01 My brain was melting from boredom on the Amtrak, trying to get home for Thanksgiving. The entire train station was a sea of people. I finally get outside, my suitcase wheel is sticking, and there isn't a single Uber or Lyft available. I had no choice. I had to call my mom for a rescue. I pulled out my phone, dialed, and the moment I said, "Mom?" the screen went black. Dead. You have got to be kidding me. A gust of icy wind hit me, and I shivered. I glanced to my side and saw a glowing screen. And a pink scarf. I didn't even think. I spun around, bowed slightly, and blurted it all out in one breath. "Baby, I am so sorry, can I please borrow your phone?" The person jumped, clearly startled, and just shoved their phone at me. Aw, what a sweet girl. I looked up. My heart stopped. Bad news: not a girl. Good news: an incredibly, absurdly hot guy. Oh God, my mouth. When will I ever break the habit of calling every girl I see "baby"? His face was all sharp angles and a perfect nose. He looked like he was sculpted, not born. Is this what they call "misery loves company"? No, "blessing in disguise"? He noticed me staring and awkwardly looked away. "Go ahead." I swallowed, peeled my eyes off his face, and dialed. "Mom? Can you come get me? The train station is a total nightmare. I can't get a ride." After getting a short, "Fine, I'm coming," I hung up and handed the phone back. He took it but stayed standing next to me, apparently waiting for his own ride. The poor guy's ears were bright red from the cold. I was trying to figure out how to salvage this, maybe even slide in and get his number, when a middle-aged woman rushed toward us. The guy looked up. And froze. He blurted out, "Mom? What are you doing here?" Oh. He called his mom, too? But the woman just beamed at him. "What kind of question is that, silly?" "Your girlfriend called me, of course!" She then turned and grabbed my hand. This time, I was the one who froze. Total system failure. 02 The guy—Liam, as I’d soon learn—reacted fast. So did I. We both glanced at his call history at the same second. His eyes snapped back to me, and he stared at me like I was a puzzle he was trying to delete from his brain. My face was burning. I couldn't say a word. It was all my stupid, cold, and apparently very thirsty brain's fault. It saw "Mom" in his contacts, and I just... pressed it. His mom, however, was blissfully unaware. She grabbed my suitcase from my hand and shoved it at him. "Liam! Seriously? You're making your girlfriend carry her own luggage?" "If it wasn't for this pink scarf I gave you—for 'good luck'—how would you ever have landed such an adorable girlfriend?" She looped her arm through mine and started pulling me toward the parking lot, smiling. "Sweetie, you are just beautiful. My son is so lucky." "My car's right over here. Let's get you warmed up. Ignore this goofball." "Oh, I'm so excited, I forgot to ask! What's your name, dear?" I was completely steamrolled by her enthusiasm. "Um," I stammered, "I'm Josie." She nodded, satisfied, and completely ignored Liam, who was trying to explain from behind us. "Mom, she's not my girlfriend—" She shot him a look. "Not your girlfriend, but you're standing together?" "She was waiting for her mom. I was waiting for a cab." "Not your girlfriend, but you lent her your phone?" "Her phone died—" His mom made a "tsk" sound, giving him a look that clearly said, You really think I'm that stupid? "You, be quiet. I say she is, so she is." Liam just sighed and followed us. I tried to explain multiple times, but her enthusiasm was a brick wall. She insisted on taking me to their house for dinner. "Josie, your phone is dead, right? You'll come over, we'll eat, you can charge it as long as you want. Plenty of electricity." "After dinner, I'll make Liam drive you home." I definitely felt some electricity. Mostly from the daggers he was staring into the back of my head. 03 The second his mom opened the door, I was hit with the smell of amazing food and a chorus of meows and barks. I looked down. Oh, this was a high-level household. Two cats, two dogs, all piled on a rug. They saw us and came running. My heart melted. Sorry, Toast, Mommy's found a new port of call tonight. I dropped to my knees, arms open. "Babies! Hello, babies! Come to Auntie Josie, mwah, mwah, mwah..." A cold voice came from above me. "Do you do that with everyone?" I was busy scratching a Samoyed. "Do what?" "Call them 'baby.'" I froze. I looked up at Liam, trying to explain. "You're... you're different." He cut me off with a dry laugh. "Don't bother." I went back to the pets, trying to cover my embarrassment. "You have such a great setup. Cats and dogs, the whole package." "You're pretty great, too. You'll probably... get one... soon." His face instantly darkened. I realized what I'd said and tried to backtrack. "No! I mean! You're... fast-handed!" "You know, like... cats! You gotta be quick. You snooze, you lose. That's... their motto..." "Enough. Just stop." He turned and walked away. I wanted to die. Good job, Josie. You made it worse. 04 After dinner, his mom—who I now adored—said goodbye, and I was handed off to a very grumpy-looking Liam. The drive was silent. "Thanks, Liam," I said, just to say something. He was programming the GPS, his smile tight. "No problem. It's the least I could do for my... 70-mile... round trip." The GPS, at that exact moment, decided to glitch. "YOUR ROUTE IS THIRTY-FIVE. THIRTY-FIVE. MILES." "THIRTY-FIVE." "THIRTY. FIVE." WHAP. He slapped the screen, and it went silent. He smiled at me. "Don't mind that. It acts up all the time." "No, no, it's my fault, my fault..." "Oh? And what, exactly, is your fault?" he asked, narrowing his eyes. I blanked, trying to think of the right answer. My phone rang. I've never been so happy to hear it. It was my mom. "Are you done at your friend's? You need to come home. Your cat, Toast, he stinks again." "You need to take him to the vet. Something is wrong..." Toast is my precious, noble silver shaded baby. How could he stink? "Mom, my child doesn't stink! Are you sure you're bathing him right?" "Of course I am! I bathe him, he smells fine, and two days later, he stinks again!" "I don't believe you," I argued. "When I have him, he's perfect. His little paws smell like popcorn. He can't stink." "You never listen. Just get home and see for yourself. He needs a doctor." I hung up and felt Liam's eyes still on me. I thought maybe he'd softened up, hearing me be all responsible. But his expression was just... weird. Finally, he said, very seriously, "You should probably spend more time with your child." He's not wrong. Good advice. I nodded. "Mhm, mhm." He saw me agreeing and added, "I know it must be hard... but if your kid has a problem, you should really see a doctor." A... mor-what-now? I was genuinely confused. But he looked so serious. A hot guy can't be wrong, right? It must be me. So I just nodded again. "Mhm, mhm, you're so right." "So... what's your number?" "..." 05 I got his number. And... nothing. I'd text 'Good morning,' 'Good afternoon,' 'Good night.' He would leave me on 'read.' I was rolling around on my bed in despair. My mom threatened to kick me out. I told my best friend, Peaches, about it. She's a self-proclaimed "dating guru" and swore she could help me land this guy. Her advice: My texts were boring. I wasn't showing my "passion." She immediately forwarded me a TikTok link: "100 Lines to Make Your Crush OBSESSED." I scrolled through it. Me: [You sure this isn't... worse?] Peaches: [Trust me. I've had 30 relationships using this.] Me: [Wait, WHAT? Since when?] Peaches: [Online. This last one started two days ago. We just broke up.] Me: [...What's your average relationship length?] Peaches: [Like... two, three days?] Me: [...Never mind.] I thought about it all night. I decided to give it a shot. What did I have to lose? My texting game took a... sharp turn. My mornings: [Skipped breakfast, I'm starving. Can you beat me up? I need to feel something.] [Pay attention to me. My cat can do a backflip.] My afternoons: [Can you just say you like me?] [Your mouth isn't doing anything else, right?] [You left me on 'read.' That's fine. At least you're reading.] My evenings: [God, this room is so hot. Without your cold shoulder, I don't know how I'll survive...] [Liam...] Finally, he cracked. He texted me late one night: [Can you please stop?] [Stop what? :innocent_cat_emoji:] [Never mind. What do you want, Josie?] [I want you to talk to me :crying_cat_emoji:] He was silent for a long time. [You're a mother. You shouldn't be acting like this.] I was completely lost. [...You don't have a family?] I typed so fast I hit send before I could think. I frantically tried to explain: [No, wait, I mean! I have a family, you have a family, that doesn't mean we can't talk!] A bright red "Message Failed to Send" popped up. He'd blocked me. 06 I was heartbroken. The relationship was dead before it even started. My mom, seeing me moping, finally dragged me out of bed and told me to take Toast to the vet. I held Toast, sighing. "Oh, Toast. You're stinky again. You must have caught my sadness..." Toast: [...] I decided to splurge. I took him to the most expensive vet clinic in town. After a long wait, the vet tech called me. "Next, uh... 'Toad'?" Toad? I stood up, furious. "His name is TOAST." I stormed through the door, ready to yell at the doctor. "Can't you even read? My child's name is—" The handsome man at the desk froze. He slowly looked up. Crap. It was Liam. "Josie," he said, his voice flat. "This... is your child?"
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