No More Wine

"Okay, Mom. Where do we start?"

"Are you sure you don't want to start with something...easier? Carbonara seems a little ambitious for someone who only makes scrambled eggs."

I glared at her," Yes, I'm sure. She loves carbonara, and I want this to be special."

"She's meeting your family. Of course it's going to be special."

With a sigh, I looked at the ingredients we had spread across the counter," What are we starting with?"

Mom sighed and shook her head," Let's get the water started."

I set the now full pot on the stove and set the burner to high. I turned around in time to see Mom pouring two glasses of wine. Her eyes flicked up at me after a couple seconds," What? I think we're going to need something to take off the edge."

"Jeez, Mom. Are you trying to get me drunk before she gets here?"

"Oh, come on. One glass won't hurt you. I doubt you're going to get more than a little tipsy."

"How would you know that?"

Instead of answering, Mom quickly measured out a few tablespoons of salt, dumped it in the now warm water, and covered the pot.

"Hey, I'm supposed to be cooking. Not you."

"Then come over here and start chopping."

"Chopping what?"

"The bacon. And grab the cheese greater. I forgot about that when we were getting everything out."

Someone's extra bossy today. Maybe I will need that wine.

I rifled through a few cabinets before groaning," Where do you keep your grater? I can't find it."

Mom rolled her eyes and walked over to the cabinet right behind me," You looked right at it. Are you sure you're passing your classes?"

"Okay, if you're just going to attack me, I'm going to put a stop to this and order a pizza."

"Who's attacking you? I just want to know if you're doing well in school."

I bit my tongue. There's no point in arguing with her. Instead, I stepped over to the island and opened the pack of bacon," How small am I chopping this?"

"A quarter of an inch. And you never answered my question." Mom stepped up next to me and pulled a bowl in front of her.

"You didn't ask a question."

"How are classes going?"

"You didn't-" I stopped and sighed.

Count to three. Just have a conversation. No wine until your hands are covered in bacon.

"Classes are good, Mom. And I joined a student org."

"It's not taking away from study time, is it?"

"No, it actually helps me study. And it will look good on my resume. It's a mental health advocacy organization."

"Oh, that sounds perfect for you. I'm sure it'll help with school too."

"That's why I joined."

I ran out of bacon to chop.

Why did we only get one bowl?

"Did I tell you that Liam and Madi are coming home tonight?"

"What? No! But Maya's supposed to come over."

"Well, why can't she meet them too?"

"Because that's a lot for one night?"

"You two have been dating for almost six months. The only reason you got away with not introducing her to us sooner is because you live halfway across the country."

"No no no. This isn't what she agreed to. Just the thought of meeting you and Dad is enough to send her into a panic attack. She doesn't need the extra stress of those two bullying her."

"They won't bully her. They'll bully you and keep conversation flowing."

"Gee thanks, Mom. Really feeling the love here."

"Trust me, it'll be fine."

"I'm calling her right now."

"Not if you want to get this food down before she gets here."

"That's a sacrifice I'm willing to make."

Before I had the chance to even wipe off my hands, Mom snatched my phone off the counter and shoved it in her pocket.

"What the-"

"Get the eggs ready. separate four of them. We only need the yolks."

"Give me my phone."

"No. Get the eggs ready."

"Mom-"

"Go."

Knowing she wasn't going to listen to me anytime soon, I set to work on the eggs and tried to be as fast as I could about it. Mom started giving me more direct instructions, never giving me the chance to get distracted. I had just finished cooking the bacon when I heard my phone start ringing.

"That's Maya."

"And how would you know that?"

"Because that's her ringtone."

"Why is her ringtone a showtune?"

"Does it matter? Mom, let me answer the phone!"

"I need to wash my hands. Hang on."

My phone stopped ringing a few seconds later.

"Oops. Looks like I'm too late."

I ground my teeth, circled behind her, and carefully snatched my phone from her pocket. In a matter of seconds, Maya picked up her phone.

"Hey, did I call at a bad time?" She asked.

"No, it's fine. Listen, I just found out that-"

"You're siblings are going to be at dinner."

"Yes. How did you know?"

"I was sort of prepared for that to happen."

"What? How? I found out literally ten minutes ago."

"I've heard plenty of stories about you family. I kind of assumed that was going to happen."

"But- uh...okay. Then what did you call me for?"

"What kind of wine should I bring?"

"Nope. No. Don't bring wine. My mom has plenty. Just bring you. That's more than enough."

"Okay, I'm bringing tequila. I need to bring some kind of alcohol if Madi and Liam are going to be there."

"Bring that and they'll be your new best friends."

Maya laughed," That's settled then. How's cooking going?"

"It's...going about how I expected. Speaking of, I have to go. Mom's giving me the death stare."

"Go. I'll see you in twenty minutes."

"Okay, babe. Love you."

"Love you too."

When I hung up, Mom took my phone again and pointed at the uncooked noodles. I silently went back to following her instructions until dinner was done. By then, the doorbell rang.

She blocked my way out of the kitchen and looked me in the eye," I do know that meeting the family is stressful. Especially in Maya's situation. But I would appreciate it if you trust me."

"I do. But we were having...sort of a weird conversation and it just felt like all of this way going in a bad direction."

"Nothing bad's going to happen tonight. You know that, right? Dad and I already love her. She makes you so happy."

"I know. Thanks, Mom."

She smiled and pulled me into a quick hug," Now go. It's rude to leave her waiting at the door for so long."

I rolled my eyes but smiled.

Maybe tonight won't be so bad.