Page 82 of Knot for You
When I pushed open the door leading outside, I finally took another breath of fresh air, smoothing down my skirt.
“You look nice.” My mother cocked her head, from where she stood a few feet away, looking like she had been waiting for a bit. She hadn’t said anything yet though, so that was a good sign.
Her dark brown eyes scanned me once before she stepped up on the sidewalk. She hugged me for a short moment before pulling back, leaving her hands on my shoulders immediately.
Compared to the boys’ hugs, it felt too quick, too compulsory. Then again, maybe I was just getting greedy after so long without prolonged touch.
Her nose scrunched. “Are you wearing a new perfume? I thought you’d still have enough of the one I got you for your birthday a few months ago.”
My eyes widened, but I quickly covered it. I hadn’t even thought to use the perfume I knew that she gifted me, likely I figured to cover up my natural perfume if it ever slipped through. I showered, but spending so much time with Leeson and Jacob, I hadn’t even thought about if my mother could… smell them on me.
Was this it? Was this when I told her what was going on?
“I’ve just been using a different body wash recently. I… borrowed it,” I said.
Nope. Definitely not the right moment.
Leaning in, she took another sniff. “Or is it your shampoo?”
“Huh. Maybe.”
Mom hummed as if my response was acceptable. “How have you been?” she asked. “How are your classes going?”
“Classes are going well. Nothing much to report.”
“And your course of study?” She raised her dark eyebrows.
I shrugged my shoulders. “I have until the end of the month to get it in…”
“Vera. You need to make a decision. Be decisive and know what you want.”
It would help if I did. Know what I want, that is.
I simply nodded as we turned back towards the center of campus away from the lot where the rest of the campus was greeting parents trying to find acceptable parking.
Browsing the welcome table we had been at before the last time my mother came to visit during a parent’s weekend and a stop at the cafeteria for lunch of salad, dressing on the side, and a crumbly sugar cookie to split.
“That was delicious,” my mother said. “Do you eat at the cafeteria a lot?”
“When I have time,” I said, though recently I hadn’t been. Usually, when I did go it was with Shelby and any of her other friends she had on campus. Lately, though, Leeson had been making most of my meals and planning snacks I found in my bookbag throughout the day.
I still didn’t understand how he managed to sneak them in there.
“They have plenty of reasonable options so long as you know what to be looking out for,” said my mother. She looked at me reasonably. “You look like you’ve gained a bit of weight. Have you been taking care of yourself? I know your class load is heavy this semester.”
I couldn’t help myself as I looked down towards my center. I mean, I mentioned that I felt like I was gaining weight to Leeson and Jacob. Both of them brushed me off as if I had been joking about it, but I hadn’t realized that it must’ve been noticeable.
“Oh.”
“It’s all right, sweetheart. It happens. It’s natural, but it is good to stay on top of it.”
“Right.”
“I vaguely remember them saying that the gym had classes there, right? You could do biking or some kind of cardio. Due to your designation as you know,” she said softly as if I was keepingthe fact that I was an omega some kind of secret. “Is a bit smaller and naturally a bit curvier so you may have to work a little harder to maintain your figure.”
“Okay.”
“Okay, I just wanted to talk about it openly and have an honest conversation. I wanted to be sure you knew. I didn’t want it to sound like…” Like she was staring at how my body was lacking since she last saw me.