My children returned home late the next morning, and I immediately whisked them away for lunch. It was all part of my plan to make them agreeable to moving. A new restaurant named Viviana’s had opened recently in Newcrest, so I thought eating there and letting them see the area might help. But before I could make my move, I inspected my children. I was so focused on my agenda, I almost missed how different they looked!
My baby girl let her curls out! And was that…lip gloss and eyeliner I saw? Did her little friend have something to do with this? She embraced her femininity more and more, and I was glad to see it. I didn’t dislike her tomboyish style, but I worried her admiration for Luca may have gone too far. She dressed like that because he did. It was almost as if she wanted to be Luca. I loved my son, but I didn’t want her to be him. I wanted her to be herself—whoever that would be. If she wanted to wear baggy pants and flannel shirts, I wanted it to be because she wanted to, not because she attempted to be someone else.
My handsome son got a haircut, and I could have sworn I saw fuzz on his face?! How had they changed so much? Winter break was long, but was it that long? I sent Ali a text asking what he had fed my children. He returned a laughing emoji.
Once the server took our order, Alessia focused her attention on me like a detective honing in on her prime suspect. I tried to ignore her, hoping she’d stop, but that only made her laser in on me even more. Instead, I began a casual conversation.
“Did you enjoy your time with your dad, Less?”
She glared at me a few moments more.
“You’re so smiley,” she said suspiciously. “Why are you so smiley?”
“Smiley?”
“You won’t stop. It’s annoying.”
She examined me more intently, and I squirmed under her gaze. What was wrong with smiling? Didn’t I always smile?
“You got laid, didn’t you?” she asked.
“Alessia,” I shouted. “What is with you today?”
“So did you?”
“That’s none of your business!”
“She totally got laid,” she said to Luca, who was completely unamused.
“I did NOT get laid, not that it’s any of your business! This isn’t proper table conversation!”
She giggled like she enjoyed making me uncomfortable. “But you went out with him, didn’t you?”
“Alessia, I am not playing this game with you.”
She sucked her teeth and left me in a tailspin. Was she just that bold and outspoken? Or did my open communication plan backfire on me? Don’t get me wrong. I thought it was great she was comfortable asking me that. I want my children to feel like they can talk to me about anything. But I’m her mother, and she treated me like one of her pals. It’s great she sees me as a friend, but I want her to respect the boundary too.
I waited a bit for the awkwardness to die down before continuing with my plan.
“This is a nice restaurant, right?”
They both shrugged.
“It’s straight,” Luca said.
“What if we made this our new place?” I asked.
He narrowed his eyes at me. “The other place is closer.”
“That’s true,” I said. “We could move here…”
They looked at me like I was one of those weirdoes in the city. Showtime!
“I’ve been thinking we all could use a fresh start. At least I could. I’ll always love our house. We’ve made great memories there. But we also had rough times, and those stick out to me the most. I think it will be good for us to get away from all that and make new memories. What do you think?”
A staring contest began, as if they communicated telepathically or something.
“I guess it’s cool,” Luca said. “I don’t really care where we live.”
Yes! If Luca was in, surely Alessia would follow. But I never knew with her and held my breath.
“Less?”
“A new house could be fun.”
I was sooooooooooooo HAPPY! I couldn’t wait to tell Dwayne we’re moving.
“Great! I actually found us a house already, and I think you’ll love it.”
“What’s it like?” Luca asked.
I told them about it, and at first I worried about my private suite. They were waaaaay too excited about it, and I thought I might have to let them have it. But then I told them about the pool. They lost their minds and forgot all about my room.
“There’s one more thing, guys.”
They beamed at me like I was Father Winter, fishing for another gift at the bottom of my bag. The butterflies in my stomach began flying again.
“Tofu has returned. She’s living with us now.”
Alessia’s eyes narrowed so fast I thought they’d crush me. I waited about three seconds for a response, but decided that was a bad idea. My decision was final. If I let her respond, she’d find a way to make me change my mind. I needed to stop her before she even began.
“Less, I know you have concerns, but I love Tofu and want her to be part of this family. I enjoy helping homeless animals, but I would never bring one into the house if I thought it was dangerous or very sick. I took Tofu to the vet yesterday, and she is perfectly healthy. She’s super sweet, and I know you’ll love her. There’s nothing to worry about, okay?”
She said nothing. She just sat there, pouting.
“Come on, Less,” Luca said. “It’s just a little dog. Mama won’t let it do anything to you. Didn’t you want a dog? We have one now. I thought you’d be happy.”
She didn’t respond to him either, but I really appreciated him stepping in. With any luck, he’ll win her over.
