Move Along

“I like your enthusiasm!” Jenny pumped her fist into the air, “but… we have a whole month to train.” Jenny rarely played the voice of reason, but that much was obvious.

“I know, I know,” John replied, reaching past her into his couch cushions. He noticed that the auction had ended; somebody had taken the six million dollar auto-buy that he had set as a joke. I’ll keep this a secret for now he thought. I should unequip the Amulet of Avarice while I still can though.

“I need to find a way to convince Mom to let me leave Ashcroft while also not telling her I’m going to go fight things with magic and guns for a living,” he thought aloud, and Jenny booped him on the nose.

“Think about that tomorrow! I don’t know about you, but I’m sleepy. Go downstairs and get me water?” she asked, flashing him puppy-dog eyes.

“I refuse to believe that you don’t have a single water bottle in your bass case,” he shot back, already sitting up.

“I totally do, but it won’t be cold,” she replied, getting off the couch and onto his bed with a content smile, “besides, I rocked your world tonight! The least you can do is get me a cold drink!”

“Fine! But I’m also making myself a sandwich, so you’re going to have to wait.” Before she could complain, jokingly or otherwise, he was halfway down the stairs. He didn’t expect to run into Brenda in the kitchen, though she looked worse than he had that morning.

“Mom? What’s wrong?” he asked, sitting down across from her at the kitchen table. She looked up at him with a sad smile and sniffled.

“Nothing, it’s just that…” She was all choked up, and he gave her a few seconds to get herself together. Trying her best (and failing) to look happy, she continued, “You’re growing up! You have a girlfriend now, you’re not staying inside all day, we don’t even have dinner together anymore.”

A spike of sadness hit him at her last comment, and he realized that he had been spending much, much less time with her since he had gotten his powers. “I don’t know how it happened so fast! I’m glad it did, but… it makes what I’m going to say next that much harder.”

“You know I’ll always be your son, Mom,” he interjected, taking her hand in his. It had the opposite effect of what he had hoped, as it just made her break down again, through which he tightly held her hand.

“Your father wants me to move out East with him. With him working there and having a small house to himself, it just makes sense. We’d be selling this house, and you could come with me if you wanted, but… based on how I see you look at Jenny, I don’t think that’s the case. You’re making a life here, and… I can't take that away from you.” His mind raced a mile a second, and no amount of Intellect or Wisdom would have prevented the shell shocked look on his face. This was perfect! He could leave Ashcroft and tell her about the job later. He wouldn’t need to live at home! Above all, he wouldn’t need to worry about entangling her with his dangerous life. But… he was used to having her in his life. He liked it that way. Was this really better for both of them?

“I think you should do it, Mom,” he despondently replied, beginning to tear up as well. “I know how much you miss him, and I’ll miss you guys too, but… I can visit. It’s a three hour plane ride, tops. You both need this.”

She had been breaking down more and more as he went on, but the last sentence was the final nail in the coffin. She stood up and hugged him tightly, squeezing the life out of him despite his Endurance and Strength stats being leagues above hers. “I love you, John. I won’t try to change your mind about coming with me, but… I’ll stay until we can find a good apartment for you. It shouldn’t take more than a week or two.”

“This is a good thing, Mom.” He wasn’t sure who he was trying to convince. “It’ll be less of a financial burden for you guys too. An apartment and a house is cheaper than two houses. Everything is going to be alright. I promise.” Reluctantly, Brenda let go of her son.

“Alright. Alright. I’m going to bed. Thank you, John. I love you.” She hugged him again, seeming to not really know what else to do.

“I love you too, Mom,” he replied, hugging her back. With that she brushed a tear out of his face and noisily made her way upstairs. As her back was turned, John silently used Clean on the puddle of snot and tears on the table. He felt as though he were on autopilot as he used Move to pour Jenny a glass of water and got the jelly from the fridge while he took two slices of bread out of the breadbox.

He made his PB&J and floated Jenny’s water over in silence, remembering to Move a few ice cubes from the icebox into the glass.

He put the sandwich on a paper plate and embarked back upstairs, to find Jenny waiting for him at the edge of the bed. “That sounded rough.”

“It’s going to work out better for everybody in the end,” John said, and when he heard it out loud, he believed it.

“Leaving your family behind is hard,” she managed, drinking the water to distract from the fact that her voice had cracked. Her face was impossible to read behind the glass, but he knew this wasn't an easy topic for her.

“I’m not leaving anyone behind,” he reasoned, showing her the same sad smile Brenda had shown him, “just because we’re not together doesn’t mean I stop loving them.”

“Alright, let’s stop talking about sad stuff,” Jenny exclaimed, switching gears, “this is perfect! You find an apartment between now and try-outs, and if you like it better than the dorms, you can stay in it! You don’t even have to explain your way out of school! I’m not so lucky!”

“I guess you’re right. I’ve lost my appetite; let’s just go to bed,” John mumbled, wrapping an arm around her and pocketing the sandwich into his inventory.

“No going to sleep sad!” she exclaimed before kissing him, holding it for a few moments. Her hands sought his sides, and as she began tickling him, she broke the kiss so he could properly laugh.

“That… wasn’t fair,” he accused after he regained his breath; she simply shrugged.

“Maybe, but it worked, didn’t it?” she looked at him with a toothy grin, and he exaggeratedly rolled his eyes.