his wish, the door swung open and his mother came into the apartment. Finn kept his gaze pinned to the floor as she crossed the room and sat down on the couch beside him.

"Phineas," she said. "We need to talk."

Uh-oh, he thought miserably. The full first name is never a good sign...

"Don't you need to get ready for work?" Finn ventured anxiously. "You're going to be late."

"I'm not working today, I took the day off."

Oh, crap! Now I know I'm in trouble!

"It's just a catalog, Mom!" The confession spilled from Finn's lips like water. "I didn't even want it, and I've only looked at it a few times! I'll throw it away right now if you want! I don't even care, I didn't even want it!"

His mother's eyebrows drew together, and she stared at him like he had two heads.

"Phineas, I have no idea what you're talking about," she shook her head. "What catalog?"

Oh, crap!

"Uh... nothing, Mom. It's nothing. What did you want to talk to me about?"

His mother reached out to squeeze his hand, and even though she attempted a smile, there were tears in her eyes. She turned away and leaned forward with her hands clasped together and pressed against her forehead, almost as if she was praying.

"Mom?" Finn said, suddenly scared for reasons he couldn't define. "What's going on? What is it?"

A long moment passed before she sat up, releasing a long, slow rush of air as she did. Turning toward him, his mother took both of his hands and looked straight into his eyes.

"It's your father, Finn," she said. "He wants to meet you."