Chapter 12 - Mom becomes sexy Barbie, permanently
It was not until she looked up that she saw Jay leaning against the wall in the hallway of her apartment, he had been there the entire time watching as she read the card; using the key his mom had given him when she first moved into the apartment he had let himself in. Jay had been waiting for her to return home from work, when he saw her car pull into the space he discreetly stood in the shadows watching as she came in and discovered the card he had left for her on the table.
When she saw Jay she jumped to her feet running to him; she threw her arms around his shoulders hugging him tight never wanting to let him go. It was only hug though, no kiss, no intimate form of affection until they talked. After what seemed an eternity to Jay she finally released him, he took her by the hand and led her to the couch. They sat facing each other, the only source of light continuing to be from the candles in the kitchen.
"Jay, before I give you my decision I want you to know how much it means to me that you're here; that you took the time to write the message in the card."
She had already selected who she would be in the future. She felt when he responded she would most likely be expected to make her decision immediately.
"Jay, I have no desire to be Barbara to you. Barbara would be like a stranger to you, you have no reason to have any type of a relationship with her.
You're correct, you need a friend you can trust more than you need a mom; while many adult children do not have the luxury of having a choice, but if they did they could survive without a mom. What they need is a loyal trusted friend. At this point in your life for me to attempt to be your mom would not be beneficial to either you or me; for all practical purposes my role as your mom is over. Whether I was a good mom is debatable, but I feel we can both agree my time as your mom has passed.
In my opinion Barbie is what you need most, I know Barbie is what I need; you're not the only one that needs a new beginning, I do too. There are mistakes I have made that are better left in the past and as Barbie those mistakes can be laid to rest permanently. As Barbie I would also no longer feel I was living a double life, I would be able to combine both sides of my personality, a lady as well as an uninhibited sexual woman without guilt or shame.
You have already made your decision about Barbara, and I agree; I no longer need Barbara either, she will be part of my past no matter what decision I make. Both of us have established that you no longer need a mom, so I have little choice in that role. Barbie serves us both better than the two previously mentioned personalities.
But Barbie's only purpose is to be with you, without you there is no reason for Barbie to exist. I cannot be Barbie without you; that would be impossible, she was created exclusively for you and only you. I am not trying to place my decision back on you, I promise I'm not; what I am saying is, without you I am not sure what my role in life would be. What I am trying to say is, my decision is to be Barbie, but that is only possible with you."
She conveniently omitted mentioning any reference to her whereabouts the previous night, and thankfully Jay did not ask; even though it should have been obvious by the way she was dressed she had not been at work. Friday was 'casual day', Mondays she was required to dress neat and professional. What should have also been obvious was she no longer had long hair, yet Jay had not mentioned the difference in her appearance either; but his negligence was understandable considering there were more important issues between them than the length of her hair.
"I need someone like Barbie, she is a trusted friend whom can also be a companion, and no one knows me as well as Barbie does. I want her to be part of my life; starting out as friends then we will see where the relationship goes from there. That does not mean I wish for Barbie to be any different than she is now; it simply means for now, our commitment to each other is as friends."
"I would like that very much, being your friend will be my pleasure; and I am ok with our commitment being just friends for now. Thank you for leaving the option open for our relationship to possibly become more in the future. When you said you do wish for Barbie not 'to be any different than she is now', for clarification purposes will you explain that in more detail so I am not confused about your expectations of her?
Are you saying you want Barbie to continue to dress provocative and sexy, to be flirtatious and daring; what about Barbie's newfound interest in being somewhat of an exhibitionist, is that something you are also interested in? Then there is the issue of Barbie's attitude toward sex, is that included when you say you do not want her to be any different? And then there is the obvious question of us being involved with each other sexually; as friends will we also have a sexual relationship or not?"
"I am saying I don't want anything to change about Barbie; I am mature enough to know that when you expect someone to change it will most likely end in disappointment. I love the way Barbie dresses, I love how she is fun and playful; I definitely do not want that to change. I think a little flashing, at the appropriate time of course, would be very exciting. I know Barbie is also a classy woman and I know I can trust her to conduct herself properly depending on the environment she is in.
As for her attitude about sex, that is who she is; I could not and I would not ask her to change who she is, I love Barbie's uninhibited attitude toward sex. Why would I want to change that about her when most men can only fantasize about having a woman so sexually liberated; no, I do not want to change anything about Barbie's attitude toward sex, I only want to know I can trust her to be loyal.
As for sex between us, right now I don't know, I am not saying it won't happen nor am I saying it will; I am not saying it isn't a possibility as friends. What I am saying is I do not want to decide if or when we will have sex again in this conversation, if it happens it happens, if it doesn't it doesn't; let's start with us being the trusted friend we both need."
From what Jay said she felt they were in agreement she would be Barbie from now on, Barbara no longer existed, and his mom would only occur when Jay needed motherly advice drawing from her life experiences; not because she is his mother but simply because she was older than him. For all practical purposes she was no longer his mom, in the future she would only be Barbie to Jay; a 'girl' and a 'friend' but right now not necessarily his 'girlfriend'.
Society would think this a sick, twisted, perverted relationship for a mom to have with her son, but it was what she and Jay both needed in their lives. Who better to be there for each other than the person that knows them best, the person each of them knows they can trust unconditionally, being mother and son is only a small inconvenience neither of them will allow to hinder their relationship as Jay and Barbie. However, a huge obstacle would be how they relate to each other in public; everyone in their small town knows them as mother and son.
Barbie wanted to ask could she move back home, but she felt the wounds from the argument and what upset Jay Christmas Day were still too tender to bring it up. One day at a time; she felt Jay would ask her when he was ready.
Almost instantly any tension that remained between them dissipated, they had come to a mutual understanding what was expected from her in the future. The conversation became much less serious as soon as they knew the boundaries of their relationship.
"Barbie, when did you cut your hair?"
"I had it cut Christmas Eve, there was no way I would be able to hide my long hair underneath the wig. Why? You don't like it do you?" still not being able to escape her anxiety and insecurities.
"No, quite the opposite, I think you look great. You should have done this a long time ago. You look much younger; you should keep it that way. It looks... sassy and flirty, perfect for Barbie's unveiling. I also loved your idea of the wig, it made you look like a totally different person; but now you don't have to buy a wig if you don't want too, all you need do is change the color of your hair to accomplish the same results. I can see you easily being a blonde, brunette, a redhead, or even jet black; the possibilities are endless."
"Well, I will just have to keep that in mind" as she laughed. "I think you like there being an air of mystery about Barbie; with her you are never sure what you're going to get!"
"I have to admit, Barbie keeps things interesting, very interesting. I never know when she is going to change personas; I think things will never get boring with Barbie."
"If I have anything to do with it you will never think Barbie is boring." They both laughed contemplating the potential scenarios considering Barbie's very active imagination.
"Jay, have you had dinner?"
"No, I was going to pick something up on the way home."
"Do you want to eat here? The leftovers from Christmas are still in the fridge, they need to be eaten or I will have to throw them out."
"Sounds good."
"I am going to take a quick shower, watch TV or something, I will be back in a few minutes; don't leave, ok?"
They both knew she was referring to Jay leaving Christmas Day when Barbie had gone to the bathroom to hide her tears; and while she was serious about not wanting him to leave, she had said it in a joking manner.
"Don't worry; I'm not going anywhere this time"