Eastern Lights (Compass 2)

Sometimes, when we’d leave a restaurant after tackling some interview questions, I’d let her lead so I could watch her walk away. The way her cheeks moved side to side. The way I wanted to move those cheeks side to side.

“What are you doing?” she asked the last time I trailed behind her. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine.” I slid my hands into my pockets and smirked. “I just had the craziest craving for some plums.”

I knew she blushed after I said that, and I loved that, too.

I loved how she blushed when she was around me. It made me think that maybe this catching feelings thing was happening on both sides of the fence.

Catching feelings.

I didn’t know my heart knew how to do that.

“You sound well-rested,” Mom said as I sat in my office after giving her a call during my lunch break. I couldn’t recall the last time she said those words to me, and I knew they were solely due to Aaliyah and her forcing me to slow down a bit. Roommate Breaks were becoming my new favorite thing.

“Yeah. Been getting a good amount of sleep each night.”

“Oh, sweetheart! That makes me so happy. It’s good to hear you’re taking some time for yourself. Speaking of time for yourself—how’s that promise you made me? About finding a hobby?”

“You’d be happy to know that it’s going swimmingly.”

“Are you serious?” she exclaimed. I could feel her joy through the phone. “What is it you’ve been up to? What’s the hobby?”

I sat a bit straighter up in my chair as pride beamed against my face. “I’m a life coach.” Silence hit the line. A deep, painful hush that made me raise an eyebrow. “Uh, Mom? You there?”

“I’m sorry, I’m just trying to understand, sweetie. It sounded as if you said you were a life coach.”

“Yeah. I did.”

“Well, okay. Honey, my sweet, sweet child of mine. I mean this in the most loving, nurturing way possible, but, um… How can you be someone’s life coach when you don’t have your own life?”

“What?! I have a life.”

“No, honey. And I mean that from a place of love. All you do is work, work, work. No play at all.”

“I’ll have you know that I’ve been getting a lot of play lately thanks to my roommate forcing me to take breaks.”

“Roommate? What do you mean roommate? I haven’t heard anything about this.”

It’d been a while since I’d spoken to Mom, seeing how work had become so busy. I felt instant guilt for that fact. “Oh, a friend of mine was in a bit of a pickle. I didn’t want her to struggle too much, so I offered to let her move in with—”

“Her?!” my exclaimed. “Oh, my lanta, you’re living with a woman?! Tell me all about her? Is she pretty? Is she kind? Is she your girlfriend? How long have you been seeing her? Have you two been in a relationship for a long time? Oh, my goodness, my baby has a girlfriend. This is so amazing,” she cried out, clearly spiraling down a tunnel of insanity.

“Mom. Chill. Aaliyah’s just a friend. Nothing more.”

“Well, you need to bring her down here for me to meet. It’s been far too long since I’ve seen you, anyway. Oh! I have to bake her a pie. You know, everyone loves my apple pies.”

“Yeah, actually, that’s why I was calling. Aaliyah works for a magazine company, and she was placed in charge of doing an exclusive interview on me. I wanted to show her my hometown, show her where I grew up. I figured it would—”

“Oh, my goodness, you’re bringing home a girl! I have to tell Danny!”

Not this Danny guy again. Was he really still in the picture?

“Mom. Remember. She and I are solely friends. That’s it.”

“Yeah, okay, I hear you. I’ll just make sure everything’s perfect for when she arrives. Oh, my goodness, a girl!”

My mother was officially losing her mind. I was convinced that she was already planning a wedding for Aaliyah and me. I prayed to God that when I got down to Kentucky, the church doors weren’t opened wide for me to say, “I do.”

“Can we change the subject?” I asked.

“Do we have to? I just love the idea of this all, but I can hear it in your voice that you are getting irritated, so we can shift directions. Tell me more about this life coach thing. Who are you coaching?”

Somehow the conversation went right back to the girl I was trying to shift from.

“Aaliyah, actually. She’s been through a lot of shit from crappy men. I wanted to help her find some self-love again. She’s truly amazing and deserves to know it.” Mom began sniffling on the phone, trying to muffle the sound, but I heard her. “Stop crying, Mom.”

“I’m sorry, but that’s so sweet of you. You’re a good man, Connor Ethan, and I’m so proud of you.”