Blended TML Ch 13

Mary doesn’t bother fighting. She isn’t stupid.

Most of the trip is on two-lane highways winding through the swamp, although there are a few nice marshland stretches and a picturesque bridge or two. At night, that means a lot of dark. Piper focuses on driving. There’s a dreamlike quality to the journey. It’s Piper’s car, and she’s behind the wheel, so her music plays.

“You aren’t even going to complain?” she asks Mary.

“About what?”

“This young people music.”

“Sounds OK. Who is this?”

“Beach House.”

“Never heard of them.”

“Hey, Siri. Play Fade Into You by Mazzy Star,” Piper says.

“Charity for an old woman?”

Piper brakes for a big turn. It’s been a while since they’ve seen another car. Signs flash by, and the occasional willow branch drags across the windshield. “Mary, there’s actually some people my age who are mad that they didn’t get to grow up in the 90s.”

“Grass. Greener.” Mary sighs. “Might be some truth to it. Getting to have a childhood before smartphones and AI and social media and stuff might have actually been a blessing. I don’t know.”

“Did it seem cool? When you were living it?”

“Sometimes. Things weren’t as doomy. Or maybe they were, but everyone didn’t know. You don’t look at socials at all, do you? Do you read the news?”

“I try not to, but I fall off the wagon sometimes,” Piper admits. “And I do look at socials, but it’s just horny ones.”

Mary snorts. “Excuse me?”

“I said what I said. What, you think Riley’s the only one who looks at that?”

“I know about porn. What does horny socials look like?”

“Thirsty bikinis. Hot dudes flexing. Uh… the gimmicks where they strategically cover themselves to make themselves look naked. Dancing. You know. It’s Tiktok stuff. It’s hard to explain.”

“Now I’m curious.”

“Curious? You’re married to a woman. You’re a little past curious.”

“Funny. What are you up to, Piper? Trying to get away from Patty? Half the reason I was comfortable bailing was that I knew you’d be there to keep the lights on.”

“Riley can keep the lights on, and Bella is a backstop if it comes to it,” Piper assures her.

“That’s not an answer.”

“I can handle Patty. I just don’t want you divorcing my mom.”

There’s a lengthy pause. The song plays, and the swamp flows by.

“I’m not divorcing your mom over this,” Mary says finally.

“That’s what you think now. But what if you drove down here by yourself? You get to the cabin and see how bad it is. So you decide to just drink your box wine and deal with it tomorrow. Then you wake up hungover with a huge job in front of you, and what kind of thoughts are you having about my mom then?”

Mary grabs the handle above the door and squeezes. “You think that’s what would happen?”

“Is that a wildly unrealistic idea?”

“It’s a little hurtful. And it wouldn’t be box wine. I still wouldn’t be thinking of divorce.”

“But maybe there would be a fight. Or a text that we shouldn’t have sent when we were mad. Maybe this way we avoid that.”

“Are you sure you’re related to Patty?”

Piper goes ahead and laughs, but Mary’s way off track. Piper and Patty are the same. The only difference is that Patty goes after what she wants in straight lines, while Piper’s a little less direct. And Mary has a good eye; she can tell that Piper’s trying to get away from something. Let her think that it’s Patty; what could go wrong?