Page 199 of Falling Backwards
I only manage my normal volume as I say through my laughter, “Ah, Mom, good luck fighting Bossy Moss.”
It’s okay that she doesn’t hear me becauseIcan hearherlearning where she stands with this new shade of Maggie this very second.
Might work one of her nerves eventually, but that’s okay too.It won’t diminish how the girl has charmed her.
I know that from experience.
—
It was already cold outside when we left for my mom’s, but sometime during the few hours we spent there, the partly-cloudy sky went fully cloudy and rain started up, so the afternoon feels extra cold by the time we’re back home.Shivering and hunching our shoulders, we complain while we ascend the stairs to my front door as quickly as we can without slipping.
We also yawn, as we’ve been doing for a while now.
“I need a nap,” I say.“A cozy, comfy, warm nap.”
“Yes,” Maggie agrees from in front of me, “but pleaseletit be cozy and comfy and warm by not stealing the blanket from me.”
“Aw, I’d never steal the blanket from you,” I promise her as I get my key ready.
She chuckles.“You have, though.”
I send a confused frown to the hair cascading down the back of her coat.“Who you talking to?”
We reach the top of the stairs and get to be side-by-side, allowing me to see her face.I snort at the quizzical expression she’s turned on me, which promptly makes her smile.
She points at me.“I’m serious!”
“So am I!”I point at me too.“You’re saying I’ma blanket stealer?”
“Big time!”
“Well, this is news to me.”
I get us through the front door, then shut it tight, locking us safely away from the cold, wet air while Maggie tells me about how I hogged the blanket a few times in my bed last night.I have no memory of it.The only thing I remember is a feeling from before I fell asleep and after I woke up: absolute fucking satisfaction that she was next to me.
That feeling was so true and perfect that I just about ache to have it again.
After we’ve gotten our coats and shoes put aside and our leftover food stored in the refrigerator, I shuffle to a standstill in front of Maggie and make a fresh, light promise to her.
“I’m sorry for making you cold during the night, and if I do it again, you may disturb my peaceful slumber and make me act right.”
That makes her laugh a little bit like my promise on the stairs did.
“Okay,” she accepts.“Deal.”
Our yawns come back, and I gesture to my room.She nods.It’s time for a snooze.
—
Once we were in sweatpants and long sleeves, snuggling under the comforter on my bed with that feeling of satisfaction descending on me once more, it was easy to drift off.We napped solidly, and after we woke up later, we were glad that I apparently didn’t roll the blanket around myself again.Chuckling about it helped wake us up enough to get back to the rest of our day.
Time has drifted easily too.
We’ve done our own kitchen cleaning.I’ve texted Paxton and Maggie has done the same with her friends and parents.We’ve made plans for the people-in-need shopping we want to do tomorrow and talked about putting my Christmas decorations up sometime this weekend, as well as a mini tree.We’ve gotten snacky enough to start in on some of the leftovers from my mom’s.And for the last little while, we’ve just been lazily, drowsily watching TV.
Not been too lazy and drowsy to keep from laughing, though.
Arrested Developmenthas been cracking us up, and we just now found the‘Egg’episode and are falling sideways on each other in my oversized chair while we laugh our asses off about that scene—
