“Mom!” I whine as soon as we’re out of sight, “but seriously though, what are we having for dinner?”

“Son, you spent countless hours there. I don't understand why you don't just eat there,” Mom says glaring at me.

Mom locks the door behind us after we walk into the house.

“I can't just eat their food,” I tell mom.                               

“You did that as a kid,” mom says over her shoulder, heading to the couch.

“Well, I'm not a kid anymore and it's rude!” I say heading to the kitchen.

I look around the kitchen and shout, “Mom where's the food!” 

“I've told you, feed yourself!” Mom shouts, sinking into the couch.

I sigh, rolling my eyes. “Mom, seriously!” 

“It's in the fridge! Man, if I don't cook you act like a chicken with his head cut off,” Mom says, turning on the TV.

I swing open the fridge with excitement, finding beans and rice in a container sitting on the top shelf.

“Thanks Mom, love you! I’m gonna eat and go study,” I say stuffing rice and beans in my mouth.

“Yeah, yeah. I might just fall asleep on the couch. Work was not pretty today,” Mom says laying down on the couch.

“Work is never pretty for you,” I say walking towards my room.

“Haha, goodnight.” Mom laughs, lowering the volume on the tv.

Mom is a nurse and luckily today she had a morning shift. She usually doesn't cook for me, I tend to try to cook something quick when she has night shifts. But when she has morning shifts it always feels as if we at a buffet.

Opening the door to my room, my phone buzzes as soon as I step inside.

It’s Grace texting me ‘goodnight’. 

I sigh walking into my room, placing the container on the bed to text her back. 

Few minutes later, laying on my bed, eating beans and rice, I try to remember when it first started, me falling for her.

‘Mmm. Maybe kindergarten?’ I whisper.

She used to be very feisty and outgoing. She never let anyone push her around. And I was the type of kid who always wanted to test that.

I loved the way I could tease her, and she knew how to get me back, and never failed to fight back. I later grew to just be attached to her. Like a fly hanging around a Venus fly trap. And I did not care how trapped I was, I just loved being around her.