Toxic 2: Lethal

Fine

Chapter1-Fine

"Mom, everything's fine."

"You're sure? The school is expecting you on the first day?"

I laughed. "Yes, mom. As much fun as it would be to not go, I can't really get away with that." Neither my dad, Larry, my dad's boyfriend/husband, my mother, or, especially, Ava, my girlfriend, would let me skip.

"I just don't want you to miss your senior year because of some dumb administrative problem."

"This isn't like back home. They wouldn't do that on purpose." They didn't know me yet to have a reason to 'forget' my class schedule. I had a clean slate so far.

Mom sighed. "Do you have enough supplies? Binders, pens, erasers, a backpack?"

"Mom, no one uses backpacks anymore. And I'm fine. Dad already took me shopping for that stuff." So that was a lie. Ava had taken me to do all that. At midnight. Out of town. But dad knew so it wasn't entirely a lie.

After finding out I was gay, and dating Ava, mom was upset with me. But she loved me and she couldn't abandon me just because I loved a girl. Frankly, Ava was better than my ex who, rest in peace, wasn't a good influence on me.

And, oh yeah, he died not long before Ava and I got back together. She even told me she was afraid that if I died and we weren't together, she'd never forgive herself. Larry had guilted her into talking to me. But was I arguing? Not. At. All.

"Let me know if you need anything. I can wire you money or mail something or I can come see you-"

"Okay, mom. I'll talk to you later." I watched Ava sit down on my bed, her camera strap around her neck.

"So soon? I-"

"Ava's here. I have to go."

"You know, it wouldn't kill you to talk to your mother once in a while."

"You'd be surprised."

She sighed. "Call me if you need me. I love you, sweetheart."

I sat beside Ava and kissed her cheek. "Love you, too." I hung up and tossed my phone to the other end of the bed, my aim horrible since I was using my left hand. My right hand, or wrist really, had been broken in a car accident. The same one that killed my ex-boyfriend, Jason.

"Your mom?" Ava asked, looking up from her camera screen.

I nodded. "Worrying as usual."

She laughed. "Dad's the same way. I swear he worries about me at work when there are better things to worry about."

"Like chocolate milkshakes that we aren't getting nearly enough."

She patted my knee, carefully since it, too, was inured. "He's just keeping us thin."

"And hungry."

She laughed and rested her head on my shoulder. "Dad said I can't stay the night tonight."

"Why not?"

"He's worried we won't get any sleep and miss school tomorrow."

I cringed at the mention of school. "Miss our first day of basically all our time spent together? He's not really thinking right."

"I may have forgotten to mention that. I would have gotten a lecture on how important school is and that I should focus on a relationship when I'm stable financially and all that. Not really worth the headache."

"You can do both, you know."

"I know. But dad doesn't." She sighed. "He'll know soon enough though."