I stood motionless in the doorway. Mrs. Collins stared back at me. Her eyelashes seemed to flutter, and she made a point of tossing her hair.
I tried to gauge how much she'd had to drink.
This can't be happening
, I thought.
She's Chad's mom. She can't seriously be coming on to me. Can she?
"You work out, don't you?" she asked.
I cinched up my bathrobe. I had to force myself not to answer the question. "I-I should really go," I said. "It's late."
"You're a guest in my house. You don't want to be rude, do you?"
"Listen," I said, "Mrs. Collins, this whole thing about that picture... I don't want to get in the middle of you guys. I mean, between you and Chad--"
"Would you rather have your own picture there... maybe one with the two of you?"
I wanted to say yes, but I wasn't sure where she was going with this. Even assuming Chad and I were at that stage in our relationship--
"I'm probably saying too much," she mumbled, and she gave a tipsy nod. "The boys... they always say I embarrass them."
I hadn't expected that response. I started to wonder if I'd gotten the wrong idea. "Isn't that normal for a mom?"
"They're right though," she said. "I'm a horrible parent."
"I-- no, you can't be--"
"Look at the evidence," she said. "Patrick keeps getting in trouble, and I don't know what to do with him... and to tell you the truth, I don't know what to do with Chad either."
"Chad is fine."
"Thanks to you."
I blinked. "I'm sorry?"
"I still don't really understand it," she said, "but I can tell how much better he seems. He was so depressed after his basketball scholarships didn't work out, which was around the same time he and Valerie broke up. I was worried he'd end up like his brother... but last spring, somehow, it seemed like everything changed."
I frowned. I couldn't quite believe what I was hearing. "What do you mean, everything changed?"
"He was like his old self again... like the boy I'd known when he was a kid. His grades got better too. I could tell he was turning over a new leaf, I just didn't know why... and he acted strange whenever I asked him about it. He wouldn't give me details for months. Not that I blame him, knowing what I know now... but I do hate that I made him feel that way."
"Well," I said, "this stuff is complicated. You can't really blame yourself--"
"Are you trying to give me advice?" she asked. "You're not even half my age."
"I... well, I didn't mean it like that--"
"I didn't say it was a bad thing. I'm the one who doesn't have it together... between that and the fact that my marriage is on the rocks."
I swallowed hard. "I'm really sorry to hear that," I said.
"I haven't had sex in two years," she said. "It's as if Bill forgot about me... not to mention my needs."
A pang of discomfort rippled through my body. I didn't want to talk about those particular needs. But before I could say anything, she cleared her throat.
"It's almost over though," she said, "at least I think so... now that he's talking about moving away."
"What?"
"He's been offered a job at his company headquarters. They want him to relocate to Reston, Virginia. I told him he can do what he wants, but I'm staying right here... so whatever he decides, I guess that's up to him."
"Oh," I said. "I'm sorry...."
"It's my own fault," she said. "I made an impulsive decision, and I should've known better."
"What do you mean?"
"Did Chad ever tell you how the two of us met?"
I shook my head. "No...."
"I was on vacation in Hawaii, and Bill was on shore leave. Of course, being young, I felt like I was in paradise, and I told myself it was love at first sight. But then reality set in, and he got orders to ship out. I was worried I'd never see him again... so we got engaged. Even though we hardly knew each other."
I didn't know how to respond to that. It was a helluva lot to digest.
"I mean, he did give me my kids, so it wasn't a complete waste... but now here I am, at an age where I should be the wise one, and I don't even know what I want in my life."
"I... w-well, I'm not sure it's not that bad--"
"How do you figure?" she asked. "How am I supposed to find someone new? Online dating? I don't have the first clue how that works. When I met Bill, it didn't even exist."
"You'll figure things out."
She stared at her wine bottle. "I wish I was that optimistic," she said. "Anyway, I guess my point is... I don't want you to make the same mistakes I did."
"They weren't really mistakes," I said, "you just said so yourself."
"Humph," she said. "Well, at least you're off to a good start... you've already known each other longer than Bill and I did."
I bit my lip. I wondered if she was implying that Chad and I could get married.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to dump this on you... it's gotta be the wine talking. I really shouldn't be drinking this much, it's just, I-I...."
"It's okay," I said.
"I guess you were right. Y-you probably should go back to bed. I, well, I don't want to keep you up longer than I already have."
I forced a smile. "Are you gonna be okay down here?"
"I'll be fine," she said. "I need to call it a night myself... and Scott?"
"Yeah?"
She let out a loud sigh. "Chad really cares about you," she said, "even if he doesn't always say so. I guess what I'm trying to tell you is, whatever you're doing... keep it up."
I didn't quite know how to respond. I just nodded. "I'll try," I said, then told her good night and headed back upstairs.
When I got back to Chad's room, he was still fast asleep. He was still naked, with his sheets twisted around parts of his body, and his cock and balls in full view. I hurried into the room, shut the door behind me, and dropped my bathrobe. Then I snuggled up to Chad, and I savored the feeling of his skin against mine. Holding him like this had always made me feel safe, and that particular night was no different. It helped me put my worries aside-- at least temporarily-- and combined with my exhaustion, it helped me fall asleep.
The next day was the first time Chad and I had nothing on our calendars: we had no classes to get to, no assignments to worry about, and no flights to catch. We would've had sex-- probably multiple times-- if we weren't already spent from the night before. But we did the next-best thing, which was to spend the whole morning naked, holed up in his bedroom.
Of course I had to tell Chad what had happened. I couldn't tell if his mom had broken the picture frame on purpose, but I didn't think it mattered, especially since Chad had already asked her to take it down. I was a hell of a lot more worried about the state of their marriage, and what Chad might have to go through. But he wasn't fazed by anything I said; he seemed to have heard it all before.
"You know," he said, "my dad was never going to win the award for father of the year. What you're seeing now is nothing new: he'd always be gone for months at a time, sometimes more than a year. I can't tell you how many times he missed my birthday... and forget about my basketball games or whatever. Of course, the way he sees it, he's out saving the world. And I know somebody's got to do that shit... I just wish it wasn't my dad. Or at least, I wish he wasn't still at it after all these years."
I nodded. "Is it true what your mom said? That you were depressed before you met me?"
"What?"
"She said your grades improved and everything."
Chad snorted. "She's just glad I passed Dr. Wells's class," he said, "which was mostly thanks to you."
At first I didn't realize what he meant. Chad and I had been through so much that I'd completely forgotten about freshman chemistry. Come to think of it, though, I did remember having helped him out. I also remembered him calling it a lifesaver, though I wasn't sure I agreed with that word. I was sure he could've passed the class on his own.
"I mean, don't get me wrong," he said. "The last few months... I dunno, they've been something else. I just... I never expected this to happen."