Page 74 of The Bad Boyfriend Curse
I exhale and sit. “Okay. Talk.” I stack two pancakes on my plate and start pouring maple syrup onto them. Because even if I’m mad, I really like these pancakes.
“It’s about that op-ed,” Jason says. “Did you know your friend was writing that?”
“Kaitlyn isn’t my friend,” I say. “We hung out in a group, maybe three times this summer. So no, I didn’t know.”
“You were clearly close enough that she knew you were onlypretendingto date that boy,” Mom says. She still looks angry.
“His name is Noah,” I say. “Jason knows his name. He’s known Noah’s family for a long time.”
“I have told your mother about my history with the Jacobs family,” Jason says. He sighs. “The article’s been a big blow to my campaign. We had a meeting with my campaign manager yesterday, and she’s given some ideas for damage control.But first we want to knowwhyKaitlyn did this so we know if there’s anything else she could bring up that might be an issue in the future. I know Stuart hasn’t always been my biggest fan, but I would not have expected this from him.”
I snort. “Well, maybe you should have? He was extremely racist to Mom at your party. I don’t even get why he was invited. You should have shielded Mom from that crap.”
Jason blinks at me, then looks at Mom, who doesn’t say anything because I’m right.
“Kaitlyn hates Noah because that song of his went viral,” I add, this time with less of an attitude in my voice. “And because a concert promoter discovered him at Donut Den and offered him a gig at a music festival. Kaitlyn wouldkillfor that to happen to her.”
“So, she was jealous?” Mom asks.
I nod. “She wants to be a singer.”
Jason closes his eyes a moment, and I see a vein throbbing in his forehead. Is he mad at me or at Stuart and Kaitlyn? “I assume Noah and Mike have seen the article?”
“Yeah, they were both really mad. Noah was publicly called adelinquentand a drug addict, when you know he’s not. This is totally going to affect his future opportunities. He’s blaming me for it.” I pause, moving pieces of pancake around my plate. “He broke up with me yesterday.”
“What?” Mom says. Her face falls. “Oh, Meera, I’m sorry.”
I shake my head. I want to laugh, but I don’t. I know I’m acting like a petulant kid, but Mom doesn’t get to pretend that she cares about how I’m feeling now that she’s gotten what she’s always wanted. “No, you’re not. You can’t even say hisname.You’re happyhe dumped me.” I take another big bite of my cinnamon pancake. I’m not usually an emotional eater, but in the last two days I’ve learned of the magical properties that sugar has on heartbreak. “Youdon’t want me dating the son of aplantworker. A tattooed and pierced musician. It messes up this new image you’ve created for yourself. And Jason doesn’t want me dating Mike Jacobs’s son, because it reminds him of how he ruined that poor family’s life. You’re both happy.” I wipe a tear. I didn’t even realize I was crying again.
All three of us are quiet for a while. Mom and Jason don’t even try to eat, so the only sound in the room is from my own silverware against the plate.
Mom takes a big breath in. “I’m not happy that you’re upset,” Mom finally says, her expression flat. “I’ve called your nani. If you still want to go back to Toronto for the rest of the summer, we can do that. She’s busy today, but she can come as early as tomorrow morning to pick you up.”
I nearly drop my fork. “Seriously?”
Mom nods, her expression unreadable. “Yes, seriously. I hate that you’ve been so miserable.” She pauses. “Jason has a campaign event on Sunday at Gordon Park that I should be at. If you are also willing to come, then we can go together back to the city Monday morning.”
I… I don’t know what to say. They’re letting me go home. Maybe I should stay until after Jason’s party for her? Maybe I should be there to show the haters that they didn’t win?
But I don’t think I can be there, at Gordon Park again. On the bandstand that Noah and I restored. Where we kissed for the first time.
I first saw Noah in that park. We weeded, and pruned, and planted, and painted. We laughed and talked about our dreams and about how we were going to make them happen. I’m pretty sure I fell in love with Noah at that park.
I don’t think I can be there, knowing I’ll probably never see him again.
I shake my head. “I think… after everything that happened there… I would rather go home tomorrow.”
She nods. “Okay. And in September you canchoosewhere you want to go to high school. Here, or back in Toronto.”
I don’t need to even think about that one. “I want to go to high school in Toronto so I can do the BEAD program in person,” I say. “And so I can graduate with my friends.” I am not giving up on my goals. Not for anything, or anyone.
Mom looks down at her plate, blinking. “Then that’s what we’ll do. I’ll confirm with my mother that you want her to pick you up tomorrow. And I’ll be there with you on Monday. Glad I didn’t sell the condo, yet.” She gets up from the table and picks up her empty plate, but then looks back at me. Her eyes are glassy. “I didn’t believe in this family curse anymore. I thought nothing bad was going to happen because of falling in love this time. But… I guess I was wrong.” She pauses, breathing. “I know I’ve been a terrible mother lately, but there’snothingI wouldn’t do for you, Meera.” She takes the plate to the kitchen, then walks up the stairs.
What did Mom mean by that? There’s nothing she wouldn’t do? And why is she glad she didn’t sell the condo?
It suddenly comes to me. I turn to Jason, eyes wide. MomisleavingJason. She’s coming back to live in Toronto with me, because that’s where I want to be.
The sad look on Jason’s face confirms it. “She told me that on our first date, you know. That no one wasevergoing to come between her and you.” He chuckles, cutting his pancake. “Everyone told me that I was making a mistake. That I should find someone who putsmefirst. But eventually I realized that there’s more love in that woman than in anyone else I’ve met. And even after you get the lion’s share, there is still plenty left for me.”
