Page 48 of Studious
At that, she gives him an assessing look. “Don’t change my son too much,” she warns.
“I won’t,” he assures her. “I just want to help him be more himself.”
That wins him a slow nod. “Then I approve. Tell me more about yourself,” she says.
“I grew up in South LA. My dad died when I was four. Car accident. I don’t have too many clear memories of him. My mom raised me on her own after that. She’s a teacher at the elementary school I went to, so she was done for the day by the time I got out of class and I didn’t need a babysitter too much of the time. She’s my inspiration. Never lets anything get her down.”
I nod. “My dad wasn’t around, either.”
“He and I divorced when Alden was a baby,” my mom supplies.
“Right,” I say. “So I don’t really have any memories of him. He never did weekend visits or anything. I guess when he was done, he was done.”
I feel like the lack of a father figure in both of our lives means something. Danny seems to have handled it by going out and conquering the world. I handled it by folding in on myself.
I like having Danny at my mom’s table. With his good humor, dancing eyes, and easy smile, he’s charming her like I knew he would.
After dinner, my mom excuses herself, and Danny and I go out to sit on the patio. We’re drinking plain water, because I don’t plan to drink anything stronger for a long time, and he seems not to mind.
“I know we’ve talked about how you have no experience with men, but did something happen?” he asks. “Something bad, that made you feel undesirable or like you couldn’t be relaxed on dates?”
I scrub my hand over my face. “Not bad likebad. But, well. Yes.” I tell him, in halting, aching words, how I almost got kissed by my high school crush but instead fell into the pool. And how his friends made fun of me, that day and for the rest of my high school career.
“What a complete and total asshole,” Danny growls. “Teenagers are so fucking mean sometimes. And crap from school can stay with you for a long time.”
“Ninth grade sucks.” I look up at him. “But I figure you were always popular.”
“I was popular, yeah, but my high school boyfriend dumped me on prom night.”
My jaw drops. “Are you serious?”
He nods. “It sucked. Actually, that’s an understatement. I thought we were in love. After that, I vowed that I’d never open my heart to anyone again.”
“I’m so sorry,” I say. “That must have hurt so much.”
Danny gives me a half smile. “It made me grow up.”
I want more details, but I can tell by the way he’s sitting that this isn’t something he wants to talk about. “Thanks for telling me.”
He shrugs. “It’s in the past. I’m mostly over it.”
“How did you get over it?” I ask.
Danny gives me a long look. “Maybe I didn’t,” he admits, “because it still informs my behavior. I think we both have some of the same things going on.”
“Have you kept in touch with your ex?”
He shakes his head. “I started off the night by giving him a promise ring, and he broke up with me before we even got to dinner. I didn’t really want to stay friends after that.”
“That’s awful.”
He shrugs, then squares his shoulders. “But let’s talk about you. You want some more homework?”
I nod. “The haircut was nice. What’s next?”
* * *
The next morning, Danny picks me up in his shiny red Porsche. “I can’t believe you want to spend your whole weekend with me,” I tell him.
