Is It Revenge Or Love?

Difficult as Always

I find myself in a bit of a staring contest with her, unwilling to break my gaze. My mom sees a lack of eye contact as a weakness. She will take it to mean that she has the upper hand and can get you to do anything she wants. I refuse to allow her to think that about me. I’m not the same girl as before, and she needs to realize that. “Are we going to stand out here all day or go inside?” I really don’t want her in my personal space, but I know I have no other choice. I sigh and unlock the door. I open it and step to the side, allowing my mom to go first.

I already know she will have some not-so-nice things to say; she always does. She feels that I’m living below my status in life, and she doesn’t hesitate to comment on that every time she sees me. I drive a Honda Civic, not a luxury car, nor do I employ a driver. I live in a modest one-bedroom apartment in a ‘not so bad’ part of town. For now, a lot of my furniture is secondhand, and I could go on and on.

I watch as she moves into my apartment, taking the space in. I have a small entryway that leads to the living room. The kitchen is off to the left, while my bedroom and the bathroom are on the right. The space is small, but it’s more than enough for me.

My mom makes her way to my tiny dining table, dusting off invisible dust before sitting down. She perches on the edge of the chair, looking like she doesn’t want my things to touch her. As I always do, I place my keys in the bowl and bag by the door. “You left pretty quickly from the gathering and didn’t even bother saying goodbye. I had to apologize for you, and you know how much I hate doing that. I raised you better than that.” I have to admit that I knew this was coming; I had just hoped she wouldn’t bother.

“That’s what happens when you ambush me, Mom. You should have told me that you intent-”

“I told you that we had someone for you to meet. Don’t act as if-”

“YOU SHOULD,” I say loudly to drown her out. “You should have told me that you intended for me to meet with Deon Gage. A heads-up would have been nice and appreciated.” She lets out an exasperated sigh.

“What is the issue, hmm? You and Deon made a lovely couple in high school. I don’t know why you act so volatile towards him. You two were meant to be, and Deon still wants you after everything.”

“I don’t give a sh.it what he wants, mom.”

“Jaylene! You will watch how you talk to me. I’m still your mom.” Jaylene… she only uses my full name when I’ve crossed a line. I guess I did, but I don’t really care. She’s in my apartment and won’t be treating me however she likes.

“What are you doing here, mom? You came all this way for what?” She sighs and looks around the room.

“I take it that you’re still working that menial job, with those-”

“Mom!” I say sharply. I already know how she likes to describe my students and I’m not in the mood today.

“Anyway, your dad and I want you at the house this weekend. We will be having dinner with the Gages.” Mom stands up and straightens out her clothes. “Saturday, be there at 6 sharp.” She moves toward the door.

“I won’t be there, mom.” She stops at the entryway. “I won’t entertain Deon on his parents. You and Dad will have to do that all on your own.” She turns her head to look at me.

“I’ll expect to see you there.” She walks out, slamming the door behind her.

~Georgia~

I stand outside of her door, fuming. I swear I don’t know who I wronged in my past life to end up with just an insolent child, but I’m sick of it. She was fine until her second year of high school. Once sophomore year hit, she slowly started to change until it hit us in full force senior year. She even pulled away from Deon, much to our dismay.

Jaylene and Deon are inevitable, even if she doesn’t want to see that right now. I hurry away from her door, hating to be in a place like this. My driver has the back door to the Navigator open and ready for me. As soon as the door closes, my phone rings. I dig in my purse and answer the call. “How’d it go, love?” I sigh and lean my head back.

“She’s just as difficult as always. She insists that she isn’t coming to dinner, and I don’t know how to make her. It isn’t like we can cut her off since she cut herself off years ago.” When Jaylene graduated high school, she decided that she didn’t want to have anything to do with us or our money. She cut herself off and got a job. She worked and went to school, refusing to take anything from us. She has a trust fund, but her grandparents set that up, and she doesn’t have access to those funds yet.

“It’s okay, love. Don’t stress yourself out. I have a plan, and it will guarantee that she’ll be at dinner on Saturday.” I smile, feeling the warmth spread throughout my body. Benny always knows how to fix things. I know he’ll have no problem getting her to the house on Saturday. “Hurry home.” The call disconnects, and I settle in to enjoy the ride.

~Deon~

I walk up the steps leading to the front door. It’s been two days since I’ve seen Jaylene and a lot needs to be answered for. I bang on the door, wishing I had a key to gain entry on my own time.

The door opens, and I push past the butler, not waiting to announce myself. I walk down the hallway and stop in the living room. “What the hell is going on?” Startled eyes land on me, and I push forward and stand in front of the couch. “Well?”

“Deon, it’s nice to see you. I’m sure this must be important since you’re here without calling and barging into my own like some hooligan.” I sigh, irritated that this is taking so long.

“I don’t have time for pleasantries. I want to know what the hell is going on, and I want to know now!” She sighs and sits back on the couch.

“You’ll have to be more specific.” I pull a packet out of my jacket pocket and throw it on the table in front of her.

“I mean this! You know what I’m trying to do and dinner this weekend is a way to get there. How is this going to help me on my path, Georgia?!” She leans forward and picks the packet up. A knowing smile grows on her face as she sits back and looks at me.

“Have a seat, Deon. Let me explain my husband’s mindset. I’m sure once I’m done, you’ll see the benefit of this.” I huff and plop into a nearby chair, having no other choice.

“I’m listening.”