"Good morning, sweetie. Did you and Zeus sleep alright?" Mindy had just shuffled out of the guest room, hair a mess and wearing an oversized NASA sweatshirt with shorts and her favorite wool socks, Zeus trailing behind her with a lazy swish of his tail. She had gotten to her parents' house in the wee-hours of the morning, and immediately passed out after letting herself in and leaving a note for them on the counter, letting them know she'd arrived and had gone straight to bed. She yawned, sitting down at the kitchen table and nodding her head.

"Yeah, sorry I didn't say hi when I got here, didn't wanna wake you guys up." Her Mother, whose name was Sandra, by the way; waved her off and turned back to the frying pan on the stove.

"Don't worry about it, I'm just happy you made it here in one piece." Sandra gave her only-child a warm smile. "Hungry? I'm making eggs and sausage. Can do toast, too, if you like."

"Yes, please. Do you need any help?"

"No, no. You just sit there, sweetie. Tell me about your drive." Mindy smiled at her Mother's back, only just realizing how much she'd missed her presence. She combed Zeus' soft fur with her fingers, who had jumped onto her lap.

"It was fine, made pretty good time, only stopped twice for gas." She thought to herself for a moment, "Only reason I got here so late was because I waited until the last minute to pack and had to finish some stuff at work."

"Oh, Mindy. You work way too much!" And here comes the eye-rolling! "Don't roll your eyes at me. It's the truth, you're too young to be working so much."

"Mom, I'm thirty. Technically, I'm at the best age to work a lot!" The look Sandra gave her was not amused.

"Sweetie, I just want you to think of yourself more, that's all." She turned the stove off and moved the pan off the hot burner. "Grab some plates, please?" Mindy immediately stood up, reaching into the cupboard beside the fridge.

"Mom, I think of myself plenty." She said while her Mom put scrambled eggs and sausages on the two plates.

"Sure, you do, sweetheart."

"I do!"

"Mhmmm." Mindy gave her an exasperated look, even though her Mother wasn't looking at her. "Oh, coffee! Did you want coffee, sweetie?"

"Yeah, I'll get it. Do you want a refill?" She gestured to the empty mug sitting beside the stove while she reached into the cupboard again, this time for a mug.

"Please, dear." She filled the mugs accordingly, meeting her Mother back at the kitchen table, where two plates of hot food sat waiting. "Did you want toast or anything?" Mindy shook her head 'no', this was more than enough for her.

"Where's Dad? I thought he'd be up by now." Sandra rolled her eyes, waving her off.

"Oh, he got called in at the factory this morning. They needed him to do some weird…tech-y thing." Mindy smirked, her Mother had never been big on technology, only ever bothering with the basics. Her father, Michael Park, had worked at the same factory for longer than she'd been alive, and it wasn't unusual for him to be called-in on a weekend at the last second. "He should be back by the afternoon."

They ate in silence for a few moments, Zeus meowing at them from the floor, wanting a bite of whatever they had. Mindy was just offering him a tiny piece of sausage when her Mother spoke again.

"So, Mindy," Sandra started, "has anything interesting happened recently?" She watched her daughter over the edge of her coffee cup, awaiting her response.

"Uh…interesting?" She suddenly found her plate of food more fascinating than making eye contact. "Nope…not really."

Of course, Sandra didn't believe her. She knew her daughter better than anybody, it was obvious when she was lying, she was terrible at it. Though, for now, she let the topic change.

"Did you know Holt is getting married next winter?" Mindy froze midbite, not expecting the conversation to shift that drastically. She wasn't entirely sure how to respond, so she set her fork down and reached her coffee before finally being able to form any coherent words.

"What?" Well, coherent WORD.

"Apparently he's marrying a girl he met while he was away for school. I ran into his Mother at the store a couple weeks ago, she told me she's a very sweet girl, but not as sweet as you were." Mindy could feel her heart stilling at the news, still not quite certain of how to react.

Holt was getting married?

For those of you who are wondering, Holt would be Mindy's ex-boyfriend from high school and part of college. The cause of their break-up? Holt's infidelity, which would be why Mindy was so shocked to hear he was actually settling down. Surprisingly though, she didn't feel upset. The only thing she felt was indifference, and that in-turn made her feel relieved.

"That's honestly…great." Sandra seemed slightly surprised by her reaction, "Really, I'm happy for him. Never thought he'd settle down, but to each their own." Her Mother studied her for a moment.

"And you're okay with that, dear?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Sandra shrugged at Mindy. "Mom, we broke up years ago. Don't be so surprised. I moved on, and so did he. I wish him the best."

"If you say so, I trust your judgement. I just wanted you to hear it from me and not some random person." Mindy gave her a soft smile, letting her know that it was appreciated. They drifted from the slightly uncomfortable topic, Sandra asking Mindy about work, Mindy asking her about her Dad's upcoming birthday. Zeus sat on the floor, still meowing occasionally, begging for a piece of food from either woman. Sandra decided to shift the conversation back to Mindy.

"So, nothing else new to share with your dear, old Momma?" A pair of blue eyes popped into Mindy's mind, and she could feel the heat rise in her face.

"Nope. Not a single thing." Mindy hurriedly finished her plate of food, knowing her Mother could sense when she was fibbing.

"Mindy, don't eat so fast, you'll make yourself sick!"

She shrugged her shoulders, not bothering to respond. Empty plate in hand, she stood and walked to the sink, rinsing it and her coffee mug, setting them inside the dishwasher.

"Thanks for breakfast Mom, I'm gonna grab a shower now." She kissed her Mother on the head, running from the room, Zeus staying behind, still wanting to be given food.

Sandra looked down at the flame-tipped Himalayan cat, blue eyes meeting green.

"You know she's hiding something, don't you, Zeus?" As if he understood every word, he blinked at her and swished his tail. Sandra leaned her elbows on the table, coffee cup in hand with a knowing smile. "She'll tell me eventually, she always does."

~o.o~o.o~

Mindy had closed the door to the guest room and was leaning against the back of it. She could hear her Mother's muffled voice talking to Zeus, but couldn't identify the words.

"Something interesting, huh?" She muttered to herself, the smirking face of somebody instantly popping into her mind. She shook her head, trying to rid herself of the thought.

"Whatever." Grabbing her toiletries bag, she made her way to the guest bathroom, turning on the shower, giving it a few minutes to warm up before stripping out of her pajamas and stepping under the hot spray. She didn't want to take too long, so she scrubbed her body and washed her hair quickly, not bothering to shave because, seriously, who did she have to impress? Zeus? If she could deal with how hairy he was, he could do the same.

Once Mindy had towel-dried herself, she threw on her underwear and a bra, pulled on an old pair of jeans and a gray, long-sleeved shirt. She combed her hair and left it to air dry, feeling lazier than normal. When she finished, she put her glasses back on her face and walked out of the guestroom, trying to locate her Mom.

Hearing the television, Mindy made her way towards the living room, spotting her Mom lounging on the couch, Zeus curled up beside her. Sandra gave her daughter a warm smile, patting the empty space beside her. Mindy walked over and sat down, tucking her feet under her and leaning onto to the throw pillows.

"What are we watching?" Mindy's Mom snorted, passing her the remote with a roll of her eyes.

"Hell if I know. There's so much junk on TV nowadays." She laughed at her Mother, taking the TV remote and flipping through the channels, before settling on a movie channel that was showing Forrest Gump.

"Oh, I haven't seen this in forever." Sandra gave her an incredulous gaze, and Mindy stared back, "What?"

"Mindy, you always cry when you watch this movie."

"Pffft, what? Do not." Her Mother only hummed a response, knowing from experience when to choose her battles, even if she was right. Though Mindy would never tell her that.

They watched the opening sequence, listening to Forrest narrate his childhood and his first pair of shoes, when Mindy thought back to their conversation at breakfast. She felt a smidge of guilt over not telling her Mom about Mark. Why hadn't she said anything? It's not like she has many friends that she can gossip with about the Martian-man. She glanced over at her Mom, who was engrossed in the TV, watching Forrest run across the football field and away from the bullies.

Mindy took a deep breath before deciding to speak.

"So…" she started, drawing Sandra's attention to her, "…I uh…actually did have an interesting day a couple weeks ago." Her Mother raised a brow, knowing there was more. "Okay, a couple interesting days."

"Do tell." Prompted to continue, Mindy told her about meeting Mark Watney, the conversations they've had, his surprise visit to her during her shift, their breakfast, and the few phone calls they've shared. Her Mother listened to every word, not interrupting once.

"You're friends with Mark Watney, now?" Mindy shrugged her shoulders.

"I mean, I guess we are. I can't say I dislike his company…honestly it's the opposite."

"What do you mean?"

"I love talking to him, Mom." Sandra nodded in understanding, and Mindy continued, "He's really funny, and he's so smart. We get along really well too, which surprises the hell outta me."

"Why is that surprising?" She looked at her Mom like that should be obvious, even though it clearly was not.

"Because he's Mark Watney. He survived on Mars and was able to make it back here, all because of how incredibly smart he is. He's done all these amazing things and I just feel like we're leagues apart." Sandra snorted, her daughter was so full of shit.

"Mindy, I love you, but don't be an idiot." At her offended look, Sandra elaborated what she meant. "YOU are incredibly smart, and why wouldn't he enjoy your company? You're Mindy Park, what's not to like? Hm?" Mindy didn't have an answer, not wanting to insult her Mom with a reply, which would most likely be negative. "Sweetie, you're a wonderful young woman. You're intelligent, beautiful, you have so many good qualities, it'd be surprising if you and Mark Watney didn't get along. Don't be so self-conscious, it'll only hinder you two's friendship, and you don't want that happening, I'm sure."

"No, you're right."

"Of course I am, I'm your Mother." Mindy laughed at the typical response, feeling much better, and not as filled with self-doubt as she had been. "Now, watch the movie dear. You're the one who chose it. I won't say 'I told you so' when you cry, though." Sandra gave her a comforting smile, one that Mindy happily returned, and they focused their attentions back to the TV, seeing Forrest graduate college. They watched the entire thing, a box of tissues on the coffee table as the ending neared. And you know what?

Sandra was right.

And you'd never hear Mindy say it out loud, but that was okay with her.