Lean on Me Ch. 6: Mao Mao's mom

Badgerclops' eye widened, his mind slowly absorbing this new piece of information. It suddenly felt like he was charting into a new part of Mao Mao's life that he'd never dared step foot into, and he honestly wasn't sure how he felt about it.

Mao Mao constantly bragged on and on about his family, specifically his older sisters and his father. It wasn't often Badgerclops found himself walking in on the feline giving Adorabat some sort of long-winded speech about his family's heroic deeds, and how much of a legendary hero they've become. But, his mom was a sensitive, minefield of a topic; it was like it was taboo or something. For the longest time, Badgerclops merely assumed that Mao Mao's mom was, well, no longer among the living. The only way he knew that to be remotely incorrect was because of the occasional phone calls he'd overhear between Mao Mao and his mom.

"Why only your mom?" Badgerclops asked, casually. He figured if he came off as too forward, Mao Mao would clam up again.

Mao Mao's brows furrowed and, for a split second, Badgerclops worried that he'd caught onto Badgerclops' ploy. Then, Mao Mao said, "She, uh, got really sick while she was pregnant with me. It didn't improve much after I was born." Mao Mao paused, rapidly blinking his eyes. Badgerclops couldn't tell if he was tearing up, or if his fever was on the rise again. "She could hardly leave the bed sometimes. Even on good days."

Badgerclops hummed, placing a tentative hand on his chin. More pieces of the puzzle clicked into place within his mind; Mao Mao's mom was - and still is - sick.

Was this why he never talked about her?

Why was he so adamant about never being sick?

Badgerclops shook his head. No, there had to be more to it; more that he was missing.

Mao Mao and his entire family wouldn't just up and decide that the mere thought of contracting an illness was some sign of weakness just because Mao Mao's mom was ill.

The question is: Should Badgerclops keep pushing Mao Mao to get more detail out of him?

A small part of Badgerclops felt bad for taking advantage of Mao Mao's blatantly impaired state in order to figure him out. Especially since, if anything, it was probably Mao Mao's fever that left his usual sharp tongue unbelievably loose. It was unlikely that Mao Mao was even aware of what he was spilling. However, at the same time, Badgerclops really wanted to get down to the bottom of Mao Mao's behavior - and, you know, actually, get some sleep tonight. Besides, if there was even the smallest chance that he could coax Mao Mao to change his mind about being sick - about allowing himself to rest - then, shouldn't Badgerclops at least try?

Badgerclops cleared his throat. "Uh, what else?"

Mao Mao blinked up at him, his eyes unnaturally bright. "My mom had to give up a lot of things that she loved because of it. Especially…"

Mao Mao's sentence abruptly dropped off into silence, and his gaze dropped to the wooden floorboards below them. Badgerclops scooted closer in response; he was literally on the edge of his seat.

"Especially - what?"

"Especially," Mao Mao sighed. "Being a hero."

Badgerclops sucked in a breath. "Your mom was a hero?"

Mao Mao fixed him with a familiar hard stare; it was as if the cat was annoyed that Badgerclops didn't know. "She was a legendary hero. Right up there with my dad."

Badgerclops leaned against the cushions of their pink couch, thinking. Things were starting to make more sense now. Mao Mao's mom acquired an illness and, as a result, it ended her career as a legendary hero. Now, it appeared that the entirety of Mao Mao's family feared the general idea of getting sick because of that fact. But, after what happened with the Ice Dragon, Mao Mao did seem to get over it - for a little bit, anyway.

So, what changed-?

Badgerclops swept a filthy gray rag along his cybernetic arm, scrubbing feverishly at the remnants of grease that managed to get in between his joints. He'd just finished tuning up Mao Mao's aerocycle - again, he should mention. By some miracle, he managed to knock out all of the things on the absurd chore list that Mao Mao gave. Honestly, how did the feline expect him to do three whole things?

Badgerclops rolled his eyes, strolling towards Mao Mao's aforementioned office. When they originally moved in, they used to argue over who'd get the space. Badgerclops eventually backed off when Mao Mao mentioned something about doing paperwork.

He finally strolled upon the doorway of Mao Mao's office, the feline's door wide open. When he peered around the door frame, Badgerclops easily spotted Mao Mao standing with his red-caped back to him. The feline was in the midst of scanning through several papers that were scattered across his desk - reports of all the 'crimes' and monster attacks in the valley, Badgerclops assumed.

Badgerclops took one step into the room, his mouth open and ready to call out to Mao Mao when the only phone in the room rang. The large telephone was, unsurprisingly, shaped to almost look like Mao Mao's head with two black cat-like ears poking out on either side of it, and its shrill ringtone sliced through the silence in the office. Mao Mao startled at the familiar sound, his own ears perking up, and he practically dove against his desk for the phone. He picked up the receiver and, before he answered, cleared his throat - a habit Badgerclops noted that he'd started lately.

"Hello?"

For some reason that Badgerclops, himself, didn't quite understand, he slowly creeped backward out of the room, and he pressed himself up against the wall next to the doorway. Once he was confident that Mao Mao hadn't seen him, he peeked around the door frame, setting his sights upon the feline. He knew that he should've just walked away and come back later when Mao Mao was, uh, occupied. But, at the same time, he was undeniably curious.

That specific phone was one of the few things in the house that absolutely no one, except Mao Mao, could use. Mao Mao did mention that he did give his family the number to that phone so they could call him when necessary. And, it was a known fact that Mao Mao was extremely secretive about certain aspects of his family. But, it couldn't really hurt to see how he interacted with them, right?

"Oh," Mao Mao's tone was lighter than usual, and he seemed pleasantly surprised by whoever was on the other end. "Hi, mom."

Badgerclops rose a brow. Mao Mao's mom?

"Mhm, yeah," Mao Mao waved a careless hand. "I'm fine."

Badgerclops leaned closer and, for a split second, he swore he could hear a soft, feminine voice emit from the receiver pressed against Mao Mao's ear.

Mao Mao suddenly laughed, his tone blatantly nervous. Badgerclops recognized it as a sound he would make whenever he was trying (and failing) to hide something. "I'm not-" He stopped to clear his throat again, and he ended up letting out a short cough into his fist. "It's just the weather. T-the seasons change quicker here, that's all."

After that, their conversation continued in the same happy, but boring matter. Mao Mao chatted about his latest adventures, although it piqued Badgerclops' interest how he didn't exaggerate any of them as he usually did with Adorabat. In fact, he'd left out some of the more dangerous and life-threatening of his stories and summarized them up as quickly as he could.

Another thing he noticed was the certain fondness Mao Mao spoke with his mom. It wasn't like the gentle, but overeager way he talked to Adorabat, nor the aggressive tone he used with everyone else. It was just a young son talking sweetly to his mom - something Badgerclops almost couldn't believe Mao Mao was capable of.

Eventually, after standing there for several minutes listening to Mao Mao ramble on and on, Badgerclops considered slipping away before the feline noticed him. After all, he'd done enough snooping, and he saw an ultra-rare side of Mao Mao's rough exterior. However, just as he was about to walk away, Mao Mao spoke up again.

Only this time, his tone changed.

"So," Mao Mao drew out, anxiously winding the cord of the receiver round and round his finger. "How are you doing, mom?"

Badgerclops couldn't explain it, but there was something strange about the way he stated that. It was like he was implying something - giving some sort of code - that only he and his mom were aware of.

Mao Mao abruptly straightened up in response to whatever was said over the phone. "No - I mean, yes," Mao Mao stuttered, embarrassed. Badgerclops wished he knew what it was that got him so flustered. "I mean, it's just that I expected a call from you yesterday, and when you didn't I, uh, got a little worried."

Badgerclops smiled. Despite Mao Mao's hard demeanor, he was well aware of the fact that the feline would be nice and sweet when he wanted. And, the soft, timid way he conversed with his mom was proof of that.

"Wait - what?"

The sweet mood in the surrounding area suddenly soured like the gallon of milk Badgerclops neglected to throw out last week at the sound of Mao Mao's hardening tone. The smile dropped from Badgerclops' face when he took note of how Mao Mao's entire body stiffen.

"You had a rel-? When? Why?"

Mao Mao began firing question after question into the receiver, and Badgerclops felt as if he was missing something crucially important. Then, frustrated, Mao Mao sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Mom, please," Mao Mao begged. "Tell me you didn't."

That particular phrase reminded Badgerclops of when he'd first met Mao Mao. During those times, he'd been prone to falling back into his rhythm of villainy. He could still recall the disapproving look Mao Mao would throw him each and every time.

"That doesn't mean that you can just do that," Mao Mao stated, his voice steadily getting louder. "You have limits, mom. You have to remember that."

Badgerclops scoffed. Someone should take their own advice.

"It doesn't matter!" Mao Mao yelled. The soft-spoken cat that had been there previously had been shoved to the side, and now the old aggressive Mao Mao took his spot. "You have to be careful! You're not-"

Mao Mao's rant suddenly stopped, and the rest of his words died in the back of his throat. The reason for his silence became known to Badgerclops when he detected a loud voice screaming through the phone. It was the loudest Badgerclops heard Mao Mao's mom speak yet, but even so, the words were still difficult to make out.

Whatever the words were, they seemed to have some sort of an effect on taming Mao Mao's infamous temper. Mao Mao's shoulders drooped like that of a wilted flower, and he leaned against his desk. Then, in the awkward silence of the room - a silence so thick Badgerclops could've sliced it with a knife - the voice continued to speak only, this time, quietly.

"No, mom. I'm sorry," Mao Mao's voice wobbled. "I know how bad it is for you, and I shouldn't have yelled. I just don't want anything bad to happen to you. I want you to see me become a legendary hero, after all."

There was small, sweet noise from the receiver - kind of like jingling bells, Badgerclops noted - followed by more gentle talking.

Mao Mao bobbed his head. "Yeah, I know. You take care too, mom. Get some rest." He paused for a moment and, when he spoke again, Badgerclops could just barely hear his words. "And, I, uh, love you too. Bye."

Badgerclops' ears perked up at his small show of affection, and he snickered. He smothered the sound in his palm as he witnessed Mao Mao replacing the receiver back onto its handle, the feline scrubbing an arm over his face. Badgerclops blinked, his eye narrowing in concern. Had Mao Mao been-?

Swiftly, Mao Mao twisted on his heel, an unreadable expression plastered across his face. He froze once his sharp eyes landed upon Badgerclops standing in the doorway, and the cybernetic badger quickly re-adjusted himself to make it look as if he hadn't been eavesdropping on Mao Mao's private conversation.

"Hey, Mao Mao," Badgerclops greeted, innocently, leaning against the doorframe.

"Uh, hey, Badgerclops," Mao Mao seemed to realize that his hand was still near his face, and he quickly dropped it to his side. Despite his efforts, Badgerclops could vainly see a certain degree of wetness still matting down the fur on his face. "What is it?"

For a split second, Badgerclops considered mentioning Mao Mao's talk with his mom. Instead, he sighed, faking annoyance, and waved his filthy rag in the air. "I finished everything on that stupid chores list you gave me."

Mao Mao nodded with a smile, the action mechanical in Badgerclops' eye. "Great work. Thanks, Badgerclops."

The cybernetic badger waved off his gratitude. "Yeah, sure. No problem, dude." They both stood there, an air of awkwardness between the two of them, before Badgerclops dispelled it with a sharp thumb over his shoulder. "Welp, I'm going to go play some video games. I'll be in the living room if you need me."

Badgerclops turned to leave -

"Wait, Badgerclops."

And he craned his head around to peer down at Mao Mao. An anxious scowl marred his features, and he twiddled his thumbs as he tried to figure out what to say next.

"I, um, don't know how long you've been standing there," Mao Mao rubbed a hand across the back of his neck, sheepish. "But I know you probably overheard my conversation on my phone."

Badgerclops heard the blatant question even if never made its way through Mao Mao's lips: How much did you overhear?

"Yeah," Badgerclops shrugged. "I did."

Mao Mao tensed. "And?"

"And, what?" Badgerclops suddenly frowned, and he leaned forward to place a hand on Mao Mao's caped shoulder. "Oh, dude, it's okay. There's nothing to be ashamed of."

Mao Mao furrowed his brow, confused. "What?"

A wicked grin crossed Badgerclops' mouth. "Yeah. There's nothing wrong with telling your mommy that you love her."

Mao Mao's expression darkened, a faint blush on his cheeks, and he slapped Badgerclops' hand off his shoulder with a growl. "You heard that?"

"Yeah, man," Badgerclops rose a brow, chuckling. "Should I have heard anything else?"

Mao Mao looked away, almost pouting. "No."

"Ah, come on, Mao. Don't be like that," Badgerclops lightly pinched one of Mao Mao's cheeks. "You're a momma's boy. It's fine. Your secret's safe with me."

Mao Mao shoved against Badgerclops' chest, and he allowed himself to be pushed away. He smirked at Mao Mao's glare, taking note of the deepening blush blooming across Mao Mao's face. "Shut up, Badgerclops!" The feline stomped towards the door and, before he made his usual dramatic exit, he pointed a sharp finger at Badgerclops. "You better not tell anyone about this!"

Badgerclops held his hands out in defense, amused. "Sure, dude."

Mao Mao huffed at him, and he slipped out the door. Badgerclops waited until he was positive he couldn't hear Mao Mao's footsteps, and he cast his gaze upon the feline's phone.

What had that been about?

Badgerclops' eye widened.

He'd overheard the conversation between Mao Mao and his mom approximately three days ago. He'd been conflicted about whether he should've confronted Mao Mao about it, at the time. Instead, he simply threw the idea out of the window; Mao Mao's personal business was just that - his business. Badgerclops had no right to be sticking his nose where it didn't belong, so he simply filed the memory away for when Mao Mao, himself, felt like sharing.

He didn't expect it to be three days later.

Badgerclops assumed around that time, Mao Mao had to be feeling a little under the weather. Even if he couldn't hear both sides of the conversation, he is almost certain Mao Mao's mom pointed out Mao Mao's illness.

Things were finally falling into place.

Mao Mao likely reverted back to his old habits after talking with mom. Whatever they discuss with one another had to do with her ailment. From what Badgerclops could overhear, Mao Mao's mom somehow worsened. It could be possible hearing about his ailing mom's condition reminded Mao Mao of his family's aversion to being sick.

"So," Badgerclops began. "This has to do with that conversation you had with your mom, right?"

Mao Mao nodded, silent. Within his mind, Badgerclops counted down the seconds. He just barely passed the fifteen second mark when Mao Mao's face contorted, darkly, and the feline looked up at him with feverish eyes.

"Wait," Mao Mao stressed, his gaze hardening. "You heard our conversation? So, you were listening the entire time?"

For a moment, Badgerclops opened his mouth, prepared to inform Mao Mao on how long it took for him to realize something that, on any other day, he would've been able to easily guess. Instead, he said, "Yeah. Pretty much."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Badgerclops prepared himself to be yelled at; prepared to be told off for eavesdropping on what was obviously an extremely personal conversation.

But, it never happened.

Mao Mao's glower lost heat, and he huffed, weakly. "You were bound to find out eventually," he stated, quietly.

Badgerclops had to bite down on his tongue to prevent himself from gasping in surprise. This cold really had to be messing with Mao Mao's head. "I guess," he said. He stopped, thinking about what he would say next. "So, I'm not trying to butt in or anything, but what were you and your mom talking about?"

Mao Mao opened his mouth, then he closed it just as quickly. His lips thinned out into a straight line, and his eyes fell into his lap.

Badgerclops frowned, puzzled by the sudden silence. "Mao Mao-"

"Drop it."

"What?" Badgerclops squawked. He was this close to getting the truth out of Mao Mao. "No way, dude."

"Drop it, now," Mao Mao repeated, his gloved fists clenched. "Please."