Once Upon A Bus Ride

Chapter 40: I Fear For My Brain Cells

"Good for you Justin, teaching a nine year old how to swear," Shannon told him.

"Excuse you, I'm an excellent role model," Justin huffed.

"Come on," Shannon said, getting up. "Let's get you home."

I kissed Aaron's cheek and then took my best friend's extended arm.

"We'll see you boys later," Shannon winked before we left hand in hand.

When I got home I went to my mother's study.

"You called?"

She looked up from her desk. "Yes, and you ignored."

"I'm here now."

"Dr. Marin," she stared. "You left your session."

"Are you really keeping tabs on me?" I asked.

"We had an agreement Morgan," she told me. "You're supposed to see her once a week."

"It wasn't an agreement mom," I sighed. "You decided it."

She shook her head. "Morgan, I'm not going to argue with you."

"Then let me live my life," I said in exasperation.

"Where were you?"

"With Aaron," I simply answered.

"He's a bad influence," she remarked.

I scoffed. "You don't know anything about him."

"I know you started acting out when you met him," she said.

"Aaron or not I was bound to challenge you sometime mom," I defended. "I'm not your puppet."

"Watch your tone with me honey," she said.

I shook my head. "I shouldn't have come home."

"Morgan!" she called after me as I ignored her and walked away.

She didn't know anything. About me, or about Aaron. I wasn't going to stand there and let her say whatever she wanted about him. He was sweet, and kind, and understood me...qualities that she lacked.

I went up to my room and fell onto my bed, sighing to myself. My mother got on my nerves so much.

She was literally living in my head rent-free, and it might just be time to evict her.

~~~~~

Halloween was finally here and I was excited to go out.

"On a scale of one to ten, how gorgeous do we look right now?" Shannon asked, patting her blonde bob wig.

She looked stunning in her Marilyn Monroe costume, strutting in front of me when we got out of her car.

I hyped her up as she struck poses in front of my phone's camera. "I'm going to need a scale bigger than one to ten."

"Well Miss Tinker Bell, if I must say, you're one sexy fairy," she winked. "Watch Aaron faint once he gets a look."

"Shut up," I chuckled nervously as we approached the front door to his house.

So maybe my Tinker Bell costume wasn't what you would exactly put in a children's book. Shannon insisted I wear it though, and to be honest I didn't object. It looked hot.

I rang the doorbell and April answered, wearing scrubs with her face painted like a lion.

She was so cute.

"Hey girls," she smiled. "Morgan, are you trying to give my boy a heart attack?"

Shannon laughed. "See?"