Just For Tonight

Confirmed.

"Mistakes we all make them, but they won't let it go, no. 'Cause she's got a bad reputation but I know what they don't." 

"Wow, this looks incredible Alecia," I tell her as the entre is placed in front of me now. 

"Thank you," She says giving me a small smile as she sits back in her place scooting in gently, "So how did you two meet?" 

Looking to Christian I almost expect him to answer not sure if there's been a story given to her yet or not, he nods slightly encouraging me to tell her. Well okay then. "We met at a non-profit Gala I was hosting for the Make A Wish foundation. My company hosts the Gala annually in May and each year it gets bigger and bigger which is absolutely incredible for their sake. This year my team and I reached out to Christian and his team to see if he'd be interested in making an appearance. He accepted the offer and made his appearance and we met and he kinda hung around with me most of the night." That's a good enough condensed version of the events. Given Christian and my history and the fact I don't know what she knows or not, I kinda hope he fields any further questions.

"What's your family like? What do your parents do?" Alecia asks, of course, she'd have no clue about any of it. Of course, I'd never be so lucky to be able to have an easy answer for this one.

What do I even say right now? My dad was a dead beat, mom was too cracked out to care most of the time? Maybe I'll just allude to certain things hoping she doesn't define me simply by my parents' choices, "Well, I'm an only child," I start off glancing to Christian who's seeming to be a little nervous as to what I'm going to say and what the reaction might be. "My dad kinda skipped out on me, as far as I can really remember he wasn't ever around unless it was convenient to him." That part was easy, it's been part of my story for so long that it doesn't really bother me to tell. It's also common enough from my experience that people don't often think too much of it when they find out. "Then my mom was a Medical Sales Rep." Not exactly a complete lie, she was, at one point. 

"And what exactly do you do?" She asks now glancing to her son a moment before her eyes returned to me. There's something off about how he asked the question, it was more than just a what's my son's girlfriend do.

"I actually own AK Events based out in Milwaukee," I tell her, "I started the company when I was twenty and now I'm twenty-five and it's been more successful than ever."  

Alecia nods and I can tell she's not sure what to make of my career path. I suppose it's rational given its one office running every event and not a chain business or something like that. We could branch out but as of right now it doesn't feel necessary, or entirely practical. Especially now that I probably have an abundance of shit to deal with because of my mother. Taking in a breath I look down at my plate a moment. The stress I was pushing off almost getting overwhelming to me. My leg bounces unconsciously underneath the table as I do my best to continue my calm front. My mother always had a way with her timing, didn't she?  

The first time she'd gotten arrested for possession at the time I was seventeen. My softball team was on the bus to the state tournament and I got the collect call from the station of her asking me to grab her credit card and come bail her out. Needless to say, I was a little indisposed at the time and couldn't just up and bail her out so I had to call Alex and he had to get his dad to bail her out. I'd known she was into some shit but I didn't know it was getting arrested type shit. 

The lul in the conversation aids to us being able to eat however it also aids in my ability to let my thoughts spiral reminiscing on past events of my mother's disease. It was pretty hard to sit through and watch what she was doing to herself. She'd aged from looking her age, a woman in her early thirties, to looking as if she'd topple over from old age almost in the span of about a year and a half. Her skin cracked and scabbed over, hair string-like and greasy, skin seeming to just cling to bone and nothing else. Just nothing like the woman I'd grown up knowing. Not even close. God, I still can't even picture what she probably looks like now. Alex is going to have to, I don't know if they'll let him make the call to just cremate her or what, if not I'll probably have to make that call and see her myself too.