'Butter please Liz,' I say at dinnertime after a long and soothing day relaxing with Zach. She hands me the butter but doesn't take her eyes off me when I thank her. I look up from my plate to see two more sets of eyes glaring at me.
'What have I done now?' I ask, half joking and half worried.
'What were you doing today?' Macey asks me. I blush immediately. I have a feeling she already knows.
'Oh you know just hanging.' I breath out heavily and I again, holding my breath for what is about to come.
'Right. Who with?' Macey can hardly hold back her grin of excitement and soon, all three off them are in hysterics.
'Have you… you know?' Bex asks me, nudging my arm with her elbow.
'No!' I say offended. 'Who do you think I am?'
'It's just we heard that you were last seen going into the library passageway with Zach, and you two looked pretty friendly. And you didn't come out for hours,' Liz giggles as she speaks.
'And who told you that?' I look at them with my eyebrows raised.
'Tina,' they all say in unison, rolling their eyes and laughing.
'So you didn't go into the passageway with Zach?' Liz asks, just to clarify.
'I did, but not to do what she said!' I laugh along with my three best friends until I feel the sensation of someone's eyes burning into my back. Then a tall shadow appears over my food and I spin around.
'Mom?' I say, trying to listen to what my friends are talking about. Hopefully the subject has changed from what Zach and I did today.
'Hey honey. Can you come to my office after you finish dinner please? I need to talk to you.' I look up at her. She doesn't look worried, but serious. Why? What has happened?
'Is everything OK?' I ask, starting to freak out a bit.
'Yeah. I just need to talk to you.' She smiles at me and walks away. What could she possibly want to talk to me about?
I look back to my friends, slightly confused about my Mom's recent request.
'What does she want to talk to you about?' Ella asked, shoving a piece of sweet and sour chicken into her mouth.
'I don't know.' I look across at my friends, wondering if they had picked up any clue as to why she wants to talk to me. They are spies after all! But then again, my Mom is the best spy I know, so if she wants to hide something then she won't have any trouble hiding it.
'I suppose I shall just have to wait and see,' I said, smiling weekly at my friends.
'I suppose you will.' I sighed gently and spooned a mouthful of rice into my mouth. Why does Mom always have to get me thinking?
I knock on the door to the headmistress' office and waited for permission to enter.
'Come in.' I hear a little soft voice chirp from inside. I push at the door and waltz into the office I know so well.
'Hey kiddo. I didn't know it was you!' Mom stands up from the seat positioned behind her desk and walks around it.
'Take a seat.' She points to the couch in the corner of the room. I flump down onto it, looking up at her. She has a sense of nerves inside her eyes. My skin suddenly shivers cold and I wonder what could possibly make Rachel Morgan nervous!
'Mom, are you OK? You are kind of scaring me?' I cringe as I have to admit it. She looks at me and smiles deeply.
'No, of course not darling! I just need to talk to you!'
'Talk about what?' I ask, realizing that the tension has suddenly become too much and that I need to know, NOW!
'Be patient,' she says half jokingly and half serious.
I mouth 'sorry' to her and sit back, ready for what she is about to tell me.
'Right,' Mom says, standing up and pacing around the coffee table she was just sitting on. 'I don't really know how I am going to word this Cammie, so just bear with me.' She stops pacing and takes a deep breath in, then lets it all out again. She is facing the opposite direction and all I can see is the back of her head. She suddenly turns around and looks at me. Then, she blushes! She seriously blushes!
'Mom, what is it?' She walks back over to me and sits back down on the coffee table.
'I saw you and Zach today.' And that is it. My Mom and I have suddenly reached a place beyond awkwardness. My heart starts to beat ferociously and my throat becomes dry.
'Oh.' I don't know what to say? What the hell am I supposed to say? I never thought my Mom and I would be having the conversation!
'And I know you don't want to listen to this, but I think it is time we talked about stuff like this.' And this time, it is me who is jumping up from my seat.
'Do we really have to?' I fiddle wit my hair and look at my feet, totally embarrassed!
'Yes we do Cameron. Now sit. I do not want a pregnant teenage daughter!' she says very sternly.
'I am not going to get pregnant Mom! Seriously?'
'Well sit Cameron so we can talk!' I walk over to the couch and sit back down.
'So, I saw you with Zach.' I cringe even more inside. I think I am going to throw up when I leave this room. 'It was pretty intense.' I have pretty much stopped breathing.
'Mom!' I groan, looking away from her.
'So, Cameron. We need to talk, about this stuff.'
'Yes Mom I know! You have said that. Can we please just get this over with.' So I can go and SCREAM into a pillow.
'How far have you gone?' I look at her; appalled she has suddenly just come out with that question.
'I am not answering these questions.'
'Fine, then we can talk about something else.' Thank you God!
'Do you know about contraception?'
'Yes!' I rush out quickly!
'All forms of it?'
'Yes!'
'So Cam, I will ask you again, how far have you gone?' I don't answer. I just sit there, looking at my nails. 'Or, I can just wait.' Still silence. 'Or I can just guess. And by your silence, I am going to guess the worst!' I look alert quickly.
'No Mom. Don't guess. Before you do anything. Before you keep us apart, or go and tell Joe and Abby, let me tell you, I haven't had sex!' I nearly barf as I say the S word in front of my Mom.
'Good. That is all I wanted to know.' So is this talk over?
'So tell me, how far have you gone?' I shudder in my skin. It's not over!
'Not that far.'
'Cameron?'
'Mom, please. Do you have to know?' She nods. I pause. Should I tell her?
'Third base.' Did I just tell my Mother that? Urgh! I don't think we are ever going to have the same relationship ever again!
'OK. Thank you Cameron.' I look up and see her studying me.
'I am not lying!'
'I never said you were.' A slight smile creeps onto her face. I am not smiling. This is not the most pleasant thing.
'You may go. But don't think we are dropping this subject. We are still going to talk about this.' I groan as I drag myself from the coach and basically sprint for the door.
I pull myself out of the room and fall back against the door, sighing deeply.