Kat heads home

Kat pulled into the driveway of her family home and hustled inside. Class was in a bit more than an hour, but she enjoyed arriving on campus early. If she had time, she wanted to get some coffee and go for a walk on the grounds.

She walked into the kitchen, and found her mom doing the dishes. “Mom! You didn’t have to! It was my day to do them.”

Her mom turned and greeted her with a hug. “Don’t worry about it. You know me. Cleaning is how I relieve stress. Besides, sweetie, it’s your birthday, and we both know you hate doing dishes.”

Kat smiled. “Aw, Momma! You’re the best!”

Her mom always had such a positive attitude about her situation. Maybe she knew how lucky she was. Kat had always hoped it was a sign adopted life wasn’t so bad. That in time, it would just be routine.

“So, how was the Activation Orientation? As boring as I remember?” Kat’s mom fidgeted with the thin metal collar around her neck.

“Worse, but it went fine. I…still don’t know if I’m ready for this,” Kat replied.

“Oh, honey, believe me. I felt the same way. It’s scary leaving the home. It takes awhile to adjust to the new environment. The new rules. The…,” Kat’s mom paused, “…change in expectations between your role as a daughter and your role as a wife.”

“Does it get easier?” she asked.

“Absolutely it does. I love your father so much. He provides for me. He gave me two beautiful children. He takes care of me. I feel nothing but joy submitting to him now,” her mother said.

Kat hesitated. “Do you get used to the collar?”

Her mom laughed. “Depends on how well you behave. They aren’t that uncomfortable normally, but they pack a mean zap!”

Somehow that didn’t make Kat feel better. “Hilarious as always, Momma.”

“Oh! Don’t forget that you still need to finish your brother’s laundry. Please, remember to take extra care when ironing his shirts. We don’t need a repeat of last time,” her mom said.

Her mom was right. Kat didn’t sit right for two days after that. In her defense, who knew a shirt could burn so easily?

“Yes, Mom.” Kat stared at her mom’s collar.

Kat left the kitchen to complete her task.

She grabbed the laundry basket and headed up the stairs to her brother’s room. Kat sighed in relief when she saw he wasn’t there. Ever since the dork turned 18, her brother had become demanding and arrogant. The sweet little brother she once knew was now a spoiled jerk.

His room was a disaster, of course. Dirty clothes and trash carpeted the floor. His muddy soccer cleats were thrown in the corner. The bed looked like he had to fight his way out of it. Inside, it smelled like a locker room. The musty odor made Kat grimace, but she had come to expect it. She had cleaned this room many times over the years, and it always smelled like that.

Kat picked up the dirty clothes off the floor until the basket was full. As she worked, she thought about how good that coffee and fresh air would be once this was over. She hoisted her laundry basket into her arms, and headed to the stairs.