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“I guess, well speaking of working,” I removed the money from my pocket, “You stayed three extra hours,” I peeled off a twenty and handed it to her, “Here you go.”
“Nope,” She put her hands behind her back, “Bad enough your mother insists on paying me at all, I am not going to take extra.”
“Please? I feel…”
“Ryan, your mom is and your dad was, a good friend to me. I wish I could help your mother, but I don’t have much more than I need so the least I can do is give you guys some of my time.”
“Okay.” I put the money down, “I appreciate it.”
“I know you do.” She smiled, then turned serious, “Your mother got a call from the guy from the credit union and rushed out, you hear from her?”
“No. I’m trying to decide if that is good or bad news.”
“Well I don’t think she would tell you either over the phone so try not to worry.”
“Yeah, right.” I laughed.
“I’ll see you tomorrow night,” she said, as she walked past, “Ryan?”
“Yes?”
“Have your mother stop into the girls room tonight, even if it’s to just wake them up and kiss them good night, they’ve had a rough couple of nights they think she is not going to come back one of these nights.”
“I will.”
“You’re a good man, Ryan.” She touched my cheek, “You’ve grown up a lot the last few months, your mom is proud of you and I know your dad is too.”
“I… I try.”
“You’re succeeding, your mother tells me all the time how you’re trying to take care of her and how much closer the two of you have gotten, it’s good that you’re close to her right now, she needs it.”
“Yeah well I don’t feel like I’m doing much of anything.” I said glumly.
“You are, Ryan, just being by her side through this is doing plenty. Your mother needs a man to lean on and you’re the man in her life right now, at least until she decides she’s ready to move on.”
“I… I don’t like that idea.” I said softly.”But I have mentioned it to her.”
“Neither does she, right now, but someday she will. She’s only forty three, too young to be alone, and far too pretty and sweet. When she’s ready you need to let that happen, Ryan. You can’t make trouble for her.”
“I don’t want to; I just want her to be with someone who will be as good to her as dad.”
“And there are good men out there. There’s one right in front of me.”
“Well I’m not that kind of man for her.”
“Of course not! But you will make sure the next guy is. Have a good night.”
“You too.”
I closed the door behind her and after looking longingly at the couch decided to head right in to the girls. If I sat down I would not get back up. I thought about Mrs.
Williams words and frowned. I guess it was a part of life-and death-that mom would move on and find someone else, but who would be as good to her as my father was? And how would they be to the girls? I was twenty and wouldn’t be an issue, but my sisters were young and…
“One thing at a time.” I said out loud as dad always had when he was trying to figure things out. “Today is the day we have to get through, tomorrow is another day.”
I nodded as I could hear dad speaking in my mind. Today we had to worry about where the hell we were going to be living in a few months. We didn’t even have money to move which was why I was trying to sell my car, it would be enough to get us in somewhere and…
“Hey, Ryan!” Sarah called from down the hall “Come read to us!”
“Yeah,” Katie chimed in “And do those bad accents you did last time, they’re really funny!”
“Why of course my young ladies in waiting!” I called down the hallway in a shitty attempt at a British accent, “Your dashing big brother is on his way!”
I couldn’t help but smile as I followed the sound of their laughter down the hallway, but when I saw the family portrait that was taken last Christmas right before dad got sick, I was struck by a wave of sadness and recalled what mom had said many times in the last couple of months, “This house is the only home this family has known, it’s a part of our family, it is our family.”
Taking a deep breath and wiping a tear from my eye I stared at Mom in the picture in her favorite red dress and agreed with her. As I once again headed towards my giggling sisters tucked away in their beds, one thought ran through my mind, we had to save this house.
Chapter Two
I sat up on the couch at the sound of a car door slamming and saw the time on the cable box read five past one. I heard mom’s heels on the path that led from the side of the house to the front door and shook my head, hoping to shake the cobwebs from my exhausted mind.
I’d read to the girls for an hour, giving them the thrill of staying up until ten and pinky swearing them to secrecy that I let them.
After that I’d taken a long hot shower during which I recalled how high the gas bill was, but as if rebelling turned the water even hotter. I tossed on a pair of sweat pants and a Patriots t-shirt and went down to zone in front of the couch so I would catch mom when she came home.
Up less than a minute and my stomach began to turn at what news she would have. The fact she rushed to work at the club most likely was my answer that no help was coming, but I suppose I could hope.
The door opened and mom came in and the question about the bank was shoved aside and I exclaimed, “Mom, what the hell are you wearing?”
“Nice to see you too, honey.” Mom rolled her eyes as she tossed her sweater onto the chair near the door and approached the couch.
Mario’s, where mom worked, was a so called gentlemen’s club that was a full out strip club on one side, but the other was more of a cocktail and cigar lounge where the waitresses dressed skimpy, but were dressed. The lounge was for the type of guy whose wife would kill them if they went to a strip club; but still wanted to see some pretty women.
Mom’s outfit normally consisted of a black skirt that if I called it a mini would be doing it a favor, the thing barely went past her ass, along with fishnet stockings and a pair of heels I couldn’t believe she could walk in. But as revealing as the bottom was the top usually consisted of either a white button up blouse that would be open to a low cut sleeveless shirt beneath it.
Tonight however, mom was dressed as a slutty schoolgirl. The micro skirt was plaid, the stockings white, and there was a loosely knotted tie around her neck. What really caught me by surprise was underneath her white shirt which was unbuttoned, was a black mesh shirt that showed all of her breasts except for her nipples which were covered with round black patches of material.
“Jesus, Mom!” I shook my head as she all but fell into the corner of the couch opposite me, “That’s… that is way too much!”
“More like not enough,” she kicked off the black shoes she was wearing. They were heels, but adorned with the silver buckles of school girls shoes. “I…” she looked down and quickly closed her shirt and buttoned it at the middle, “I’m sorry, Ryan I should have covered up before I came in, I… figured you would be in bed and…”
“I always wait up for you.” I reminded her.
“You do, don’t you.” She smiled and I noted the deep red lipstick along with the heavy mascara and blush giving her a slutty appearance that pissed me off. To think mom had to do this for us, “You’re a good man Ryan, and a hell of a son.
The shirt mostly buttoned she continued to look at it, “But you’re right you do wait for me and I should know that, I guess I’m just… a little…”
“Run down and exhausted.” I finished, “Christ, mom, why did you work tonight?”
“Why do you think?” she asked, “Same reason you’re taking anyone’s shift that doesn’t show up at Wal-mart.” She pointed her long red nail at me “Even one you cut a class for, you better never do that again, Ryan or I’ll tell your boss you quit.”
“We need the money and it was only one class and I have an A in the bag and…”
“I don’t care!” Mom snapped, “School comes first, you got that?”
“Yes, mom.” There was no winning this one.
“What would dad say?”
“I don’t know.” I pointed at her, “I think he would still be yelling at you for that outfit.”
“Well,” Mom grinned, “Depends where I was wearing it.”
“Out in public would not be his idea of it.”
“True.” She lifted her long legs and stretched them out, wiggling her toes in the white stockings, “It really is ridiculous, not like I look like I’m eighteen.”
“Mom, really, why are you wearing that? Tell me you don’t have to dress this… bad, every night.”Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.
“No, well…” she shrugged, “One of the girls that works a room on the other side called out and I got her shift, but they dress in different costumes.”
“You were in the strip club?”
“One of the private rooms, don’t worry, the waitresses stay dressed, they have to or the strippers would lose tips and be pissed, but it pays a hundred a night plus the tips and I made over two hundred in…”
“I don’t care, mom, you look like… you look like some milf in a bad porno!”
“I guess I do.” She said nodding, “But thanks for the compliment.” She touched the skirt, “You’re right though, something out of a Malcolm Stone special.” She laughed, “The desperate milf waitress.”