Mom came out to get me, bending down to see if I was feeling fine. I waved her away and rose unsteadily to my quivering feet. "I'll be okay," I reassured her.
Logan walked…wheeled…us to the door, where he told Mom that he would give her a call if anything "occurred". As I was waiting for her in the doorway, I saw that she bent over to give him a kiss on the cheek.
Unsure what to think of this, I said nothing more and walked down the stairs, not waiting for her. She already had a man in her life-Dad. Did she really need anybody more? Okay, he hadn't been around a whole lot. And, he wasn't all emotional and fuzzy like Logan, but the fact that she could possibly be hooking up with another man, (even if my parents weren't married) both worried and disturbed me.
I sat on my bike for about five to ten minutes, waiting for her. Finally, impatient with her oohing and aahing over Logan, I turned on the engine, listening to the sound of it growling next to my toes.
I had just released the clutch to shift into gear when Mom came running out, calling after me. "Alanza! Wait up!" Pausing, I had to quickly decide if I was going to pretend not to see her or listen to her. The latter got the best of me, and I turned around, waiting for her.
"You sure you okay to ride?" she asked me.
"Mom, you ask me that one more time…" I replied with a smile, trying to forget about the kiss she and Logan had shared.
Mom laughed as well, starting up her bike, then she raised a eyebrow. "Race ya home."
"Really? You think your old clunker can go against my bike?" I replied, equally cocky.
"Let's go."
"Bring it on," I replied, ready to go, the incident between her and Logan instantly forgotten as I sat, poised on my beautiful, sleek bike.
"Go!" she shouted, and we were off. It was funny, really it was. No longer were we fugitives from Manticore. No more were we mom and daughter. It was all about the race, feeling the wind whipping through your hair and into your mouth if you open your mouth to scream; letting the bike go running over a smooth jump, and landing, praying that your back tire won't spin out; your hands trembling on the quivering handles as the blood pumps frantically through your screaming brain.
My bike may have been newer, but Mom was more experienced than I. Yet we both had our own advantages, and wouldn't you know, neither one of us won the race as we zoomed up to the building from opposite directions. She was laughing, her face flushed and hair tangled.
I hopped off and walked towards her, extending a hand in congratulations. She gave me a high-five. "Nice riding."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Thanks," I replied with a smile, as we walked into the building. Once we had entered the building and were walking up the stairs, I turned to her. "Mom?"
"Yeah?"
"How come you never told me about Logan?"
She sighed. "Logan was part of my past that was one of the few things I understood. Besides, I wasn't sure if he was still…around, to be frank, and I didn't want to get your hopes up."
"Get your hopes up," I told her. She smiled slowly, as she fished a key out of her pocket. We both knew that Original Cindy wouldn't be home. Apparently, there was another girl in town that wanted to meet Cindy "up close and personal". Yeah, whatever.
Mom entered before me, as I bent down to tie my shoelace that had come undone during the speed racing. She flicked on the lights, and I saw her shadow freeze as I watched the floor underneath me. "Alanza," she said to me rather placidly, yet with just enough ice in her voice to make me immediately listen.
"Yeah?" I asked, standing up slowly.
"There's someone here to see you."
"Who?" I questioned, moving into the apartment and closing the door behind me. Mom didn't need to answer though, for there, sitting on one of the stools was nobody else besides Dad.
