Winter Jacket: New Beginnings by Eliza Lentzski Page A

Nik’s business. What about me? I wanted to shout. First the annoyance of Dean Merlot, then the rejected book proposal, then my mom’s unexpected arrival, and now this ?
    “We’ ve never really needed the money in the first place, and with the pay bump I’m getting from the Studio, she really won’t have to work. But even if she wants to start up a new landscaping business, California has sunshine and dirt to grow plants in, too.”
    “I can’t believe you’re leaving me.” I felt gutted by this news.
    “You’re being overly dramatic, Bookworm. I’m moving, not dying.”
    “ But what am I supposed to do when I’m having a nervous breakdown?” I demanded. “Who am I going to talk to?”
    “ Me, silly,” she said, shaking her head. “There’s this thing called a telephone. And rumor has it, you can even talk to people over the Internet. I know you’re old, but I have faith you’ll figure it out.”
    “I suppose congratulations are in order then. ” The words came out, but I felt the opposite of celebrating. “When’s the big move?”
    “End of the month. I’ve got so much to do between now and then. I’ve gotta find someone to sublet the townhouse, which, now in hindsight , seems like a ridiculous purchase,” she grimaced. “We’ll probably lose money, but that’s my own fault for buying in this market. Know anybody looking for a two-bedroom condo?”
    Both Hunter and my mother came to mind as candidates to sublet, but I knew that neither of them would be able to afford the rental property on their own. Then I thought about them being roommates. And then my head exploded.
    “How much were you thinking about for rent?” The gears that worked my brain started to churn. I did some quick mental math. With the jump in title from Assistant to Associate Professor had come a significant raise. Even without the pay increase I had been living comfortably. I had planned on squirreling away the extra money into my savings account, but maybe it would be worth it to finance my mom subletting Troian’s condo if it got her out of my house.
    “I have no idea. I have n’t had time to research comps. Why?”
    “I will literally pay you to take my mother off my hands,” I said.
    Troian quirked an eyebrow. “It sounds like you’re hiring a hitman.”
    “Don’t tempt me,” I said, only partially joking.
    +++++
    We hid from my mother that evening in my bedroom like teenagers. Truthfully, nothing made me feel more juvenile than knowing my mother was lurking around downstairs. When Hunter came over after finishing her afternoon at the hospital, I had just gotten off the phone with my sister. First, I’d congratulated her on being pregnant. Then, I’d berated her for telling our mother where I lived.
    I buried my face in a pillow on my bed and yelled. It was overly dramatic, it was a pre-pubescent move, but sometimes you just needed to scream. I looked up when Hunter tugged at the pillow; my loose hair nearly covered my face.
    Hunter brush ed the hair away from my eyes. “Was that about your mom or Troi?”
    “Both.”
    “You’re really upset about them moving, aren’t you?”
    “I am,” I nodded glumly. “ And I know it’s incredibly selfish of me. I should be ecstatic for Troi and this opportunity, not sad for me.”
    “ Your best friend is moving across the country, Ellio. You’re allowed to feel sad. You’re allowed to feel things.”
    All of this was too much at once – the Dean breathing down my neck, the book contract falling through, my mom staying with me for who knew how long, and now my best friend was leaving.
    “I should throw them a going-away party,” I sighed.
    “That would be nice of you.”
    I mentally shook myself. It would do no good to wallow in this. “How did your test go today?”
    Hunter laughed softly. “I remembered to smile. And breathe.”
    I looked away from her angelic face when there was a knock at my bedroom door. My mom stood in the open doorway, looking