As Mason walked out of his last exam for the school year, he felt a huge sense of achievement.

“Freshman year, done!” he shouted. No one around him looked at him, as everyone was too focused on trying to leave the building after taking a horrible chemistry final.

It was still early in the day, and Mason’s parents were coming to pick him up and take him back home. He had already packed up his stuff the night before, and all he needed to do was wait for his parents to arrive.

When Mason got back to his dorm, none of his roommates were there. Mason took out a comic book he was saving to read after exams were over. When his parents arrived, they texted him to come down and let them into the building.

“You’re here! Hurry up, come inside!” Mason said to his parents once he saw them outside. “I’ll go get a cart to move the stuff.” Mason quickly got a cart from the dorm lobby, and he and his parents squished into the elevator with the cart.

“How were finals? Good?” Dad asked.

“I think so! I got an answer for every question!”

“That doesn’t sound all that good,” Mom commented.

When they got to his dorm room, they began to load Mason’s belongings into the cart.

“Where are your roommates? Still have exams?” Mom asked.

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Should you call or text them a bit later to say goodbye?”

“Hm…” Mason thought for a bit. “No. Let’s hurry up and leave in case they come back soon!”

“Why?” His mom was concerned. “Are you guys fighting?”

“No, it’s just too awkward if they see us on our way out. And wouldn’t it be weird if we already left and I tell them goodbye on the phone? We’re not even that close. I think it’s better to just not say anything.”

“You can’t be serious,” Mom said.

“Why is this so heavy?” Dad asked, holding up a duffle bag. He opened it up, revealing all the comic books Mason bought in the last year. “I think this is getting out of hand.”

“Hey!” Mason shouted as he took the bag and zipped it up.

They transported all of Mason’s stuff to the car, and Mason returned the cart and his room keys to the front desk. Mason hopped into the car, excited for summer break.

“Do your friends have any summer plans?” asked Mom.

“Who would that be?” Mason asked in return.

“Oh my goodness, don’t tell me you don’t consider anyone you met at school to be your friend,” Mom said. “What about… what’s her name? Kelly? Is she doing anything interesting?”

“Kelly is just my lab partner! I barely know her as a person!”

“What do you even do outside of class?”

“Study, of course! And read comics when I have time,” Mason said. “Can’t wait to get caught up with reading now that it’s summer break!” His mother rolled her eyes.

After a five hour drive, they arrived at home and unloaded the car. Once inside, Mason immediately took his duffle bag to his room, and his parents immediately knew what he was going to do.

“That’s all he ever does! This is ridiculous,” his mother said to his father.

“Relax, it’s just his hobby! We should be glad that he’s not doing drugs or something,” Dad replied.

Mason had always been this way, and his parents used to not have a problem with it. In fact, when Mason was in high school, they loved that he wasn’t very social. Mason was always at the top of his class and they attributed it to never being distracted by anyone at school. They were ecstatic when Mason was accepted to Ottson University. But now that Mason was an adult and still had no social life, his mother was worried things would persist and Mason would never learn social skills or be able to make meaningful relationships.

Mom walked up to his room and swung the door open. Mason was on his bed with a comic book in his hand. He didn’t even flinch or look up from the page.

“Don’t you think you should, I don’t know, do something else for once? Like maybe sign up for a gym membership, learn a new recipe, or ride your bike around the neighborhood?”

“Not really,” Mason said, still not looking at his mom. Mom went back downstairs.

“I think we need to separate him from those books. He needs to experience life and not just stay cooped up in that room.”

“So he can stay moody here all summer because we keep telling him what to do?” said Dad.

Mom picked up her phone and began calling someone.

“Hello?” said a voice from the other end.

“Hello, Mom? It’s me.”

“Oh, yes, how are you doing?”

“Good, good. Mason just finished school. He’s back with us right now.”

“Oh, that’s good. Is he there? Can I talk to him?”

“Actually, I have an idea. I think he should spend the summer with you and Dad. He made no friends in college and he’s definitely not going to while he’s stuck here. There’s nothing for him to do here, and he needs to experience something new. Can he stay over to your place?”

“Oh, yes! That would be so lovely.” There was some muffled talking on the other end of the line. “Okay, when do you think he should come over?”

Mason’s mom thought for a bit. “Tomorrow. Can you get him at the train station tomorrow?”

“Yes, I can pick him up.”

“Alright, thanks, Mom. He’ll take a train over to your place tomorrow and I’ll have him call you when he arrives. And don’t let him buy any comic books while he’s there.”

When the conversation ended, Mason’s mom hung up the phone. It seemed like a solid plan. By sending Mason without his comic books to stay with Grandma and Grandpa, he’ll be broken out of his routine and be more likely to try new things.