She’s in a wheelchair. Yep, that’s right. She’s a paraplegic.”
“A wheelchair ?” she repeated like it was
a dirty word. Funny, being a doctor I’d have thought she knew damn well what a
wheelchair was.
“Oh
wait, I almost forgot. She’s covered in tattoos and piercings and has hair
brighter than a London bus. So go on, Mum… why don’t you get your disapproval
off your chest too?”
“Jared
stop this now. You cannot speak to us like that,” she scolded.
“Like
I’ve just told Dad. She wants to meet you. But how the hell can I bring her
here when you’ve already decided you hate her!”
“We
don’t hate her. We don’t even know her,” my mum said, sounding surprisingly
genuine. I felt my shoulders begin to relax.
Until
my dad opened his mouth.
“I
wouldn’t worry, Sue. He’ll have moved on to the next one soon enough.”
“You
are unbelievable! Did you not hear me? I. Am. In. Love. With. Her!” I only
realised it minutes before but now I knew… I was falling more in love with her
by the second. “You know what, screw this. And screw you!”
Jumping
from the sofa I started making my way to the front door.
“Jared,
darling…” my mum said softly, putting her hand on my forearm as I reached for
the door handle. “Just give him a few days to process it. Then… we would love
to meet your girlfriend.”
“He
doesn’t deserve to meet her,” I snapped but almost immediately softened. My mum
was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She always has been with me and my
dad. We’ve fought constantly for as long as I can remember and with her loving
us both equally, she’s the one who suffers the most. “I’m sorry, Mum. I know
you’re only trying to make the peace. But I’m sick to death of trying to please
him. I’m a disappointment, a failure… I get it. I’m used to hearing it. But I
will not have him saying those things
about Rachel.”
“Rachel?
That’s a lovely name.”
“She’s
great, Mum. Really she is. I know she’s younger than me. I know she’s out
there. She’s loud and confident… but that’s just her exterior. On the inside…
on the inside she’s so strong. She’s beautiful, Mum, and I’m really, really serious about her.”
“But
the wheelch-”
“Means
nothing to me,” I cut in.
“I’m
not judging her, Jared. Though I’m sure other people will.” Like the ignorant twat in there you mean… “And
naturally living with any disability makes life more difficult. It’s a big
commitment to make to someone. I just want to know you’ve thought about the
long term”
“Yes,
Mum. I have. But seriously when you meet her, you’ll see for yourself how
strong she is. She’s completely independent – she wouldn’t let me care for her so to speak, even if I
wanted to.”
“You
know, darling… I don’t think I’ve ever heard you sound so mature. If your new
lady has got anything to do with this change in you, then I approve of her
already.”
Wow.
I think that is one of the most meaningful conversations I’ve had with either
one of my parents. Ever.
“Thanks,
Mum,” I said sincerely, bringing her in for a hug. “I’ll call soon.”
“I’ve
heard that before,” she said with a mocking smile. “Take care, darling.”
**********
Me:
Let me no when ur home from uni. I need to talk to u
Rachel:
Sounds ominous. Good or bad?
Me:
Not sure yet
Okay
so I was totally teasing her. Of course it was good news. I’m going to tell her
I love her. Screw that… I’m going to make her dinner (alright so I’m going to
order Chinese – same thing), then I’m going to kiss her, make love to her
and tell her how much I absolutely fucking adore her. And hell, if she’s lucky
I might even bring Cindy out to play.
Rachel:
You’re acting weird. I don’t like it. Tell me now
Me:
It needs to be face to face
Rachel:
Gotta go. Late for class. Don’t fuck with me Jaz I’m nervous here
I
planned to reply but was
“A wheelchair ?” she repeated like it was
a dirty word. Funny, being a doctor I’d have thought she knew damn well what a
wheelchair was.
“Oh
wait, I almost forgot. She’s covered in tattoos and piercings and has hair
brighter than a London bus. So go on, Mum… why don’t you get your disapproval
off your chest too?”
“Jared
stop this now. You cannot speak to us like that,” she scolded.
“Like
I’ve just told Dad. She wants to meet you. But how the hell can I bring her
here when you’ve already decided you hate her!”
“We
don’t hate her. We don’t even know her,” my mum said, sounding surprisingly
genuine. I felt my shoulders begin to relax.
Until
my dad opened his mouth.
“I
wouldn’t worry, Sue. He’ll have moved on to the next one soon enough.”
“You
are unbelievable! Did you not hear me? I. Am. In. Love. With. Her!” I only
realised it minutes before but now I knew… I was falling more in love with her
by the second. “You know what, screw this. And screw you!”
Jumping
from the sofa I started making my way to the front door.
“Jared,
darling…” my mum said softly, putting her hand on my forearm as I reached for
the door handle. “Just give him a few days to process it. Then… we would love
to meet your girlfriend.”
“He
doesn’t deserve to meet her,” I snapped but almost immediately softened. My mum
was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She always has been with me and my
dad. We’ve fought constantly for as long as I can remember and with her loving
us both equally, she’s the one who suffers the most. “I’m sorry, Mum. I know
you’re only trying to make the peace. But I’m sick to death of trying to please
him. I’m a disappointment, a failure… I get it. I’m used to hearing it. But I
will not have him saying those things
about Rachel.”
“Rachel?
That’s a lovely name.”
“She’s
great, Mum. Really she is. I know she’s younger than me. I know she’s out
there. She’s loud and confident… but that’s just her exterior. On the inside…
on the inside she’s so strong. She’s beautiful, Mum, and I’m really, really serious about her.”
“But
the wheelch-”
“Means
nothing to me,” I cut in.
“I’m
not judging her, Jared. Though I’m sure other people will.” Like the ignorant twat in there you mean… “And
naturally living with any disability makes life more difficult. It’s a big
commitment to make to someone. I just want to know you’ve thought about the
long term”
“Yes,
Mum. I have. But seriously when you meet her, you’ll see for yourself how
strong she is. She’s completely independent – she wouldn’t let me care for her so to speak, even if I
wanted to.”
“You
know, darling… I don’t think I’ve ever heard you sound so mature. If your new
lady has got anything to do with this change in you, then I approve of her
already.”
Wow.
I think that is one of the most meaningful conversations I’ve had with either
one of my parents. Ever.
“Thanks,
Mum,” I said sincerely, bringing her in for a hug. “I’ll call soon.”
“I’ve
heard that before,” she said with a mocking smile. “Take care, darling.”
**********
Me:
Let me no when ur home from uni. I need to talk to u
Rachel:
Sounds ominous. Good or bad?
Me:
Not sure yet
Okay
so I was totally teasing her. Of course it was good news. I’m going to tell her
I love her. Screw that… I’m going to make her dinner (alright so I’m going to
order Chinese – same thing), then I’m going to kiss her, make love to her
and tell her how much I absolutely fucking adore her. And hell, if she’s lucky
I might even bring Cindy out to play.
Rachel:
You’re acting weird. I don’t like it. Tell me now
Me:
It needs to be face to face
Rachel:
Gotta go. Late for class. Don’t fuck with me Jaz I’m nervous here
I
planned to reply but was
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