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that she’s sober again.
    She pours us both mugs of coffee, then brings me the cup and gives me a peck on the cheek. I sniff for the scent of alcohol -- a reflex action at this point in my life -- but all I get is a whiff of the apple blossom perfume she’s been wearing for the last couple of months.
    “How’s that friend of yours?” my mom asks, walking back to the counter where she begins slicing an orange.
    “Aiden?”
    She laughs. “No, your lady friend. The one who had us over for dinner.”
    My stomach sinks. “Oh. Natalia.”
    My mom nods, slides the orange slices into a Zip Lock bag, then puts it in her lunch sack. “That’s the one. How is she?”
    I hesitate, not sure how to respond. “We’re sort of in a weird place right now.”
    “Uh-oh.” She stops and looks at me with motherly concern. “A lover’s quarrel?”
    “I guess you could say that.”
    We’re fighting because I cheated on her with Brody’s sister.
    “You like her a lot, don’t you?”
    I sigh and sip my coffee. It tastes hot and good going down my throat. “Yeah, Mom. I do like her. But she hates me.”
    “Honey, you have to fight for someone if you don’t want to lose them.”
    I look up from my coffee, taken aback that she’s actually making sense, wanting to ask her how I should do that, how exactly I can get Natalia back. But my mom’s already back to fixing her lunch, moving around the kitchen, humming a song with a smile on her face.
    I finish my coffee and then drive my mom to work so that I can keep her car. She seems content to believe that mine is still in the shop. I’m not sure how she’s going to react when I break the news that the car is never coming back from the imaginary mechanic.
    “Have a good day at school,” she says as she’s about to get out of the car and head into work. She still looks tired if I stare closely at her eyes, which have dark bags under them. There’s something worn out about her. Maybe she’s just getting older, or maybe it’s all the hard drinking finally catching up with her.
    But instead of feeling annoyed and resentful, which is how I usually feel, I kind of wish I could hug her and tell her everything’s going to be okay.
    “I’ll try.”
    “Everything alright, honey?” she asks, smiling uncertainly.
    “Yeah.” I hesitate. “Thanks for the advice earlier.”
    “Advice?”
    “When you told me to fight for Natalia.”
    She nods, then gazes out the car windshield with a wistful look on her face. “Of course, I still like that Raine Marsden. But I suppose you can’t let me pick your girlfriends for you.”
    I sigh, my good feelings toward her evaporating as quickly as they came. “I’ll see you tonight, Mom.”
    “Don’t worry about me, honey,” she says, giving me a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll get a ride home with Louisa.”
    She gets out of the car and I watch her head into her building before I drive away.

    ***
    As soon as I get to school, I start looking for Natalia. I spot her walking over by the math wing with Adrianna and I’m about to try to talk to her, but when Adrianna spots me she gives me a look of pure disgust. Then she pulls Nat in the opposite direction and starts hurrying her away.
    “Ouch!” Natalia yelps.
    But Adrianna keeps dragging her down the hallway. “Come on,” Adrianna says, glancing angrily at me one last time.
    Obviously Natalia told her what happened with me and Kaci. There’s no other explanation for why I’d get that kind of glare from Nat’s best friend.
    I deserve it, though. I know that. Still, I have to at least try. “Hey, wait a second,” I call out.
    Natalia hears my voice and freezes. Adrianna stops and puts her hand on her hip, glares at me again. “She doesn’t want to talk to you.”
    “I only need a second.”
    Adrianna starts to say something else, but Nat puts a hand on her arm, lightly, gives her a look. “I’ll be okay,” she says.
    Adrianna looks back at her and something passes between them. Some