Will to Way, Wilt Away

Chapter 25

Bzzt. Bzzt.

For the next month, a small colony of bees swarmed around in the hive of my hoodie pocket. The sound of each sudden buzz made me flinch, and every time I looked at one of the bees, it relentlessly stung me in the chest. Swatting them away was no use either; it only amplified the maddening drone they emitted. However, little by little, the buzzing in the colony subsided, as each bee fell dead after stinging me.

Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt. Bzzt.

Julius on July 12, 2020, 2:03 AM:

Please, Aspen. I need to talk to you.

Shiloh on July 14, 2020, 5:24 PM:

julius just told me what happened. are you okay??

Julius on July 15, 2020, 4:44 AM:

I know I'm a burden. I'm sorry.

Julius on July 18, 2020, 11:17 PM

I've lost you. At least tell me that.

Shiloh on July 22, 2020, 9:05 AM:

has Indi called or texted you at all?? i can't find her.

Aria on July 23, 2020, 2:59 PM:

Hey, girl! Heard you went back to Sacramento. Hope you're having a good time. Has Indi happened to reach out to you.

Julius on July 29, 2020, 6:06 AM:

Just wanted to say thank you. For everything.

And then finally, silence. One day passed. Then one week passed. I forgot about the bees and fully recovered from their painful stings.

Bzzt. Bzzzzt. Bzzzzzzt.

"Dammit!" I shouted through clenched teeth. I let my phone ring out before taking it out from my pocket and checking the caller ID:

Missed call from Shiloh on August 9, 2020, 5:44 PM.

Frenzied footsteps approached my bedroom door. "Are you alright," my mom said while jogging into my room.

I put my phone back in my hoodie pocket. "Yea, good," I said contently, which was true besides the beehive.

"Okay, well for the movie tonight, Dad suggested The Glass Menagerie," she said. "He used to love this movie!"

"Sounds good." I sat up and moved to the edge of my bed. "So what's for dinner?"

"I was actually looking online today, and I found a paleo recipe with ground turkey and asparagus," she said. "Low calorie and high protein." She winked at me and then strutted out of my room in her four inch purple suede pumps. Apparently this was just a casual Sunday for her.

My mom and I were currently on the second week of our diet and exercise plan, which she called our Dash plan. Squats for a big butt, kale for a small waist, just like the Kardashians. My dad wasn't following the plan with us, but the three of us ate every meal together, so he was getting unintentionally snatched in the process. I myself lost four pounds and a half inch off my waist already. Instead of just feeling crappy about myself all the time, I was actually doing something about it, all thanks to my mom. Next stop: thigh gap.

As for my dad, he avoided me for much of my first two weeks back. I stayed in my room and he stayed in his. My mom was the ill-defined link between us, trekking up and down the halls to bring us our laundry and refill our beverages. We ate meals in our rooms, too.

Every other day, my mom made the concerted effort to ask if we wanted to have a family movie night. She thought that watching old movies would jog my dad's memory and slow down his worsening condition. I didn't particularly think that Sixteen Candles and Borat could combat terminal brain degeneration, but it seemed like a viable way to start some kind of relationship with my dad. Every time my mom asked me about these movie nights, I said "If Dad wants."