Page 25 of It's Not All Fake

“Oh, no,” Chloe reassures her. “We can continue our coaching if you’d like. There’s no problem with that.” Chloe smiles sweetly. The morning sun highlights different shades of maple and cinnamon in her wavy hair and makes her green eyes blaze with color. I can’t help but think how beautiful she is.

Chloe catches me staring, and I quickly turn back to my plate. Feeling the warmth of the sun, I roll up the sleeves of my white button-up, trying to compose myself.

“Oh good.” My mother smiles, relieved. She picks around her plate with her fork, and I can tell she is thinking up another question. “It’s been so one-sided talking about myself during coaching. Does this mean you can talk about your life more now?”

Chloe chuckles. “Sure, I can. Outside of our sessions, of course.”

My mother’s eyes light up. “That’s wonderful. I know that you grew up in Michigan, right?”

Oh no. The inquisition is starting. I clench my jaw shut to keep my silence and try to be patient with my mother. This is for her, after all.

“Yes, until I moved here in high school.” Chloe takes a bite of a strawberry, seemingly unphased by the questions so far.

“Why did you move?” My mother looks like she is on the edge of her seat.

Chloe coughs and swallows her bite. “Um, my mother died.”

Oh fuck.

My stomach tightens and I put down my fork. How fucking terrible. Somehow, Chloe remains calm.

“My God, I’m so sorry, Chloe. What happened?” My mother’s voice is gentle with genuine sadness for Chloe, but it doesn’t stop her questions.

“Mom, maybe Chloe doesn’t want to talk about it,” I offer, trying to protect Chloe from feeling obligated to discuss painful memories over breakfast.

“It’s okay,” Chloe assures me, turning back to my mother. “She had a heart defect that no one knew about. She never had any problems. But one day, she was on the phone with my dad, and she collapsed. I found her when I got home from school,” Chloe shrugs, forks a piece of waffle off her plate, and places it in her mouth. I take it as a sign that she doesn’t want to continue talking about this.

My heart breaks for Chloe. I can’t even imagine her pain. I want to take her hand to comfort her, but I second-guess myself, wondering if she’d want me to. Maybe she would prefer to just move on with breakfast and focus on eating her waffles. Before I can decide what to do, my mother stands up.

“I’m so sorry, Chloe,” she whispers, circling the table to envelop Chloe in an awkward hug with Chloe still seated.

“It’s okay,” Chloe reassures my mother.

When my mother finally lets her go and returns to her seat, I notice Chloe’s eyes are watery. I feel a pang of guilt for causing her pain by subjecting her to this.

“Mom, Chloe and I saw a movie last night,” I say, trying to change the subject before thinking it through. Then I realize it’s probably a poor choice of topic since the horror movie was all about death and dying.

“Oh, that’s nice,” my mother responds. Then, turning back to Chloe, she asks, “Chloe, so you moved to LA with your father?” She detours right back to her line of questioning as she picks up her coffee cup.

I consider intervening, but Chloe answers calmly. “Yes, my brother and I did,” she replies, toying with her necklace.

“Are you close with your father?” Mom asks without pause.

“We’ve reconnected more recently,” Chloe nods. “I’m hoping to visit him in London sometime soon, but we need to find a good time—he’s very busy with work.” She readjusts her thin silver necklace again, and I notice the skin beneath it is red. It seems she’s been fiddling with it out of nerves so much that it’s causing irritation.

“Oh,” my mother glances pointedly at me. “Sounds familiar.”

I run a hand through my hair. Why am I being chastised?

“Okay, Mom, let’s give Chloe a break from the hot seat,” I say with just the right mix of good humor and firmness.

My mother sighs, relenting. “All right, well, I only wanted to make an appearance anyway. I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone.” She stands up and gives me a conspiratorial look that makes me tense up. Although I’m glad she is excited, I’m reminded of how awkward it is to have her privy to my relationships. As she walks past me, she squeezes my shoulder. “I’m so happy for you.” She smiles.

“Thanks, Mom.” At least the mission is accomplished so far. Mom is happy.

Chloe stands as my mother approaches her. “It was lovely having breakfast with you, Olivia.”

“You too, sweetie.” My mother pulls her into a hug. Then she gives Chloe a guilty smile and adds, “Chloe, I don’t mean to pry. I’m just excited to get to know you better.”

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