“Mom, what are you doing here?” Peter asks, trying not to sound strained.
“We missed you.” She states, simply.
“What? We?”
As if on cue, Peters father comes through my front door, lugging two large suitcases.
“Ah, Peter, you’re up. Be a man and take one of these cases for me.”
Peter jumps up from his seat and jogs to his father, where he takes one of the suitcases from his hands and begins to lug it into the apartment.
“Dad,” he hisses, “what are you two doing here?”
“We’re here to see you, son. You didn’t come home for spring break, so we figured you’d be taking the time to study.”
“Could you not have called first?” Peter asks, desperately.
“Well, we told Jake we were coming. Thought it could be a surprise for you.”
Peter sets the suitcase down on the kitchen floor, and returns to his seat.
“This is definitely a surprise, but I’m a grown man now. You don’t need to turn up unannounced to surprise me.”
“Oh, Peter.” His mother comes back over and takes his face in her hands. “You’ll never be a man to us. You’ll always be my little boy.”
She kisses Peter’s forehead and his face burns with embarrassment. Jake chokes on his orange juice and Peter shoots him a vicious look. He winks back and returns to his food.
“Mom, don’t get me wrong, I love you and dad, but spring break is the only time I have to study, so I need the time to myself.”
“Oh, don’t worry about us. We won’t get in the way, I promise. We just want to make sure you stay healthy.” Peter’s dad says as he lowers himself into the chair next to his son. “Remember when you were studying for you finals in high school and you almost starved to death because you forgot to eat?”
“And not to mention how bad you smelt. You barely washed the entire four weeks.” His mother adds.
“Mom!” Peter complains as he tries not to look at Jake, who he can hear snickering.
“We just want to make sure you’re OK. Anyway, we’d like to meet your girlfriend.”
“She’s not his girlfriend. Just some broad he picked up from the bar last night.” Jake tells them.
“Jake!” Peter turns from Jake to his mom, “No, she’s not. We’re friends from college. We just met in the bar last night while I was taking a study break.”
“What did you kids get up to after that?” His dad asks.
“We just hung out. That’s all.” Peter promises.
“Not from what I heard.” Jake chirps.
“Jake!”
Peter puts his head in his hands and begins to wonder how his day could have started like this. All he wanted was to spend the day with Isobel, maybe go out for breakfast and sit in the park.
Now, his mom and dad are here and Jake is totally bringing him down. How did this even happen.
I just want Isobel to come back, he thinks to himself, longingly.
Peter decides that he’ll go and find her tonight, after he’s talked his parents into leaving.
Though, maybe them being here is the perfect opportunity for him to talk about some of the decisions he’s been thinking about. He knows that above all else, they want him to be a doctor, but they never asked him what he wanted to be. Now he’s older, surely, he can argue that he gets a say in his life? Surely, that’s fair?
Then again, his mom is one of the worst kinds of helicopter moms, and his dad goes along with it because he doesn’t really know what else to do. That’s love for you.
“So, what’re your plan’s for today?” Peters mom asks, as she joins them at the table.
“I was going to study.” Peter lies. “I need to get some work done before our exams next month.”
“No plans to see that chick again?” Jake inquires, rudely.
Peter bites his tongue. He doesn’t want to swear in front of his parents, as they vehemently disagree with that kind of language, but he also wants to tell Jake where he can shove his questions.
“I was hoping to find her again at some point today.” Peter says, trying to sound unassuming. “Just to talk.”
“Yeah.” Jakes drawls, “Talk.”
“Shut up, Jake. You don’t know anything.” Peter snipes.
“Peter! No need to be so rude!” Peter’s mom complains.
“Thank you, Mrs. Carlson. That’s what I’m always telling him.” Jake laughs.
“No need to call me Mrs. You can call me Josie.”
Jake smiles at Peter and winks again.
Why did I move in with him when he’s capable of being such an arsehole? Peter wonders, while staring daggers in Jakes direction.
“I thought we could all go out for lunch later today?” Josie suggests. “Jake, you’re welcome to join us.”
“Thanks Josie. I’d love to.” Jake takes another mouthful of food.
“There’s really no need. I’m so busy.” Peter protests, though he knows it’ll be no good.
“Don’t be ridiculous, son. Your mother wants to spend some time with you and you’ll damn well do it.”
Peter lowers his eyes and scowls at his now cold bacon and eggs. He doesn’t want to do anything but find Isobel and spend the day with her, but it’s going to be impossible with his parents around, treating him like a kid and forcing him to go out with them for lunch.
“Fine.” He concedes. “But I really do have to study.”
Peter begins to stand, but his mother pulls him back into his seat.
“What?” He asks, with slightly less reverence than he usually shows.
“Do not speak to your mother like that, Peter Carlson.” His father shouts, angrily.
“Sorry, mom.” Peter apologizes, grimacing.
As if his parents turning up out of no-where isn’t bad enough, he has to suffer through this embarrassing behaviour in front of his best friend, who is also being annoying as hell. Why can’t he just have a normal life, where his parents leave him to his own devices? He has things to do, and their arrival has thrown everything into disarray.
“That’s OK, Peter. I know you’re stressed.” His mother’s voice is oddly soothing, and some of the guilt for being rude slides away. “You must finish your breakfast though, or your brain simply won’t work.”
“Right.” Peter begins shovelling food in at an incredible pace and his father snorts in disgust.
“Calm down, boy. Your studies will be here long after we’ve gone home. We’re only a temporary instalment here. Slow down, spend some quality time with us.”
“Sorry, dad.” Peter slows down reluctantly, and begins to take measured bites.
“So, how is school?” Josie asks, as she fusses over the kitchen.
“S’good.” Peter says, mouth filled with food.
“And your professors? Are they nice?”
Peter washes down his food with OJ and wipes his mouth on his hand.
“Doesn’t matter if they’re nice or not, as long as they’re good educators.”
“Of course, it matters if they’re nice. I’m not having a repeat of Mr. Joseph.” Peter’s dad scoffs.
“Who’s Mr. Joseph?” Jake asks, interested.
“Mr. Joseph was this mean old man in Peters freshman year, and he failed all of his papers, even though there was nothing wrong with them. Peter almost had to repeat the year because of him.” Josie explains. “We marched into the school and had the headmaster look over the work Peter had submitted, and eventually, he had to admit that Mr. Joseph was not just incompetent, but he also had a vendetta against Peter.”
“Why did he have a vendetta?” Jake asks, brow furrowed as he finishes his food.
“Because Peter is a little genius and had one of his papers published in a Harvard journal.” Peters father joins in. “Mr. Joseph was jealous because he had sent in an article to be considered at the same time and they chose Peter over him.”
“Ah.” Jake seems actually impressed. “Nice one, dude.”
&
nbsp; “We were so proud. We had a little party and everyone got him to sign the journal for them.”
Jake raises an inquiring brow and Peter rolls his eyes.
“My parents invited all my family to come over for dinner and they thought it would boost my confidence to have me sign them all, like I was a celebrity giving out autographs.” Peter explains, running a hand through his messy hair.
“It was so sweet.” Josie croons.
“It was embarrassing. I never sent another paper in after that. Couldn’t face the humiliation. My cousins took the piss out of me for ages.”
“Language.” Peters dad growls.
“Sorry.” Peter is beginning to get really annoyed at this arrangement that he has just been dragged into. “I’m gonna go get a wash and start studying.”
“I’ll bake you some cookies to help.” Josie offers, as she begins to open cupboards around the kitchen.
“Mom, no, you don’t have to.”
Josie gasps and then rounds on Peter, her hands on her hips.
“Where is all your food?” She asks, accusingly.
Peter and Jake share an awkward look and they both shrug.
“I eat mostly at work.” Jake admits. “We get it for free before our shifts.”
“And I eat at the college diner. We don’t really have much time to cook, Mom. We’re busy.” Peter hopes it will calm her down, but he knows better.
“You’re to go shower and then we’re all going to the super market. Your cupboards are bare. You cannot live like this.”
Peters dad grunts in agreement and Peter goes to the bathroom, his face a picture of thunder.
How dare they do this? Where is my damn independence that college so tantalisingly offered?
He showers quickly, barely letting the shampoo sit in his hair before rinsing it back out. The quicker he gets washed and ready, the quicker the shopping trip is over, and he can get back to studying and finding Isobel again.
Once he’s dressed, he returns to the kitchen to find Jake looking mildly uncomfortable as Josie berates him for not taking better care of Peter.
“And why are you just letting him starve. There’s nothing left of him. His wasting away because you’re not taking…”
“Mom! Please, I’m not a kid anymore. Jake has his own life to live. You can’t expect anyone to look after me. I’m fine looking after myself.”
“Clearly not! It’s a good thing we turned up when we did, before you died from starvation. And your room is a mess. Do you have no decency? Who brings a girl back to their room when it’s in a state like that?” Josie is on a roll and Peter knows there is no stopping her.
He gives his father a pleading look, but his dad shrugs and pulls a face, as if there’s little he can do to stop it.
“It’s a good thing we’re here. We’ll put some weight back on your and get your house cleaned. Maybe it’ll help with this behaviour you’ve been displaying.”
“Behaviour?” Peter asks, incredulously. “What behaviour?”
“That! You’re talking back, being rude, bringing back random girls from the bar.”
“She wasn’t a random girl, mom. She’s my friend.”
“Don’t lie to me, boy. Jake told me he’s never seen her before in his life.”
Jake grimaces apologetically and shrugs.
“It doesn’t even matter, mom. I can do what I want.”
“Not if it’s interfering with your studying. We’ll get you back on track, don’t you worry.”
“How long do you plan on staying?” Peter asks, scared that the answer will be more than a day.
His eyes fall on the bulging suitcases.
“A week or two, I think. Minimum. We’re not leaving until we know you’re looking after yourself properly. I see that other boy, Bill, has moved out? We’ll take his room.”
Jake looks horrified at the prospect of having guests for so long, but Peter has no sympathy for him. It’s one thing having someone else’s parents staying in your house, it’s a completely different ball game having your own parents there to fuss over you and act like you’re still eight years old.
He’s not going to have any time to himself over the next few weeks and the thought terrifies him.
“Mom, please, I’m twenty-two. I’m old enough to look after myself.”
“I’ll be the judge of that.” Josie says, matter-of-factly. “Right, let’s get going.”
They all make their way to the front of the apartment and clamber into Peter’s dads estate car.
“Put your seat belts on.” Josie says, turning to face Jake and Peter, who do as they’re told without complaint.
As they drive, Peter’s dad put on a country music station. Peter takes some pleasure in knowing that Jake hates country music and sure enough, when he turns to look, Jake is wearing a pained expression.
Upon arriving, Josie takes a shopping cart and they all follow in her wake as she begins to throw items into the cart with comments such as: ‘You need some fruit. You’re too pasty’ and ‘You should really eat some more protein. Steak should help you.’
Jake looks hungrily at the snack foods, but Peter knows his mother won’t consider buying them at all. They’re going to be forced into eating healthy foods for the next two weeks.
Peter uses this time to contemplate his night with Isobel.
He still doesn’t understand why she is pretending to not know him, but he’s determined not to hold that against her, as he imagines she has her own reasons for wanting to do that.
He just wants to hang around with her. She makes him feel calm, and like all the questioning thoughts that have come into his life in the past year aren’t as daunting as they actually feel. She makes him feel safe and invulnerable as this world tends to leave him feeling. She might be the one.
Don’t think like that. You barely know her.
But he feels like he knows her a lot. He feels like she gets him and that he might be close to understanding her. She really could be the person he wants to spend more and more time with until they’re inseparable. He wants to learn every inch of her body and burrow his way into her mind and learn her loves and her hates. Find out exactly how to make her happy and how to stop her from ever being sad.
He wants to hold her and share all his time with her and hear her voice as it fills his soul with hope and his heart with love and his mind with comfort. She’s perfect and Peter doesn’t think she knows this. Why else would she pretend to be someone else?
He wishes, among all these other things, that he could show her how wonderful she is and how much she means to him.
Don’t be crazy. You barely know her.
And yet, he feels closer to her than anyone in his life.
“Earth to Peter!” Peter comes out of his thoughts to Jake clicking his fingers in front of him. “Anyone in there?”
Peter slaps his hand away and looks around. His mother is looking into his face worriedly, while his father looks inconvenienced.
“Are you OK, Petey?” Josie asks, placing the back of her hand on his forehead.
‘Petey’ is a name she only ever uses when Peter is feeling particularly ill or sad. She used it for an entire two weeks when his appendix had burst during his freshman year and when he failed at exam in elementary school.
“Mom, I’m fine. I just got… side-tracked.” Peter gently moves her hand away, and he ignores the curious stare from Jake.
“We were wondering what you wanted to eat tonight?” His dad asks, already bored of the conversation. “Spaghetti or Pizza?”
“Um, I don’t know. Maybe neither. I have some errands to run, and I’ll probably just eat out.” Peter says, suddenly deciding that he needs to find Isobel and ask her out on a date.
It’ll take out two birds with one stone. He can spend more time with Isobel and give him time to consider how he’s going to break the news to his parents about his change of heart in his studies.
“Oh, that’s OK. We’ll leave the decision up to Jake.
”
Jake seems shocked by the sudden attention, and he stutters that he’ll be working, so he’s afraid that he can’t attend either.
“Does no one want to spend time with us?” Josie asks, astonished.
“It’s not that I don’t want to spend time with you mom, but I don’t get a lot of time to myself these days. I have a lot of work to do if I want to graduate.”
Unexpected Lover: College Romance Book 1 Page 3