Page 39 of Caged Hunger

That was one of the primary reasons he had moved to Baton, New Mexico. Living expenses in Baton were not as high as living in the city. And he was lucky. Marcus paid him double what he would normally make as a bartender, plus he supplemented his income by selling his body online.

He wasn’t ashamed of making sex videos. He had a great body and wasn’t afraid to show it off. And hey, if it earned him a few extra bucks, who was he to complain?

Times were tough, and people needed to do what they could to survive.

“Hey, Mom, how are you doing today?” Cameron asked, walking into his mother’s room and dropping the groceries onto her bed.

His mother turned, and her face lit up when she saw him.

That was a good sign. Sometimes he’d walk into her room, and she wouldn’t recognize him, thinking he was still ten and asking when her shift at the restaurant started.

“Hey, Cammy! How’s my favorite son?” she asked, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into the biggest hug. “Oh, you’re getting so big and strong.”

Cameron chuckled. His mother always made the same comment, even though she had seen him just two days earlier. He tried to visit when he could. Monday and Wednesday for sure, but he would also try to squeeze in another visit or two when he wasn’t busy working at the bar or getting something done for Marcus.

“So, are you ready to cook some dinner?” he asked, grabbing the bag of groceries off the bed and taking her hand in his.

His mother’s face lit up just as it had when he was a child, when the two of them spent Monday nights cooking together.

As they walked toward the kitchen, his mother began telling him about her day.

He loved this part of his visits. It felt just like it had when he was a young boy, except this time, instead of his mother cooking for him, he was cooking for her.

“Do you want to chop the veggies?” Cameron asked, pulling out a pan to begin cooking the chicken.

His mother nodded.

They spent the next two hours cooking dinner, then enjoying their meal while chatting in an almost empty dining hall.

As he handed his mother a slice of coconut pie, the joy on his face began to slip away.

His mother’s movements began to slow as her mind slowly pulled away. He saw the look of confusion cross her face as she began to question where she was and who the young man sitting across from her was.

“It’s me, Mama,” Cameron said softly, reaching across the table and gently taking her hand.

When dealing with someone with Alzheimer’s, it was important not to make them feel bad for forgetting things or to shame them for asking so many questions.

He could only imagine how scary it must be for the person to suddenly be surrounded by people and places they weren’t familiar with.

One thing doctors emphasized was the importance of familiarity—keeping the person surrounded by known spaces and cherished objects—to ground them when they began to feel untethered.

Unfortunately, he had to leave his childhood home, but he managed to take several of his mom's treasured belongings, including a family photo of him and his mother on a roller coaster at a theme park when he was a child.

“It’s your son, Cammy.”

His mother stared at him with questioning eyes.

“No. No, you’re not. My Cammy is ten years old. And he’ll be coming home from school soon.” His mother stood up. “I… I need to go and make him his snack. He’s going to be hungry when he gets home.”

His mother stood with the determination of a mother ready to tend to her cub.

Cameron stood and followed her.

“Why don’t we see what snacks you have in your room, Mom? See what sort of things Cammy might like to eat.”

His mother nodded, taking his hand and leading him toward her room.

“You’re going to love meeting my little Cammy. He is so smart and never stops talking. He loves to meet new people, and oh! He tells the funniest jokes.”