The Status Quo

Jason picked up his phone and sighed when he saw Mom on the front. His mother had been calling for the last couple of days and he’d dodged her calls, not wanting to talk to her about quitting his job. Knowing that she’d keep calling if he didn’t answer, he finally picked up as she started to leave a message. “Hey, Mom.”

“So you are still alive,” she opened the conversation.

Jason sighed. “Yes, Mom. I’m still alive. I’ve been busy.”

“I’m not sure what you’ve been busy with,” she replied. “Dad told me that you quit your job.”

He sighed again. “Mom. I couldn’t stay there. It’ll be fine. I’ve got another job lined up, it just doesn’t start for a couple of weeks.”

“Why don’t you come home for a visit?” she asked. “Your sister will be home this weekend from college. It would be nice to see both of you together.”

Jason glanced at the calendar on his phone before nodding, even though his mother couldn’t see him. “Yeah. I can do that, Mom. What day will Noelle be home?”

“Friday,” she answered promptly. “Do you think you can make it by then?”

Jason ran a hand through his hair as he thought about it. “I should be able to do that. I’ll see you for dinner?”

He could hear the smile in her voice as she answered, “That sounds perfect. I can’t wait to have both my babies at the table again. It’s been so long since we saw you both.”

He rolled his eyes. “Mom. We’re adults. We do have our own lives.”

“I know, but I miss you. At least Noelle talks to me. I feel like I have to hound you to get you to tell me anything.”

“I will be happy to answer any of your questions when I’m home,” Jason told her. “But I need to get some things done now, Mom. I love you. I’ll see you soon. Bye now.” He hung up quickly before she could launch into another set of complaints or questions.

He loved his mother, loved both his parents, but sometimes his mother was a little too invasive with her questions and wanting to know everything that was going on in his life. It was part of the reason that he’d moved away once he’d finished college.

Now he ran a hand through his dark hair, looking around the apartment. He’d planned to work out a three week notice with his prior company, but once he’d turned in his notice, they’d decided he could use some of his paid time off to finish out his time. While he was glad to have the time, he’d had a couple of projects he’d wanted to finish.

Still, he could use the time to work on some personal projects and the visit home would help. As much as his mother got on his nerves with her questions, he missed her and the rest of his family.

He spent the next few hours rearranging his home office, clearing out anything that had to do with his former job. Unfortunately that meant a lot of shredding as he got rid of paperwork and settled into working on the coding for the project he’d been tinkering with in his spare time. He’d been working on a new app over time and now he’d have some time to work on it.

Three days later, he’s waiting at the bus stop in his hometown. He’d convinced his mom that it was easier for him to stop and pick Noelle up than it was for one of his parents to drive into town to meet her. As he stood by the building, watching and waiting for the bus, he noticed a blond man across the street. While the man didn’t seem to be paying specific attention to Jason, he seemed to be interested in the people coming and going from the bus station.

The man looked like an average man in his late twenties, but something about him rubbed Jason the wrong way. As the bus pulled up, the man straightened from his slouched position. Jason’s muscles tensed as the man was suddenly very interested in the people who were getting off the bus. Maybe he was reading it wrong and the man was just waiting for someone. But Jason had lived in this small town almost his entire life and he didn’t recognize the other man. Still the man could be a boyfriend or cousin of someone he knew.

Jason was distracted as Noelle came off the bus. Her bubbly nature was clear even though she wasn’t near him. She turned to say something to the girl behind her and Jason waited until she turned back to wave. Her smile grew even brighter as she waved back. Saying one last thing to her companion, she darted across the walkway to tackle Jason with a hug.

“Hey, big brother!” she greeted him.

Jason took her bag from her, slinging it up onto his shoulder. “Hey. Thought I’d help you postpone the twenty questions from Mom.”

She rolled her eyes as they strolled towards his car. “I came home for Marcy’s bridal shower, not to be interrogated, but I guess we both have to face it.”

Opening the door for her, he waited until she was in before closing it and tossing her bag in the back seat. As he drove towards the house they had grown up in, they chatted about different events in their lives. Neither one of them even suspected what was coming next.