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Jackson is watching some TV when his mother sits next to him on the sofa. She looks at the TV but he knows when his mother is there just because she wants to ask him something. It doesn’t take long, just two minutes later the question is coming his way.
“So, how is the house hunting going?”
“You mean apartment hunting,” Jackson says without taking his eyes away from the baseball game.
“I thought you wanted to find a house?” Laura furrows her brow.
Jackson snorts. “That was weeks ago.”
“What do you mean weeks ago?”
“Yeah, we never actually looked for a house. As soon as I suggested it, he said it was insane.”
“Insane?” Laura frowns. “Is that really what he said?”
“Yeah, pretty much." Jackson really doesn't feel like explaining how the whole thing went down, so he's simply going to offer the shortest version he can think of.
"He said it was out of the question because you know...” Jackson looks at his mother. “He can’t afford it." Jackson waves his right arm.
“And?” Laura shrugs.
“Mom...” Jackson shakes his head. “He wants to pay half of the rent. Didn’t I tell you that when we first talked about it?”
“I thought... I guess I thought he’d change his mind. I thought you would make him change his mind... I thought he’d realize that a house was a better option... especially in the long run. Isn’t he thinking about your future?”
Jackson snorts. “You thought a lot of things... It’s obvious that you don’t know him that well yet. He’s not gonna listen to me—And he’s not gonna change his mind. And that doesn’t mean he’s not serious about us if that’s what you mean. It just means that he wants to pay his part.”
“But—”
“He’s stubborn, mom. Really stubborn. And this job he’s got doesn’t pay much but he’s getting experience and he’s happy… and he’s right.” Jackson shrugs. “He can’t pay what he’d need to pay for some apartments we’ve seen, much less for a house. So, yeah, for now, there’s no house in the horizon.”
“So what? You’re not living together anymore?”
“Oh no, we are.” Jackson nods. “The plan hasn’t changed… I just…”
“What?” Laura frowns.
“I didn’t want to tell you until—Well, until, it was fixed. You know, we need to paint it, get furniture and certainly fix the shower…” Jackson shakes his head, every time he remembers that shower, he wants to look for some other place.
“Okay, so you’re saying that you found some place but you didn’t think you should tell me?”
“Well, it was this morning, actually… and I knew you’d like to see it which is exactly what I don’t want you to do—At least not yet.”
“Come on, it can’t be so horrible,” Laura says in a hopeful tone.
“Not sure if ‘horrible’ is the word I’d use but yeah, it isn’t what I had in mind… but, apparently, I lack imagination and it’s going to be so much better…” Irony all over his words. “So, don’t worry, you’ll see it… eventually. At some point in time.”
“You don’t sound very enthusiastic.” Laura raises her eyebrows.
“No, I’m… I don’t know.” Jackson shakes his head. “It’s what he wants and given the circumstances, he’s right. It’s what we have to do. And it's true, if you compare it to everything else we’ve seen, it’s a reasonable price, but I wouldn’t say it’s a bargain either like he thinks. Although yeah, it’s—not bad… I guess.”
“Not bad?” Whenever her son says that she knows what he means. “How big is it, exactly?”
“Well… you know,” Jackson waves his right arm. “A living room, a kitchen, one bathroom and two bedrooms.”
“You mean, that’s it?” Laura narrows her eyes and tilts her head.
Jackson licks his lips. “That’s it,” Jackson says, staring at the television. “But the living room is… not bad. And the kitchen is—not ancient… Believe me, we’ve seen so much worse... It’s—”
“Not bad?” Her mother chuckles, waving her right arm.
“No, I was going to say… enough. It’s enough... He likes it.” Jackson shrugs and looks at his mother. “And the truth is that he doesn’t want to wait and neither do I. So, don’t say that it’s ridiculous or that it’s not the right move because we’re doing it.”
“I wasn’t going to say that… But there’s only space for an office, doesn’t he need one too?”
“Yeah, but we can share the space, or I can take the laptop to the living room. It’s not so important. We can manage. We have to think about it. Right now the most important is to paint it and fix a few things… something the pack will help with… and then, we’ll get some furniture which you can actually help with if you want…” Jackson waves his left arm as he maintains eye contact with her mother.
“I can?” Laura asks with a wide-eyed expression.
“Don’t look so surprised. You have good taste and money—The second part being what especially seals the deal here,” Jackson smiles.
Jackson knows how much his mother loves buying stuff and decorating. This is gonna be irresistible for her.
“And he’s okay with that?” Laura says, creasing her brow.
“Yeah… mostly. I mean, we’re supposed to keep a budget… so, as long as you don’t go over top… he totally welcomes your help.”
“How kind of him,” Laura chuckles.
“Yeah, he’s all kindness,” Jackson smirks.
The truth is that his mother has taken it a lot better than he expected. There hasn’t been any comment about Stiles calling the shots or about them rushing into things. Maybe his mother is actually happy that he’s leaving the nest again even if it’s supposedly forever this time.
“All right then, let me know if you want me to have a look at anything with you. I’m going to make dinner… your father should be here soon,” Laura says, getting up.
“Thanks mom, I will,” Jackson says, looking back at the game.