The Dark Blue

Ch 75. Cheers

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We sat together at a low key cafe by the corner of the mall. Zach sat next to me while Margaret was sitting on his opposite side. There were not many people and I could only spot three other people sitting in the cafe, one of them having their laptop as company and the other two chatting over a coffee. Zach ordered a black coffee while I got myself a fresh juice. Margaret had already made herself comfortable with a huge latte and a half eaten grilled sandwich. I caught the baristas glance and knew that she recognized Margaret. Maybe he even recognized Zach.

Zach and Margaret seemed too calm and it scared me.

"Thanks for coming here." Margaret said. Her eyes seemed tired and her brown hair was in an elegant low bun. She wore normal looking clothes to my surprise, a blouse and loose jeans. It probably made it easier for her to fit in.

Zach took a sip from his extremely dark coffee. "No problem. What's your business with me?"

I chuckled from his response and got some quick stares from them. I was just surprised that he treated this like a business relation, as if it was weird that his mother called him out. They ignored me and turned back to each other.

"My business with you is to give you an apology. And I also want to apologize to you, Audree." she said with a serious face that had no sign of anger like she usually had. Zach and I were in complete shock, staring at her as if she's an alien. Margaret realized that we weren't going to say anything until she did and continued. "I've been thinking about you, Zach. I just had enough of fighting with my children, and I want to make up with you before it's too late."

"Like with David?" Zach said. Margaret looked at him with stunned eyes. I had never heard that name, but figured that it wad Zach's brother who died. Zach still hadn't talked with me about it, but I didn't want to push it or make him remember such a terrifying incident. Obviously, they hadn't mentioned his name ever since in each other's presence.

After a killer silence, Margaret finally woke up from her shock. "Yes." she calmly answered.

It was awfully quiet and I didn't dare to butt my way into their conversation. I was wondering why I was there, as I had no involvement in their past. I was probably only serving as Zach's moral support.

"I still dislike having you hang around those neighborhoods." Margaret mumbled quickly, trying to not sound like a whining mother. 

"I don't go there anymore." Zach said and then turned to me. "Because of Audree." I smiled to him and grabbed his hand under the table.

Margaret was still so calm. "I'm happy to hear that. What happened to him was an accident and I don't want you to be in one either."

"Since when did you become so open about your feelings?" Zach changed the topic. He on the other hand was not very open about his own feelings toward his mother. Zach was too proud to admit defeat. But is it really defeat if your opponent proposes to co-operate and reveals all of their information? Soon it would only become pathetic for one to act like an enemy and sad for the other side. They needed to meet halfway.

"I've been speaking to a therapist lately. He's cleared up my mind a bit when it comes to my relationship with you." Margaret explained. "I realize that we are too stubborn with each other."

"Maybe so." 

I took a sip from my juice and felt the orange spreading its flavors all over my taste buds. It tasted good, but the bitterness between these two somehow seeped into my drink. I grew aware of my ability to read auras at that moment and watched Margaret intently. She was so calm. I couldn't describe her better than that. But I couldn't see anything happening to her aura. I turned to Zach instead and hoped for better results, but it was the same. I couldn't expect something to show from Zach, but I was always able to read Margaret's aura before. Were they purely not thinking or feeling anything or was I not focused enough? I never needed to focus on reading auras before. Why would I need to do it now?