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Malcolm hated going with his mother to her galas and charity events, but because he loved his mother more than he hated them, he promised her he would try to attend at least one every month with her. Which is why he currently found himself at one of those said galas, mingling with groups of snobby rich people and forcing small talk and fake smiles.
He stuck close to his mother's side for the first three hours of the gala, but they ended up getting separated when a few of Jessica's oldest and most loyal donators stole her away to discuss when her next charity party would be taking place. That was well over half an hour ago now, and Malcolm felt on the brink of insanity. If one more person asked him about his father, he swore he was going to lose it.
Suddenly, the lights dimmed and some slow, classical song began to play over the loudspeakers; and he was awkwardly caught in the middle of people trying to find a partner to dance with. He dodged and slipped through the crowd of twirling and sashaying people, trying not to bump into anyone, or worse–get dragged into a dance. His heart began to race; breathing starting to quicken and stutter as sweat beaded his forehead. The cloying smell of perfumes and colognes mixed with the undertones of alcohol and sweat filled his nostrils and the back of his throat. It felt like he was slowly being suffocated by the sounds, smells, and sensations all going on around him.
After what felt like an eternity of navigating his way through bodies constantly on the move while also simultaneously forcing back the panic rising in his chest, Malcolm finally made it out of the crowd and found a semi-secluded area to tuck himself away from the rest of them. Before he even had the chance to take a breath and calm his racing heart, however, he felt someone wrap their hands around his bicep. He flinched hard and whipped his head around to see who it was.
"Whoa, easy there, handsome! Didn't mean to scare you. I just wanted to know if you would like to come dance with me," said a woman with greying brunette hair and sharp green eyes.
Malcolm silently opened and closed his mouth as he struggled to come up with a good excuse, while he also subtly tried to pull his arm out of her grasp. When he was unable to think of anything to say, and his attempt at escaping the small yet firm hands around his arm was futile, the woman spoke again.
"So, what do you say, handsome? Shall we hit the dance floor?"
Malcolm felt his panic rising even faster. "I, uh... I'm–I'm not, uh–"
"Oh, Malcolm, there you are!"
Malcolm's head twisted to his right, where he saw his mother making her way towards him with that practiced smile on her face. Relief almost instantly began to eat away at the panic that had been slowly drowning him.
"I've been looking for you everywhere." Jessica grabbed him by the other arm and easily tugged him away from the other woman.
"What the hell do you think you're doing? I was talking to him first!"
While still keeping a firm grip on him, Jessica's gaze sharpened as she turned her attention to the brunette woman.
"As I just said, I've been looking everywhere these last few minutes for my son. So, if you'll excuse us, there's somewhere else we need to be."
All Malcolm heard in response from the other woman was a scoff before Jessica was leading him away. They had to cross through the giant crowd again, but this time it didn't feel as daunting or impossible as it had before; now that he had his mommy with him.
Wait–mommy? Oh no.
He hadn't even realized he had aged down until this very moment. He hated when that happened, especially when it was in a very public place like a party full of judgy rich people who would pounce at the chance to have something else to gossip about. Especially if it was anything to do with his family.
Before he knew it, they were walking through the doors that led out of the hall and into the entrance of the building, where the music and people were blissfully blocked out behind them.
"Are you okay, honey? You were looking pretty overwhelmed back in there," Jessica said, taking Malcolm's hands into her own and gently squeezing them.
Malcolm felt his eyes start to burn, all of the frustration and anxiety that had been building over the last few hours finally bubbling to the surface.
"Wanna go home, mommy," he quietly responded, peering up at Jessica through big wet eyes.
Jessica didn't even bat an eye about the fact that he was regressed, she just softly cooed and moved her hands up to cup his face.
"Okay, angel. We'll go home."
Malcolm's eyes widened in surprise. He'd hoped this would be her response, but honestly hadn't expected it, given there was still at least another two or three hours left of the party.
"R-really? We can?"
She chuckled a little. "Yes, darling. We can go home. Truth be told, I've been wanting to get out of here for the past hour. Aside from Mr. Midoriya and Mr. Butler, who very generously offered to donate even more profit the next time they come to a fundraiser, everybody else was... less generous, to put it lightly."
Malcolm frowned. "Was it a'cause, um, they don' like us?"
Jessica sighed softly, letting her hands fall to her sides and placing them on her hips. "It's because they're a bunch of greedy, miserable people with sticks up their butts."
A small gasp that quickly turned into a wet giggle escaped Malcolm.
"Mommy!"
Jessica laughed at his reaction. "I know, I know. That's not a very nice thing to say, but they're not very nice people, are they?"
Malcolm couldn't help giggling more. "Nu-uh. Not nice at all."
"Exactly." The hint of a smirk quirked the corner of the woman's mouth. "Not nice at all."
Jessica slipped her arms around Malcolm's left arm before turning them and walking towards the exit.
"How about after we get home and get out of these stuffy clothes, we have a snack and watch a movie before bed?"
Malcolm's face lit up. "What kinda snack, mommy?"
"I was thinking cheese and crackers. What do you think?"
"Mhm! Like that. What we watchin'?"
"Whatever you want to watch, button."
"Mmmm... can we watch Sing?"
"We absolutely can, honey."