Threads of Fate

Banter

Enzo POV

Waves crashed against the shore in a steady rhythm, each surge leaving diamonds of sunlight dancing on the water. Broken seashells crunched under my feet as I walked, the humid sea air filling my lungs with each breath. This would've been perfect if not for the phone burning a hole in my pocket. My mom's name flashed on the caller ID, and after what felt like the hundredth ring, I finally picked up.

"HOW DARE YOU, ENZO SEBASTIAN KATZ!" my mother's voice blared through the phone. "WHO GAVE YOU THE AUDACITY TO IGNORE MY CALLS? AND HOW DARE YOU LEAVE THE HOUSE WITHOUT INFORMING ME? ANSWER ME!"

I pinched the bridge of my nose, already feeling a headache coming on. "Mom," I lied smoothly, "my phone was on silent, and it was in the car, so I didn't see your call. I left early for the dating trip you signed me up for, remember? Or is your memory failing you due to your age? Isn't the speed of Alzheimer's twice as fast? It's only been less than 24 hours, Mom."

"SHUT UP! You want me to believe you left the house at 7 in the morning for the trip, two and a half hours before the appointment, because you were excited? I'd rather believe your dad is gay than believe you're excited about this trip!"

From the background, my father's whimpered voice chimed in, "Honey, don't drag me into this. I'm not gay. How can you say that?"

I laughed, pacing along the shoreline. "Mom, if Dad were gay, you wouldn't have married him and become the mother of three children, would you?"

"That's true," my mother conceded. "Hey! Stop distracting me. Back to the topic—why the hell did you leave the house two hours before the appointment?"

The truth is, I didn't want to face them before leaving for the trip. The little pride I had left would've been shattered by their teasing, and my already wounded ego couldn't take it. But could I say that to her face? Definitely not.

Instead, I made the excuse, "I needed to buy something for the trip, so I left early."

"Oh, really?" My mother scoffed. "I packed your bag—your clothes, socks, even your hair gel. I packed it all. So, you're telling me you forgot something? What was it?"

I blanked. The only thing that popped into my mind was, "Mom, skincare products."

I immediately facepalmed. Skincare products, Enzo? Seriously?

After a long silence, I asked, "Mom, are you there?"

"Oh... Ahh, yes, sorry. What were you saying? Ah, yeah, skincare products. Okay, yeah, I didn't pack those," she replied, her tone weirdly hesitant.

Before she could continue, I cut her off. "Mom, I'm talking about sunscreen. You said it's a beach house, so it's going to be sunny. You don't want your son to turn half-dusky and tan, do you?"

"Oh, come on. You could've asked me. Why did you have to go buy it yourself?" my mother asked.

I sighed, kicking a seashell with my shoe. "Mom, I was too embarrassed to ask you, so I went to buy it myself."

"I see," my mother said, "but I don't think it takes a whole hour and a half just to buy sunscreen. Where are you? What were you doing all this time?"

I clenched my jaw, my patience wearing thin. "Jeez, Mom, stop with the third degree. To answer your question, after buying sunscreen, I came to the beach to clear my head. And I'm still here, though I'm not getting much peace anymore," I huffed.

"Stop exaggerating. I was worried, that's why I'm asking," my mom replied.

"Yeah, more like inspecting whether I ran away or not," I muttered, rolling my eyes. Knowing my mom, I continued, "Don't worry, I won't run away. Now, let's not waste any more time chit-chatting. It's already 9, and it'll take a 30-minute ride to reach the match-made agency. Bye!"

"Okay, fine. I'll trust you. Take care, Zoa," my mom said softly.

With that, I hung up and started the car, heading toward the match-made agency.