"Olive!!"

"Mom" I quickly got in the passenger seat of her car. "What did I say about that nickname around my friends? Seriously, it's embarrassing."

Mom was picking me up from the basketball courts behind my school- a couple of my friends and I decided to stay and hang out. Mostly because one of them was trying out for the basketball team and needed help, but it was also just a really nice day out.

"I'm sorry honey, I forgot! No one heard me." Mom laughed as she started driving. "So, how was your day at school?"

"Boring. The court was fun though. Isa said I was actually kinda good." Isa was my friend who was trying out for the team- she had been playing basketball for years.

"That's awesome!" Mom smiled proudly.

"Yeah. How was work?"

"Same old same old, hey, I actually wanted to talk to you about- you know how you don't have school on Monday?"

"Yeah, thank god. Monday's already suck, add school in and it's worse. Plus, three day weekends are the best!" I was very excited for three days of sleeping in rather than just two.

Mom laughed, "Well, I took those three days off of work, and I was wondering if you wanted to go up to Mr. and Mrs. Altman's beach house. Teddy already asked and they said we totally could!"

Mr. and Mrs. Altman were Teddy's parents- who had also basically become my mom's parents. Thus, my grandparents.

My mom didn't talk to her parents.

But, Teddy's parents were a whole different kind of rich, and they had a beach house that was about a two hour drive. They always let us stay there for vacations or weekend getaways growing up. It was very sweet of them.

"Yeah, that sounds fun!" I always enjoyed going up there. I loved the beach. Especially this time of year- it was the middle of October. So, we wouldn't be swimming, but walks on the beach in the fall were probably my favorite thing.

"Oh yay!!" My mom said excitedly.

"Me you and Teddy?" I asked, wondering if Teddy was tagging along since Mom mentioned her earlier.

"Well, about that. I was actually wondering what you would think if I asked Callie to come with us. Totally cool if you think that's too much, but I also thought it might be nice." Mom was quick to say Callie didn't have to come. But, I knew that was just because she didn't want me to feel pressured in saying yes. I knew Mom wanted Callie to come.

So, I nodded, "You should ask her."

"Really? I totally get if you just want this to be our weekend."

"Mom, invite her. It'll be fun."

Mom smiled brightly, "It will be fun! Hopefully she can come, this will be great!"

I smiled. Mom was happy. That's all that mattered to me. She would enjoy her weekend off. And, it wasn't like it was bad for me either. A little get away. Callie being there wouldn't be too bad.

It might be weird to spend three straight days with her, though.

But I think it'll be good. I'll definitely get to know Callie even more.

"I'm so excited!" Mom said as she stopped at a red light. "Do you mind if I call her now?"

"Go ahead, Mom" I laughed. Her excitement was sweet.

She picked up her phone, it started ringing, and within not even two full rings Callie picked up. Wow. Fast.

"Hey Ari!!" Callie sounded happy. Typical of her.

"Hey! So, I have a question! Oh, by the way, you're on speaker. Olive and I are in the car."

"Alright. Hey Liv!"

I smiled, and Mom looked at me, smiling too. Callie probably told her about the nickname thing.

"Hi Callie!" I responded.

"Ok, so! Liv has Monday off of school, and Teddy's parents have a beach house that they're letting us stay at for the weekend. We were just wondering if you would like to come, too!"

"Oh, wow" Callie paused. "When are you guys leaving?"

"Probably early Saturday morning."

"Ok... I have a 12 hour on Sunday, but I'll see what I can do to get it switched later."

Mom smiled, "Is that a yes?"

"Are you kidding? Of course it's a yes." Callie laughed. "Sounds like a blast, I wouldn't want to miss it!"

Callie was so sweet. I know I say that a lot. But, I know how much it means for my mom that she even said that. It even meant a lot to me. Callie wanted to be with my mom- with both of us, really.

It felt good, different.

"Yay!! Oh this is gonna be the best weekend ever!" Mom said excitedly.

I laughed, "You're so dramatic."

Callie laughed too. "I bet we'll have a great time. I'll text you later just to make sure about work. I'm sure it'll be fine, I never ask for switches."

"Sounds good!" Mom was smiling so big.

"When would we come back? So I have an idea of the earliest I can switch it to."

"Probably sometime in the afternoon on Monday, cause Liv still has school on Tuesday."

"Ok, perfect! Thank you both for thinking of inviting me, by the way. It means a lot."

So soft and emotional. Not my vibe.

"Of course! Alright, I gotta hang up we just got home" Mom said.

"Ok, ok. Love you Ari! Bye Liv!"

"Love you too!"

"Bye Callie!!"

They hung up.

I looked over at Mom. "Awww" I teased.

"Shut it." She laughed, opening her car door.

"That was the first time I heard you guys say it, you know. It's a regular thing now?" I hopped out of the car, following Mom to the front door of our apartment.

Mom laughed, "I guess you could say it's a regular thing."

"That's sweet, Mom." As much as I teased, I really was happy for her.