Spencer flicked through the channels dispassionately, amazed by how little there was worth watching among an abundance of channels. Each seemed less interesting than the last, doing nothing to secure his attention for more than a few seconds before he clicked the remote again. Even the news seemed to struggle with conjuring up any stories worth paying attention to, focusing mainly on tedious local interest stories that Spencer was certain had been regurgitated many times before.
The weekends in Spencer's hometown always arrived without any real fanfare, providing nothing that could get an eighteen year old excited. It would have been an understatement to claim that his Midwestern town was a rather uninteresting place, projecting a wholesome, neighbourly demeanour that felt like a throwback to a bygone era. His neighbours were as polite as could be, always going out of their way to make the neighbourhood a pleasant place to live, greeting him whenever he was out and about. Even his high school had developed a reputation for being one of the best performing in the country, something that came at the expense of any students looking for interesting experiences before graduation.
Ordinarily, Spencer could tolerate the boredom that came with the weekend whenever his friends weren't about, but it was a much more difficult task than usual when it happened to be New Year's. Being met with wall-to-wall coverage of the festivities taking place around the country when he flicked through the national news channels only served to contrast how dull his own New Year's was. Fittingly, he was surrounded by a variety of sugar-laden treats and cans of soda, with a few colourful streamers dangling from the ceiling in preparation for midnight, but it was hardly his idea of welcoming the New Year with a bang. Switching his gaze to the clock hanging on the wall to his right, he groaned when he realisied that it had only just gone past seven, leaving him with another five hours of abject boredom.
It was the first New Year's he would celebrate alone, a fact that only added to his overall lack of enthusiasm for the occasion. His father had walked out on him before he turned ten, leaving Spencer's mother as the sole parent raising him. It was a task that his mother, Evelyn, had taken on without hesitation, balancing her life between work and being there for Spencer during all the necessary events in his life. Spencer never took her for granted, cognizant of just how much she had to sacrifice to both be there for him and keep a roof over their heads.
Evelyn had effectively given up her twenties and early thirties in the pursuit of establishing a good life for them both, having little to no time for herself between her twelve hour shifts at the hospital and the time spent helping Spencer with his homework and school projects. It meant that her life beyond work and parenting was virtually non-existent, limiting her social life and opportunities to date. Though he never showed it, Spencer always felt a sense of guilt about his mom's lack of dating experience following his father's sudden disappearance and divorce filing. He always tried to be independent, hoping that staying out with friends and his part time job would give his mother some much-needed alone time.
But the pair were as thick as thieves, always able to confide in one another, rarely ever keeping secrets from each other. His mom often joked that they were like an old married couple, making sure to share the various chores and household responsibilities within their Prairie-style home. Spencer always took the jokes as the light-hearted barbs they were intended to be, but he couldn't help but occasionally imagine what it would be like to be with someone as beautiful and intelligent as his mom. Of course, he had gone out with a few of the girls at his school over the years, even managing to get hot and heavy with a couple. However, they all paled in comparison to the most significant woman in his life, never quite coming close to the traits that made his mother so enthralling.
Turning down the volume of the TV, he could pick up the sound of hurried footsteps above, originating from his mom's bedroom. A small smile appeared on Spencer's face as he listened, knowing that his mom was frantically rushing around to get herself ready for a date with one of the new doctors from the hospital she worked at. It was her first date in a while, one Spencer knew she had been looking forward to during the weeks leading up to the special day.
He was heartened by her enthusiasm for the date, having spent a week driving her to boutiques and hair stylists to get herself prepared. With college on the horizon, Spencer was hopeful that his mom would find someone to spend her time with once he was away, not wanting her to be left on her own in the spacious home they had both spent so much time working on. But peculiarly, he also felt a small tremor of jealousy at the thought of another man taking his place, filling in the space he would leave behind. For so long, it had just been the two of them against the world, together making it through the struggles they had endured when he was younger. He kept his jealous thoughts bottled up, considering them to be an innocent response to the idea of someone drawing away his mother's affections. Or so he believed.
A creaking at the top of the stairs made Spencer pause the television and roll his eyes when he stopped on a frame of a generic romantic comedy, featuring two lovers locked in a warm embrace, both lacking any real chemistry. Spencer stood and walked over to the doorway, quite unprepared for the sight that met him when he found his mother waiting for him at the foot of the staircase.
Evelyn had purchased a metallic gold bandage-style dress, one that left her shoulders and arms entirely bare, displaying her flawless skin wonderfully. The skirt was of a modest height, but Spencer felt his heart race painfully in his chest when he caught a glimpse of floral stocking-tops, connected by a silk garter strap. The stockings themselves were far from the cheap store-bought pantyhose she usually opted for, with the sheen of the material making it obvious that they had come from one of the higher-end boutiques she had visited during the week. They drew Spencer's focus down to the pair of black Louboutin Lady Peep heels adorning her feet, one of the most prized items in her wardrobe and rarely ever removed from their box except on the most special of occasions.
He lifted his eyes back up to admire the up-do her voluminous raven hair had undergone, swept across one shoulder to send it cascading along her arm and breast. The style allowed for one of the diamond droplet earrings dangling from her ears to twinkle in the light from the hall, accompanied by a thin gold necklace skimming across her chest and stopping just above her cleavage. Evelyn had decided against wearing too much make-up, instead using carefully applied layers of blush and eyeshadow to enhance her natural beauty, choosing a glossy pink lipstick that completeda look that exuded elegance.
Evelyn was a woman who could take any man's breath away. And in that moment, for a split second, Spencer didn't see his mother standing in front of him. He only saw a woman of devastating beauty, a woman he desired with every fibre of his being.
"If you keep your jaw open like that your tongue will fall out," Evelyn giggled, resting a hand on her hip as she watched her son shake himself from his daze. "I'm going to take the look on your face as a sign that you approve?"
"Approve? Talk about an understatement,," Spencer suddenly found his voice, grinning like a madman as he stared into his mom's warm green eyes. "You look hot."
"Really?" Evelyn beamed, twisting on the spot to give Spencer a greater view of her. "I guess I do. But don't you think 'hot' is a little inappropriate to use when talking about your old mother? I'm turning forty this year."
"Firstly, you're far from old, most of the girls at school wish they could look half as good as you. And secondly, it doesn't matter whether you're my mom or not, because you are hot, it's an unavoidable fact," Spencer responded with an impish smile, glad to see the twinkle in his mom's eyes.
"Careful, or else I might start to think you have your own designs on me. I wouldn't want to make my date jealous," Evelyn smiled, staring at Spencer with a slightly nervous expression. "Do you think he'll like it?"
"He'd have to be crazy if he didn't," Spencer said confidently, leaning against the door frame. "You're one of the most beautiful women I know, and if he can't see that then he doesn't deserve a second of your time."
"Thank you, sweetheart. Sorry if I've been too jittery this past week, I haven't been this nervous about a date since I was back in high school," Evelyn was startled by the sudden sounding of a car horn from just outside. "Sounds like that's him."
"Good luck," Spencer strode over to his mom and brought her into a tight hug, breathing in the intoxicating perfume she had selected. He swooned at the sensation of her wet lips touching his cheek, coming far too close to his own lips before she moved away, slinging the strap of her purse over her shoulder. "If he doesn't give you the night you deserve, then I might have to instead."
"Careful, I'll hold you to that, mister," Evelyn swept her thumb over Spencer's cheek, creating a pink smudge with the print of her lipstick. "Don't eat too much candy, you'll be coming off a sugar high before midnight."
"Don't worry, I know my limit," he said, grinning as they wandered over to the door. "And I want you back before ten."
"Not if I'm lucky," Evelyn purred.
Spencer moved towards the front door and opened it for her, incapable of stopping his gaze from falling to her swaying hips as she stepped out onto the porch, skipping down the wooden steps and along the pathway splitting through the painstakingly maintained front yard. He scrutinised the upmarket BMW parked parallel to the curb, finding a well-dressed man sitting patiently in the front seat, leaning across to open the door for Evelyn. She lifted her toned legs and swept onto the leather passenger's seat, blowing a kiss back at Spencer as the car took off, disappearing around the corner at some speed.
~•~•~•~•~•~
An hour passed by without much fanfare, only worsening the state of boredom Spencer found himself slipping into, scouring the TV for anything to keep him distracted until the clock finally reached midnight, appalled by the lack of any films worth watching. Again, he found himself stuck watching the news, subjected to repeat after repeat of the firework displays of the countries that had already welcomed in the new year in explosive fashion.
Regularly, his eyes darted towards his phone, praying that the screen would illuminate to inform him that someone had put together a celebratory bash at the last minute. But with his friends all at home with their families, sharing a similarly tedious fate as him, Spencer was certain that nothing would spare him from the hours that dragged by at an unnervingly slow speed. Letting out a sigh that could only be conjured by sheer boredom, he dropped his head against the backrest of the couch and attempted to fall into an early slumber to get the night over with sooner.
However, the blinding flash of headlight beams passing across the living room window robbed him of any chance of sleeping through the hours ahead. Rubbing his eyes, Spencer rose to his feet and shuffled up to the window, holding his hand in front of his face to block out the glare of the LED beams. Squinting, Spencer discovered a familiar BMW parked outside the house, though it didn't stay for long. He spotted his mom stepping out, slamming the door without so much as a glance back at the driver, storming back along the path as the expensive car sped off. Spencer immediately made a dash for the door, wrenching it open just as his mom claimed the steps, forcing a smile when she looked up at him.
"Mom? What are you doing back this early? It hasn't even been an hour yet," Spencer exclaimed, glaring at the rear lights of the BMW as they vanished. "He didn't do anything to you, did he?"
"No, nothing like that," Evelyn sighed, hanging her purse on one if the nearby clothes pegs. "It's more what he didn't do."
"Which was?"
