My Ex-Lover's Revenge

Chapter 2

Kevin set down the huge brown paper bag on the kitchen counter as he entered the apartment, his mother holding the door open for him. He knew how to get to her despite her really strict nature at times.

"Sorry, I'm late, Mom.”

Meredith waved at her huge son. As long as it wasn't a habit. He had come home late some other times but they hadn't been without sensible reason. He was a thorough person so she presumed he was taking his time to get every grocery item as she had penned it down.

"They were out of soy sauce.”

As if that was really what had happened. He had given the last one to the crazy college hottie he met at the mall today. But he was right in a way. The mall was really out of soy sauce, or wasn't it?

"People who are privileged to own businesses these days don't take them seriously anymore. How can a mall be out of soy sauce? What part of the world does it make sense to say that?”

Kevin chuckled to himself as his mother went on with giving the mall owners a piece of her mind. She was so principled that all his life he had feared falling short of them so greatly. But that was in high school. Now, he was becoming his own man and devised his ways of getting around her exactitude.

“Mom, I think you should go give them a piece of your mind anyway. They can't be messing around."

Sensing her tense up, he quickly put in something nice to avoid being riled at.

“You could make an excellent business administrator."

She smiled a little. He heaved a silent sigh of relief. After he put the last pack of milk in the fridge, he went back to the kitchen and took out the pizza he had picked up from a stand on the way back home. Of course, he would tell her that it was from a standard fast-food plaza. His love for street food overwhelmed her worries about lead poisoning. There were no two ways about that.

“So, Master Stark, if I may ask, is it just the shortage of soy sauce that kept you this late? We're eating dinner about an hour late."

Dinner was served at 7 pm. That didn't stop him from taking a few cups of ice cream from the fridge if he felt hungry later in the night. But now, he had to answer this tactical question she had posed and he couldn't see himself telling her that he had come home late because he was stalking a girl who still didn't give him her mobile contact.

“Did you hear me, Kevin?"

He started and made an exaggerated move with the knife and nicked his finger instead of chopping the carrot. Meredith gasped in horror and rushed to hold the bleeding finger but he quickly applied the pressure and ran the tap. She began to feel pang after pang of guilt. She left the kitchen for her room. Kevin suddenly began to wish he had let her apply the pressure.

“Mom!"

The response was the slamming of her door. He shut his eyes tightly for a while and heaved a heavy sigh. When the bleeding stopped, he decided to go to her room. He knocked on her door repeatedly.

“Mom? You can come on out; I'm not mad at you. I just wanted to handle the bleeding myself. It wasn't your fault. I was caught up in my own thoughts and you just merely jerked me out of them. That's why I nicked my finger. Mom?"

Meredith stopped sobbing immediately she heard him knock on the door. She took out a wet wipe and wiped her face, then placed another over her eyes just to enjoy the cool feel of it on her skin. Or rather prevent the eye bags.

“I'll be out in a minute. Hope dinner is ready?"

Kevin knew that was just another line to get him back to work and perhaps buy herself time to finish up with whatever she was doing. He'd never seen her cry; even when things were as tough as hell. Even before he started driving cabs and doing cleaning jobs. He didn't have the luxury of feeling humiliated. That was the way he earned a living; both his and hers. He wished he could for once, see her vulnerable. Not like he would use it against her though. Just to be sure she had feelings like every other human.

“Not yet. I'll get back to it. Be out soon."

Part of him wanted to go back and add that he wanted her to cry where he could see her pain and comfort her too. He just wanted to be in that part of her life, even if his dad was the least interested in it. Not like he cared who the infidel was anyway. On second thought, he went back to the kitchen. He decided to tie the finger up before he began chopping again. He couldn't afford to have his blood mingle with their dinner tonight. He hoped his mother would see the incident for what it was: a domestic accident. And one that could happen at any time.

~~~~~~~~~~

“Tell me you gave him your mobile contact!"Genevieve squealed excitedly.

The guilty look that suddenly shrouded the dreaminess in Emma gave her away.

"What!?”

Emma just pursed her lips, knowing that Vieve would only rant on and on about wasting beautiful opportunities. She wouldn't threaten a beating anyway.

"I couldn't do that, Vieve. I was beginning to feel like a slut.”

Genevieve burst into disturbing laughter. She shook her head, wondering how long her roommate would remain so old-fashioned and frigid.

"Slut? But you just mentioned how you blushed as he talked to you. You couldn't even find the right words anymore.”

Emma's face flushed red.

"That's because I was embarrassed, Vieve. You weren't there so I thought I would freak out at any time.”

"You're an adult, Emma. This isn't freshman year anymore. You'll soon be done with college and yes, it bothers me as your roommate that you haven't even had a first date!”

Genevieve hadn't intended that to come out hard but if it did sound hard to Emma, she had to take it. So much for this sort of odd friendship. And speaking of them, she had to ask.

“Emma, do you even see me as your friend? Do you trust me that much?"

The question swept Emma off her feet. Truly, Genevieve was becoming an unpredictable young woman.

“Friend? But you're the only one who decided to stay in the same dorm room with me. You always have my back and help me out with ‘girly’ stuff. With that, it's safe to say that for the most part, you have been a friend to me. You are a good friend."

Genevieve smiled a contagious smile and pulled Emma in for a hug.

“I'm still mad at you for blowing up your one chance of getting a date though", she whispered into her ear.

Emma chuckled, knowing fully well that that was nothing more than a harmless joke. Genevieve gradually released her from the hug.

“Let's go get dinner."

Emma happily threw on the large duffel coat because she had spaghetti and tacos on her mind the whole day. The mall guy even mentioned how he'd often stashed away some cash back in his high school days to get some which he devoured on his way back home. He never took them home. Why, she didn't ask. Or couldn't ask rather as her social anxiety got the better of her. She just hoped he did sports or was a gym rat. Just whatever.

“Did you even get his name?"

Emma shook her head. Genevieve rolled her eyes and headed out with her large shirt over the plaid pajama pants she wore. She had had enough of this weird conversation. Something prompted Emma to smile. Maybe she enjoyed the way she had maddened Genevieve. Or maybe not.