good gawd,” Mother drawls as she returns from flushing her cigarette down the toilet in the adjoining bathroom. “How old is the boy?”
“Is that Grandmother?” Troy asks.
“Yes. You want to talk to her?”
“Sure.”
“Here she is. Goodbye, Troy. Take care of yourself. Love you.” I hold out the phone to Mother. “Don’t talk long. I need to call his teacher.”
“Oh, please.” She takes the phone, presses it to her ear and says, “Hi, darling.”
I shift my attention to Polly. “It’s hard being away from him at times like this. It’s always hard, but him being sick makes it worse. I feel so helpless.”
“I’m sure it won’t be easy for me, either, when my kids go away. But they have to grow up sometime.”
I push out of the rocker and the blanket falls from my shoulders to the floor. “How can we just expect them to take care of everything on their own overnight? They’re used to having us in charge one day, and the next they’re supposed to handle their lives like an adult?”
Mother says goodbye to Troy, then hands me the phone. I glance at the professor’s name on the paper in my hand and begin punching in his number.
“Damn it, Dana, you’re making a mistake.” She pulls another cigarette from her purse. “Do you want Troy to become a man, or a wimp?”
I turn my back to her and put the phone to my ear.
“After he graduates and starts working at the agency, are you going to gripe out Carl if he doesn’t give Troy a raise every year?” The phone starts ringing. When I continue to ignore Mother, she says to Polly, “Come on. Let’s see if there’s coffee in the kitchen.” They leave the room.
Twenty minutes later, Mother returns to the bedroom alone.
“Where’s Polly?”
“She had an appointment.” Mother sits at the edge of my bed. “So…what did he say?”
I open my closet door. “Troy’s right—the man’s a butt-hole.”
“Rules are rules. Troy needs to learn that.”
“Sometimes rules need to be changed. And people have to stand up and speak out against injustice to make that happen.”
“So, let Troy be the one to stand up.”
I pull out my suitcase and put it on the bed beside her.
“He is the one who should buck the system, not you, darling. What are you doing with that suitcase?”
“Packing. If he needs me, I’m there.”
“You’re flying to Colorado?”
“Driving. I just got off the phone with the airline. The next flight out is late tonight, and I’d have to go standby. I don’t want to risk it.”
I unzip the suitcase, open it.
Mother reaches over and closes it again. “You’re being ridiculous. What on earth do you think you can do for him?”
“I’ll talk to his teacher in person. He’ll see I’m serious about this if I meet him face-to-face. I’ll go to Troy’s other classes tomorrow and take notes for him, and I’ll nurse him through his flu. He can stay with me at the hotel until he feels better. I’ll feed him chicken-noodle soup.”
“He has a cold, for God’s sake. He didn’t even sound all that congested. You’re just looking for an excuse to go see him.”
I return to the closet and start pulling out clothes.
“Does Troy know you’re coming?”
“I want to surprise him.”
Her laugh is sharp. “Oh, he’ll be surprised all right. Get ready for a fight.”
“He’ll be relieved.”
“What about the dinner party for Carl’s new account?”
Why, oh why, did I tell my mother about that? “What about it? It’s a week from Friday.”
“He needs you here while he’s preparing that presentation, Dana. Carl shouldn’t have to worry about whether or not you’ll have everything ready for the dinner party. He needs your moral support.”
“What do you want me to do? Pull out some pom-poms and do a cheer every night?” Not that Carl wouldn’t like that, but it’s not happening.
“Cook him well-balanced meals. Give him back rubs. It’s a very big deal for him, you know that. For you, too. It’s your financial future we’re talking about.”
“Carl will be so busy he won’t even miss me, I promise you. And I’ll be home in plenty of time.”
Mother watches me pack. When I finish, I close the suitcase and dial Carl’s number.
“Troy will balk if you just show up,” he says.
“He’ll be happy.”
“I was an eighteen-year-old boy once. I know what I’m talking about, Dana. Trust me—he won’t be happy.”
“I know our son. We have a closer relationship than you had with your mother. He actually likes me.”
Carl sighs. “That’s a long drive alone. Can’t you wait and fly out in the morning?”
“I don’t want to wait. Besides, the ticket costs a fortune last minute.”
Giving up, Carl tells me to be careful. Mother mumbles something, but I don’t hear what she says.
Outside the window, the baby squirrel runs up the tree trunk, followed by Tizzy. They pause on a bough and she holds out her tiny paws to offer him something. I smile. It’s probably an acorn for his growling stomach.
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