Chapter Fifteen
“Y oung lady, I am still your mother. I don’t care if you are twenty.” Katherine’s mom rarely raised her voice, but she was clearly not in the mood for an argument today.
Katherine perched on the couch where her mother was reclining. “Mom, I think taking some time off from school makes sense. I can be here when you need me, plus I’ll be able to work more hours.”
Her mother wore a stony expression. “I know these past weeks have been difficult for you. But Katherine, just because I’m not in treatment right now doesn’t necessarily mean that I’m on my way out. I’m going to pursue some alternative treatments. And who knows? Even Dr. Matthews says my condition could improve, and I know what a downer you think he is.”
Katherine bit her lip. She was trying to remain optimistic along with her mother, but sometimes it was hard. Every night when she and Blake talked on the phone, he advised her that it would be best if she’d accept the situation as it was and not cling to false hope. “That is even more reason for me to be more available to you. If I’m not in school, I can be here to take you to doctor visits or whatever you need. Cook you lunch, clean the house. You know.”
Her mother smiled broadly. “Oh, honey. What would I do without you? But don’t you know it would make me feel a million times worse if I knew you were dropping out of school to play nurse for me? I’m not even in need of a full-time caregiver. I can manage just fine on my own.” She patted Katherine’s hand. “And if it ever gets to the point where I can’t, I can hire a home health nurse.”
Katherine stood and started pacing behind the couch. “No,” she said firmly. “I know that you’re the mother and I’m the daughter. But I’m also an adult.” She eyed her mother. “Even if you don’t always want to accept that. Remember, when you were my age, you were on your own and raising a child.”
Katherine’s mom leaned her head back against the pillow. “Somehow I knew you’d use that against me at some point.”
“I’m just saying.” Katherine sat back down and turned toward her mother. “Okay, fine. Let’s come up with a plan that makes us both happy.”
“See? You can be a grown up. Bargaining and negotiating just like your grandfather.”
Katherine grinned. “Thanks.” She brushed a stray hair from her eyes. “How about if I agree to stay in school, but I live here instead of in the dorm?”
Her mother wrinkled her forehead. “Oh, honey. I don’t want you to give that up. You had so much fun last year.”
Katherine shrugged. “But this would make me feel better. I can be here every day with you to make sure you’re okay. I’ll still take a full load. And I can do stuff around the house.”
“But would you be happy?”
“Mom, let’s face it. It’s a little hard to be truly happy right now. But at least this way, maybe I wouldn’t worry so much about you.” She managed a tiny smile. “And you know how I hate the cafeteria food.”
Her mother met her eyes. “I admit, it would be nice to keep you here a little longer. Having you back under my roof for the summer has spoiled me.” She sighed. “Okay, tell you what. If you promise that you will still be involved with some of the social stuff on campus and that we’ll talk about it again at the end of the semester, I’ll agree.”
Katherine grinned and embraced her mother. “That sounds good to me. Now you get some rest, okay? I’m meeting Blake for lunch. You want me to bring you anything?”
Her mother looked up at her. “Where are you going?”
“In-N-Out Burger. Your favorite.”
“I haven’t had much of an appetite lately, but if anything could bring it back, it might be one of their burgers.” She smiled.
“Great. I’ll bring one to you soon. I won’t be gone long. Probably just an hour or so.”
“Be careful,” her mom called as she left the room.”
“I always am,” Katherine yelled back as she closed the door behind her.
∞∞∞
“You’re really not going back to the dorm?” Blake asked, once they were inside the restaurant and Katherine had filled him in on the conversation she’d had with her mom. “I can see that Jane would love that, but are you sure?”
Katherine jerked her head up. “For your information, she tried to talk me out of it. But I insisted.” It seemed like these past months as she’d spent more time with her mother, Blake had grown increasingly intolerant of their close relationship. He was one of those people who thought parents were people you should only see on holidays, and he’d never tried to understand or appreciate the closeness she and her mother shared,
“Easy there, tiger. I was only asking.” Blake drew his brows together. “But I hope you’ve thought this through. You realize that this is like taking a step backwards in your independence.”
Katherine rolled her eyes. “What is wrong with you? Do you not get that my mom is really sick? And she might need me? That is far more important that my ‘independence’ or whatever. Besides, I’ll be saving a lot of money by not living in the dorm or having a meal plan on campus. Surely the numbers guy in you can appreciate that.”
He threw his hands up. “You’ve got me there. The money saving aspect of the plan is a good one.” He sighed. “I only wish that it didn’t mean that your mom would be able to track your every move.”
“You know it isn’t like that. She just likes to know where I’m going.” Katherine sighed. “We’ve been having this same argument for the past year. Can’t you try to understand that this can be a scary world and my mother likes to make sure I’m safe? It isn’t that she doesn’t trust me or whatever, it’s just that she doesn’t sleep well unless she knows I’ve made it in for the night.”
“Fine. I guess I just think that those apron strings have to be cut sometime. Otherwise, you’ll be an old lady, still having to call and check in with your mom.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “I can’t believe you’d even say something like that. I only wish that I could still be able to check in with my mom when I’m an old lady. You can be a hateful, hateful person sometimes.” She got up from their table and went to order her mom a burger. He could be so selfish and insensitive. She glanced back at the table and could see the remorse on his face. He probably hadn’t thought before he’d spoken. Because surely he wouldn’t say something so hurtful on purpose.