Name: kay_brooke
Story: The Prime
Colors: Antique Brass #30 (This is why Jedi turn to the dark side.), Cherry Blossom Pink #25 (tatami)
Styles/Supplies: Canvas
Word Count: 962
Rating/Warnings: PG-13; no standard warnings apply.
Summary: Tabitha's family knows her secret.
Note: Constructive criticism is welcome, either through comments or PM.


Tabitha was sitting on the floor of her living room, a textbook open in front of her, a steaming bowl of chili set next to her right knee, and her phone wedged between her left ear and her shoulder. She brought a spoonful of chili up to her mouth, careful not to drip anything onto either the beige carpet or her jeans. She missed her couch, but she'd sold it to make the rent that month. She had finally gotten herself into a position at her job where she could just about afford her monthly bills, but it was the beginning of the semester and the university had slapped her with several hundred dollars in mandatory fees, an amount her bank account just couldn't absorb.

She was so intent on with keeping one eye on the chapter she was reading and one on making sure her dinner didn't go everywhere that she completely missed what her mother said to her. Not uncommon; her mom liked to call once a week or so to update Tabitha on what was happening with the rest of the family, and usually Tabitha let the words wash right over her, occasionally making general noises of agreement, while she did stuff she needed to get done. Very rarely did her mom tell her anything worth listening to. Most things Tabitha didn't care about--so Scott had a new girlfriend, what did it matter when he likely would have moved on to someone else before Tabitha even got a chance to meet her?--and actually important things she usually saw on Facebook days before her mom made her weekly call.

This time, though, a silence stretched from the other end of the phone, a sign that her mom suddenly required more input from her than "uh-huh." Tabitha tried to think back, but she'd checked out of the conversation the moment her mom had brought up her dad's complaints about his cholesterol medication. "Sorry," she said. "I got distracted. What did you say?"

Her mom sighed the sigh of someone who knew they were being ignored. Tabitha tried not to feel too badly. "I said, we're doing a family dinner for your dad's birthday next weekend. Can you make it?"

"Uh." Tabitha thought about getting up and checking her calendar, which was prominently displayed on her refrigerator door, but she didn't really need to know the specifics to know the answer to give her mom. "Probably not. Weekends are for catching up at the university lab."

The sigh her mom gave this time was long-suffering, which was rich. Her mom wasn't the one who had literally no free time. "You couldn't stop by for even just a couple hours? We want to see you."

"You saw me at Christmas." Tabitha couldn't comprehend her textbook and pay attention to the conversation at the same time, and she hoped her mom would get on a new subject soon.

"It's your dad's birthday. He's really looking forward to seeing you."

Tabitha closed her eyes. No one was better at guilt trips than her own mother. And why was her dad having a birthday dinner this year, anyway? It wasn't a significant birthday and usually he was fine with just getting a phone call. "All right, I'll see if I can drop in. I'm not making any promises."

"I'll tell your dad," said her mom, and Tabitha knew that she would be dropping in, because her mom had totally just taken her statement as definitely making a promise. "Oh, and your boyfriend's invited, if he's free."

Tabitha froze. "What?" she said.

"Honey, if you're having trouble hearing me maybe you should see a doctor," said her mom pleasantly. "I said your boyfriend's invited. Scott and Paul are bringing their significant others, and I know you haven't been seeing your guy for very long, but I thought it was only fair."

Tabitha could think of nothing to say for a moment. Her brain was going around in circles, stuck on just one thought: How?

"Tabby?" said her mom.

"How?" said Tabitha.

"How what?"

"How did you know I was seeing someone?"

"Oh," said her mom, "Ellie told me."

Tabitha nearly burst into tears. "How did Ellie find out?" The only one in her family who knew she was dating David was Derek, and he was even further on the periphery of their family than she was.

"Why does it matter?" her mom asked. "Is it supposed to be a secret?"

"No," said Tabitha. "It's just..." Just that she didn't want her nosy family involved in her business, and she was certainly nowhere close to introducing David to them. "We've been dating less than two months. We're not really at 'come to family birthday parties' level yet."

"Have you met his family?" asked her mom, sounding put out.

"I have not," said Tabitha firmly. "This has nothing to do with me avoiding introducing you."

"I didn't say that."

You meant it, thought Tabitha, but she was tired of her mom's guilt trips and she didn't want an argument. "Thank you for inviting him," she said, "but I don't think he'll be coming."

"Okay, fine," said her mom. "But if it works out, I do expect to meet him before the wedding."

The wedding? "I repeat, we've been together for two months, Mom."

"Sorry," said her mom. "I'm just so happy you've found someone. It's been so long since you last dated. I worry about you being all alone."

"So long?" Tabitha repeated, aghast. "I broke up with Evan just last September!"

"Well, you know you should really start thinking about settling down, sweetheart," said her mom. "Dating around is for your twenties. You're a bit past that now."

"Hey, Mom, my dinner's done," said Tabitha loudly. "I have to go before it gets cold."

"Okay," said her mom. "I'll see you this weekend. Love you."

"Love you, too," said Tabitha, and, blessedly, her mom hung up.