Peligro (A Harry Styles Fanfiction) INTENSE EDITING IN PROGRESS

Chapter 26

"I'll have the ham and cheese omelet with a side of whole wheat toast and a glass of tomato juice. Do you have any grits?" My mom asked.

"Excuse me?" The waitress looked confused by mom's last sentence. I coughed softly, embarrassed. You would think after living here for so long that my mother would be able to learn from her mistakes. We have been to this diner many times, and each time she always asks the same question and gets the same response.

"Mom. You live in Maine, not Alabama. Of course they don't have grits." I grumbled in her ear. Her gaze shifted down to mine and she laughed nervously, obviously embarrassed as well.

Luckily seventeen years of spending my summers in Alabama had paid off, at least in today's case. I looked over at the waitress and answered when it appeared my mother wouldn't be.

"She means oatmeal. Do you have any plain oatmeal made is what she means." I told the waitress.

"Oh yes, of course! Will there be anything else?"

Everyone else had ordered. Amy had gotten a bowl of Fruity Pebbles and a cup of tea and Luke got a glass of orange juice and a stack of pancakes. My appetite wasn't very lively today. There was something about Luke being there that made me not want to eat anything.

"Darlin', you're not eating?" My mother turned to me again wearing a deep frown.

"No, mom. I'm fine. I'm not really hungry." I answered honestly.

"Honey, you need to eat." Her eyes narrowed in my direction.

"I'm seriously fine, mom." I tried to assure her. I could feel my cheeks heating up already. If I started blushing in front of Luke, I'd kill her.

"You're not starving yourself, are you?" Her arm wrapped around my shoulder and her eyes searched mine as she worried over my eating habits. Her overreactions were one of the reasons why I could not stand being out in public with my mother.

"What? No! Mom, no! I'm just not hungry, alright?" I growled. I could feel Amy and Luke's eyes on me now, and I sank lower in my chair. Why did my mom always have to be so intrusive? I'm wasn't a bad kid; I did my school work and I didn't really go out. The only problem my parents had to worry about from me was the very few times I had forgotten to put the dishes away. Why was my mother constantly so worried about me?

"Aurora Goodman, you are going to eat something even if I have to force feed it to you." Her tone turned serious and her finger was directed towards my face.

My blood was boiling; how could she do this to me? In front of everyone? In front of Amy? In front of Luke?

"I'm so sorry. My mom is just... Stubborn. I'll have a coffee and a toasted bagel with cream cheese, thank you." I finally answered the woman as politely and calmly as I possibly could, considering my inner rage at my mother.

"Okay, I'll have your food in about twenty minutes. I'll be right back with your drinks." The petite brunette smiled awkwardly down at us. She grabbed our menus and hurried away. I noticed her quickened pace. She was probably running away from my annoying mother...

"So. Luke. How did your summer turn out?" My mom looked across the table and she showed him a caring and gentle smile. Her hands were crossed under her chin and she batted her eyelashes at the boy.

"Oh, it's been alright. Pretty hectic, though. With my dad's business going down the drain, we've had to sell our house and downsize. My mother has also had to sell the majority of her jewelry, as well as the china set my grandparents gave her and my father as an engagement gift. It's been pretty hard for her, but besides that and moving away from friends, it hasn't been that bad, I guess. For me at least. I get to go to Richmond High with Aurora and Amy, which is cool. I share a few classes with them, actually. Hopefully they can show me around a bit so I won't end up wandering around and make myself look like a hopeless freshman." He joked, nudging me gently on the shoulder with his elbow.

"Well that's great, Ary! You hear that? You'll be spending more time with Luke!" She clapped her hands and that damned smile was spread from cheek to cheek. She looked like she had just won the freaking lottery.

'God, she is so embarrassing.' I thought silently to myself.

"Yeah mom, it's great." I smiled weakly. I could tell Amy knew how embarrassed I was and was stifling back her laughter. I glared over at her and she took another sip of the water that had been poured for us when we first got here. I could make out the small lines on her cheeks where her lips were perking up from laughter.

"So, are you guys planning on going on a date anytime soon?" My mother asked, looking at me and the back to Luke. I choked slightly on my water as Amy bit down on her bottom lip. I hated how amused she was by this.

"Mother!" I growled, wiping the excess water off of my chin.

"What? You two are so cute together! Cute as a button, both of y'all! I love it!" Her wide grin was starting to piss me off. Her peppiness was even more overwhelming than Amy's sometimes. Maybe it was having such an ecstatic mother to be pestered by constantly that has caused me to hate cheerful people with such a passion.

"Ugh, yes Mrs. Goodman. We are. This Friday actually. I mean, if you don't mind- I mean if it's okay with you... I was thinking that I would bring her bowling. She actually had been the one to suggest it. Amy and her boyfriend, Zayn, right-?" He looked over at my best friend and she nodded.

"Yes, Zayn. Well, they are coming with us. It should be an amazing night." He beamed, looking over at me and placing his arm around the back of my chair.

I wasn't exactly comfortable with his arm being so close to me but I shrugged the feeling away. I reminded myself just how lucky I was to be wanted by such nice guy, and that he might be my one and only chance of finally getting over Harry. I didn't want to fuck it up. It's not like I had been doing an exactly great job of doing so thus far.

"Ary!" Mom slapped my shoulder and I snapped in her direction. I was about two seconds away from pouncing. I had enough of her today. I still could not understand how I used to enjoy hanging out with this woman. Yeah, I did not have many friends, but I would have rather lived my life in a cave with no one than spend an hour with this woman. She was crazy, to say the very least.

"That's fantastic! I'm so happy for you two! I always thought you two were great together, but you were always so consumed with that Josh fellow. Thank god you finally ended things with him Aurora, or I would have had to intervene myself. He was a complete jack hole to ya."

"Jack hole?" I stared, bewildered by my mother's choice of words. She had a lot of outlandish southern sayings, but this was by far the worst of them all.

"Yes, jack hole. Now sit up straight. I think she's coming with our meals." Mom finished as she pushed my chair in. I felt her knuckles knock on the small of my back. I sat up.

The waitress set everyone's plates down, and we ate in silence.