It's been a week and everything had been fan-fucking-tastic. Living with Carol has been amazing. My new job is awesome, and I feel better. I still do my therapy over video, but I haven't had much to tell her. If I wasn't convinced that this move was the right call, then I'm convinced now.

It's Friday right now and I'm currently sitting at my desk doing some designs for a client. My eyes keep going to the time in the bottom right corner of my screen because I'm giddy to get home. Home. That word also fills me with happiness. I haven't had a home in four years, but now I do. Now I have someone to come home to.

The clock finally hits four pm and I'm out of my seat.

"Alright, guys, I'm gonna head out! Hope everyone has a good weekend."

"Bye, Jo!" They all reply in unison.

I really like all the people here. Free thinkers. People who aren't constrained by old people's bullshit. And I'm sorta already popular among the employees... I'm not bragging! But I just seem to attract people even though I like keeping to myself. It's a gift and a curse, I guess.

I was on my way out when I saw Karla.

I grimaced.

She isn't bad per se, but she definitely isn't subtle. This whole week she's been flirting my head off. My will has been like an iron wall. Karla is actually really nice and has er- nice assets, but my hearts already taken. I just don't know what to say to her. It isn't like I'm in a relationship and I'm not wearing a ring either. It was too bad I had a hard time even talking to the woman. I always went stupid when she was around. She always dressed to impress, which meant all her outfits enhanced everything. That also meant mini-me was always popping up, which embarrassed the shit out of me.

"Hey J." She said as she lightly grazed my arm. Goosebumps littered my skin and I swear I shivered a little.

Karla was so pretty. Her afro was in perfect form, her dark complexation was immaculate, her outfits always blew everyone else's out of the water, and she had this buttery smooth voice that made me want to comply with her every order. Like I said before, I've had to have an iron strong will all week.

"H-hey Karla, you leaving too?" I asked.

Fuck, I stuttered.

She chuckled. "Yeah, it's about that time. So, I wanted to ask you something."

"Alright." I replied.

"Me and some friends were thinking about going out next weekend. You in?"

"I– uuhhh... sure, sure." I replied dumbly.

"Cool. Let me see your phone real quick." Karla said with a wink.

I fumbled for my phone, unlocked it, and handed it to her. I watched as she typed something out real quick and handed it back to me.

"There. Don't forget to pick up J!" Karla said as she left me in her wake.

Yeah, you didn't mishear her the first time she said it. Karla calls me J. Jo is already a nickname, but she said she wanted to have something special that no one else called me. I shook my head. I was way over my head with her.

Pretty women will be the death of me...

I made my way out of the building and into my car to head home. It didn't take too long. I mean, if you think thirty minutes is long, then I guess it is. This is America, not Europe. We can't just drive half an hour and be in another country. Plus, listening to my music helps quickly pass the time.

I started to head down our road when I swore I could have seen another car in our driveway. Granted, I was squinting, but that definitely looked like another car. I hoped to fuck it wasn't Morgan. I know Morgan is Carol's friend, but I have a gut feeling that she likes Carol.

Please, please, please let it not be her.

When I got close enough, I saw it wasn't Morgans, but someone else's and they were there when Carol wasn't. That made things way odder. Then I started to panic. Did she have someone I didn't know about? A partner she's hiding from me? I thought she said she hadn't been able to date since Ma. I felt my insides start to get queasy at the thought of her being together with someone else.

I slowly pulled into our driveway and turned off the engine. I looked to my left and really didn't recognize the car.

Who the fuck could it be?

I got out of my car, walked up to the door, and entered the house.

"Hello?" I called out.

"Uh hello?" The voice answered.

Ok... so it's a woman. A woman who isn't Morgan.

I felt like I needed a goddamn frying pan in m hands right because I was kinda freaking the fuck out right now. It couldn't be an intruder though. Who parks their car in front of the house they were robbing? A dumb robber, that's for sure. Hopefully, my rational brain is right and my delusional one isn't.

I walked into the kitchen and I swear I was hallucinating. There was a woman there, but she was the spitting image of Carol. She was going around the kitchen and apparently making something. It smelled good, but I had no idea why she was here.

"Who the fu- Oh, you're Sophia, aren't you?" I smartly said. It made me feel about myself because I usually wasn't this stupid.

"And you must be Jo." Sophia said as she wiped her hands on a dishrag.

"Carol mentioned that you've been dropping by more, but I-"

I got cut off by the sound of the door opening and closing. Carol was home.

"Hello?" Carol called out.

"We're both in the kitchen, mom!" Sophia yelled back.

That was weird to hear. Carol being called Mom. Even though she had told me about Sophia, I didn't really think about it till the person was standing right in front of me. Wild.

"Oh! There you both are. I'm glad you've already met." Carol said as she clapped her hands together. She turned her head towards me. "I'm sorry I didn't say anything earlier, Jo. It just slipped my mind."

"That's alright Carol. It's fine. Although, if I had a frying pan in my hand, it probably would have a different story." I said to her with a smirk.

Carol giggled at my response and it made my heart sore. I looked back to Sophia and one of her eyebrows was up in question. She wasn't looking at me though; she was looking at Carol, who shrugged innocently at her daughter.

"I haven't heard you giggle like that in a long time, mom." Sophia said.

"What can I say? Jo makes me laugh." Carol said with a small laugh.

"Mhm." Sophia replied. "Well, it was good to finally meet mom's savior. It took some big balls to go against your own mother, but you still did. Why is that?"

"Sophia!" Carol admonished.

"It's fine." I said with a shrug. I leaned back on the counter and decided to tell the truth. Well, not all of it. "Because it was the right thing to do. I loved my Ma once, but she changed. Carol didn't deserve what Ma did to her, so I decided to do something about it." I said, while making direct eye contact with Sophia.

Sophia stared unnervingly at me for a minute and then stopped. "Alright!" She exclaimed. "With that out of the way, how about we eat this amazingly delicious dinner I made?"

***

Besides, that odd moment when me and Sophia got introduced, dinner couldn't have gone any better. Sophia was amazing and I could see the resemblance between them. Carol was talkative and happy. The whole experience was awesome. This was what I wanted for Carol. No drama, no bullshit, just times where she could be happy and relaxed.

Even though Sophia had gone, we were still sitting at the table drinking some wine Carol had got at the store. I didn't really know shit about wine, but it tasted good.

"So? That went over well." I said.

"It did. I was a little nervous about the two of you meeting."

"Why?" I said curiously.

"Well, Sophia might look like she takes a lot of after me, but she really takes a lot after her father."

"And what was her father like?" I said, while taking another sip of my wine.

"He was the type of guy that was rowdy and loud. Always had something to say. Sophia inherited that trait. She doesn't think before she speaks and it had gotten her some trouble." She said with a chuckle.

"I wouldn't have taken offense."

"I know you wouldn't have, but I was afraid she would have said something about your mother. I mean, she did, but that was tamer than I was expecting."

"It's honestly fine. Y'know how I shrug most things off." I said to her. It was a lie I had been telling since forever ago, but I wasn't going to admit that to her.

"Don't do that Jolene Williams." Carol admonished.

"Don't do what?" I said, feigning ignorance. "And I really need to get my last name changed."

"I know you just as much as you know me. I saw how your Ma and the bullying affected you, Jo."

"W-what?" I said, a little shocked.

"You didn't think I knew about how those assholes treated you?"

Now my eyes were comically big because Carol never cursed.

"I- I- uhhh."

"I did, and I tried everything to get them to leave you alone."

"You what?" I said, a little louder this time.

"I could tell by your demeanor, so everyone time you looked sadder, I went down to the principles office and ripped him a new one." Carol said proudly.

"Wow." That was all I said, because what else could I say? I knew Carol could relate and understood about our home life, but I didn't think I had anyone in my corner regarding school.

"Yep." She replied. She even puffed out her chest a little, clearly proud of what she had done.

"Is that why Tina The Terror was expelled?" I said with wide eyes.

Carol looked at me with a mischievous smirk and I knew with a doubt that it was because of her.

"Damn." I lamely said.

"I always be here for you Jo. Don't you forget that."