The Dark Side of the Moon

T W E N T Y - T W O

"Get. Inside. Now." My mother demands. With wide eyes, I quickly follow her to the front door. At this moment, I forget my fear of the vampire, which is replaced by a whole new fear placed there by my angry mother. I've never seen her this livid before, and unlike the last fight we were in, I know her anger is warranted this time.

With an evil motherly glare directed at Cooper, she slams the door and directs all of her attention on me.

"Where the HELL were you Thea Skye Brooks?! You were out all night and never once checked in with me! Then, you show up in the middle of the afternoon with your friend looking like you've been beaten up! What happened?"

Under her screaming, I can hear the concern in her voice. Her eyes are traveling over my body, looking for scrapes and bruises staining my pale skin.

"It looks worse than it is, Mom," I begin. Telling her the truth isn't an option, so selective truth telling and small lies will have to convince her not to ground me for life. "I went out with Eli, Elle, and Cooper to a club last night. It was really crowded and someone bumped into me and I fell. And I was so tired that I fell asleep at their house." I speak the lie so fluidly that I'm honestly surprised that it sounds so realistic.

"Why didn't you call me? I was so worried, Thea!" She yells, then wraps me up in a bone-crushing hug. I don't notice she's crying until I felt her salty tears dripping on my shoulder. I immediately wrap my arms around her, basking in the comfort of her hug. We both needed the comfort.

After a few moments of our shared hug, I break from her to apologize again. "I'm sorry, Mom. I didn't mean to worry you. You were mad at me, so I wasn't sure if-"

"I don't care how mad you think I am at you!" she screams, startling me with her sudden switch in emotions. "You're my daughter! Of course I want to know where you're going and when to not expect you home. Oh, Thea."

She hugs me once more, and I just stand there and listen to her talk. My face is also smushed into her shoulder, so I wouldn't be able to talk if I wanted to.

"I have to apologize to you. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. You've never been late for babysitting Evie, and I was worried about you when you weren't answering. Then, when I saw you were with Grayson, my anger only intensified."

"I'm sorry, Mom. I got carried away and-"

"No," she interrupts, grabbing my hand and looking at me with her slightly teary eyes. "You're allowed to act your age and go on dates with boys. I was just stressed with work and money and I took it out on you. For that, I'm so very sorry honey. Can you forgive me?"

I give her a small smile before nodding my head. "Obviously. I thought you were overreacting just a tad," I squeak, holding up my thumb and pointer finger and almost pinched them together. We laughed, her covering her mouth with her hand to keep her laughter reeled in. I don't know why she always does that, she has one of those contagious laughs that once you hear it, you can't help but laugh along.

"But seriously, mom. If you need help with money, let me help you. With the money I get from Java I can really help us out."

"Absolutely not," she says, letting her pride get in the way. "I'm the mother, and I can support us on our own. I want you to save that money for your future, or to go shopping for once in your life without me having to make you. Honestly, when was the last time you went to the mall?" she questions.

"Ugh, mom. You know there's a million other things I'd rather do." Like going to the bookstore, we both think but don't say. She gives me a knowing look, but fortunately she changes the topic.

Unfortunately, she changes the subject to Grayson.

"So, how was your date with Grayson?"

I visibly stiffen, and my mom definitely notices based off of the look on her face. "What?" she asks. "I thought you and him were getting along..."