From The Other Side

7. too much

SEVEN
too much

Thursday, February 25th

Isaiah woke up a lot earlier than he usually did, and it showed. The already dark bags under his eyes were worse due to lack of sleep, his hair was unruly and frizzy, and his neck hurt from sleeping at an odd angle. All in all, he felt like shit.

              His family was exchanging looks between each other at the table, eyebrows raised in a silent "what the fuck is up with him?" Isaiah wanted to know the answer to that, too. He had to skip breakfast because he took too long to get ready, and pairing that with exhaustion was a disaster waiting to happen.

                "You sure you don't need someone to pick you up?" his mother asked, pressing the back of her hand against his forehead. "You seem too tired to drive."

                   Isaiah sighed. "I'm fine."

                   She wasn't convinced in the slightest. "I'll allow you to stay home just this once," she suggested. "Or you can go in late. You're worrying me, mijo."

                    "I can't stay home," he mumbled. "I'll lose my exemptions. I don't really want to be taking an exam on the last day of school."

                    She nodded in understanding and kissed his cheek, brushed his hair back with her hand to kiss his forehead next. "I can drive you," she told him. "I don't mind. And you can have one of your friends take you home."

                    "Ma," he groaned. "I'm fine, I swear."

                    "You can always talk to me, you know that?" she pressed, cupping his face in her hands. "I know you must be stressed lately with the end of the year coming up. With baseball, too. You can always talk to me and your father."

                      Isaiah let out a soft laugh and gently pulled her hands away from his face. "Nothing's wrong," he lied. "I promise."

                     She sighed and took a step back. "Boys," she said with a scowl. "They never talk about their emotions. Surprise, mijo, we all cry! You did it when you came out of me!"

                    Isaiah's eyes widened in horror. "Mom!" he cried, placing his palm over her mouth before she could say more. "I did not need to hear that."

His mother rolled her eyes and pulled his hand away. "Too bad."

"Oh my God, I'm leaving," he muttered. "Bye. I'll see you when I get home."

"Drive safe, Isaiah. Te quiero mucho."

Isaiah smiled, snatching his keys up from the counter. "I love you, too."

___

He arrived at school in one piece and made sure to relay that information to his mom over text. She replied with a dozen emojis expressing her happiness, which made him laugh to himself.

After his conversation with her, he felt lighter than he had when he'd woke up. His shoulders had been heavy and his mind cloudy, but now it lessened to a point where he could actually function.