Page 137 of Pride High 2: Orange
“I want you to use all the tools at your disposal,” Dr. Sharma said, “and that means continuing to communicate with him. But yes. Actions often reveal truths that we ourselves are unaware of.”
“He kissed me back,” Ricky said, feeling a surge of affection. “And he always seems happy to see me.”
“Then I would focus on what you are getting, rather than how you would like it delivered. Some guys read poetry to you when they fall in love. Others make sure there is always enough pressure in your tires.”
Ricky laughed. That did sound more like Diego. She was right. What they needed was more action. Which he sure liked the idea of. Hell, it was practically doctor’s orders!
CHAPTER 30
January 7th, 1993
Cameron sat in the living room with his mother as they watched TV, his eyes never settling on the screen for long. They kept returning to the wine glass on the coffee table, which Brenda had refilled twice in less than an hour. She’d already been drinking when he joined her. Was this still the first bottle?
He shouldn’t be surprised. His father had left town earlier in the week, and as usual, his absence seemed to trigger a crisis in his mom. Which never made sense to Cameron, because she wasn’t helpless without him. Brenda was strong and capable. She only drank too much when Trevor was gone. Or when they fought.
He waited until a commercial break before asking, “Dad is coming home tomorrow, right?”
His mother reached for her glass before answering. “He’ll be away until next weekend.”
Great. That meant she’d be doing this every night until then. Maybe if he understood why, he could figure out a solution. Some sort of workaround.
“Why don’t you call him?”
“I’m sure he’s busy,” his mother slurred.
“Even at night?”
Brenda snorted. “I don’t think it’s business that keeps him in California.”
Cameron’s stomach sank. “What do you mean?”
His mother waved away his concern with her free hand. “Oh darling,” she said, her tone sickly sweet. “Don’t worry about it. I’m just being silly. Everything is fine.”
He had to muster up the courage to ask, “Is it though?”
She took a swig. “Of course.”
Cameron kept his eyes on the wine glass. “Would it help if he was home more?”
Brenda sighed and set down the glass. “Wouldn’t that be nice? I adore our little family. The man of my dreams and my sweet baby boy. I wasn’t complete until you came along. Did you know that? Your father felt the same way. We were so happy when we brought you home from the hospital.”
Cameron tried to imagine that wholesome scene and couldn’t. “What was it like? When you and Dad first started out, I mean.”
“Wonderful,” his mother said wistfully. “I had such a crush on your father. He was dating a friend of mine back in college. That was how we met. I was crazy about him, even then. And I thought he liked me too, but we couldn’t do anything about it. Not until he showed up with flowers at my door. My friend had broken up with him by then. I was thrilled! And he was so handsome. Just like you are.”
“Were you happy together?” he asked.
“Oh yes.” His mother smiled at a distant memory before the muscles of her face went slack. “We were inseparable.”
Cameron wanted to ask what had happened, but he held his tongue as she drained her glass and filled it up again. He would wait until she was sober before he asked more, remembering a time when his mother was so drunk that she had wept on his shoulder while mumbling incoherently. He didn’t want to push her toward that brink.
So he sat there and pretended to watch TV, when really he kept checking on her as she slowly nodded off. When his mother began to alternate between listing to the side and jerking awake, he stood, turned off the television, and helped her upstairs to her room. Sometimes he would simply have her stretch out on the couch, so he could put a blanket over her, but not tonight. Cameron wanted her safely tucked away in her room.
Once she was, he went to his bedroom and shut the door, finally letting go of the anxiety he’d been holding in, which allowed need to float to the surface.
He thought of Anthony, longing for him so intensely that a whimper escaped his lips. Is this how his mother felt? Did she need her husband in the same way? And what did she mean when saying it wasn’t business that kept his dad in California? Was he having an affair? Or staying away because Cameron had come out?
He didn’t know. Nor did he want to think about it anymore, so he checked the clock. Almost ten—a little late for a call. He grabbed the phone on his desk and dialed Anthony’s number, an apology on his lips in case one of his parents answered. He was lucky. After a click, he heard Anthony’s voice.
