Just Married

09: Just Non-Dating

She was still handcuffed, her hands on the table and she was chewing her lip and staring down at her wrists like they were the most foul things in the world. Her voice was hoarse when she greeted Theo. “I told you I didn’t want you seeing me like this.” It was uncomfortable with the officer quite literally standing a few feet away from the table, patrolling us. There was no privacy.

Theo’s hand inched across the table slowly and silently before his index finger gently touching one of his mom’s hands. He didn’t make any further movement to contact her more, because we would get in trouble for physical contact. “I don’t think it’s stopped me before. Besides, I brought someone I want you to meet.”

She didn’t look up. In a way, she seemed younger than us, so vulnerable and naive and questioning the world. She looked like a lost little girl.

“Ma, c’mon. Look up.” She finally tilted her chin up, but only to look at her son. His finger was still touching her skin. Her eyes held no tears, nothing, but even scarier it held onto a lifetime of regret as she looked at Theo.

“Theodore,” she breathed.

“I’d like you to meet Cora, Ma.” His head turned towards me and he gave me an encouraging smile.

His mom finally turned her heads towards me, and I swore she flinched when her gaze collided with mine. Her eyes were really beautiful. “Hi...” I faltered, not really knowing what to call her.

“Regina.”

“Hi Regina.” I smiled, hoping she’d catch a sense of how grateful I was to meet her. She didn’t smile back, she didn’t say anything else, in fact, she didn’t do anything but stare at me with her bold blue eyes. It was like we were trapped in vortex and I couldn’t get out. She wasn’t really saying anything to me with her eyes, they were blank and really nothing.

Theo cleared his throat and brought his hands back to his lap. “Cora is my...”

Please say friend. Please say friend. She already hates me.

“Wife,” Theo finished. Even his voice sounded reluctant and unsure, but he said that.

Regina tore her gaze away from me to stare at her son in utter horror. Before I knew it, her wrists were flying up and they slammed down onto the metal table between us, causing a huge ruckus of a noise to peel through the visitation room. My entire flinched back, and I almost tipped over off my chair. The officer made a move towards us, but Theo held his hand up to tell him it was okay.

There was rage and fury surrounding her entire petite body, but she looked scary, like downright scary. I almost peed my pants. Her voice came out like venom when she addressed Theo. “Did you not learn from what happened to me? Are you fucking crazy? I thought you understood. Why are you doing this?”

It was odd to watch her cry and scream at the same time. She babbled on and on about what a mistake we were, and everything. I think she delved into many tangents that I couldn’t even understand. One thing I knew was that she was absolutely against Theo and I. If this were a normal situation, I would understand why any parent would see that getting married at eighteen for their children was a bad idea.

This wasn’t though. For one, it was an accident between us. We weren’t romantic. Second, we were discussing this with his imprisoned mother. There wasn’t anything she really could do even if she wanted to.

Theo didn’t interrupt or stop her at all. He just sat calmly and watched her through eyes I really couldn’t read. At one point, I think I shivered or flinched, and he clasped my hand with his own. It wasn’t a comforting grip really. It was harsh and tight and he might have sucked out my circulation with the grip, but I think he was trying to convince himself that bringing me here was a good idea more than me.