Out of the corner of my eye, I could see that the face of one of the guards was strained and his breathing appeared to be quick and shallow. But my mom was an entirely different case. She looked at me as if I had been sputtering absolute nonsense, making me feel like maybe I was going crazy after all. She shook her head in disappointment. “Let’s get you home.”

We didn’t exchange a single word the whole walk to the Hyped. Back at the suite, I couldn’t ignore it any longer. “Mom, where have you been?”

“What do you mean, Avery?” She answered with a heavy sigh. “You weren’t here, so I went around trying to find you.”

“No. I mean these last few days. I can count how many times you’ve actually been in this unit. Look, I know Tiana’s your best friend, but—” I breathed out, trying to force my eyes to cooperate. This was not the right time to cry, and having never cried in front of her, I didn’t want to start now. “But I’m your daughter.” Despite my efforts, when I finished that sentence, my heart ached and the dam broke.

My mom opened her mouth then closed it again. She looked like she had no idea what to do. In the end, she opened her arms and held me. “Oh, Avery.” Her hand caressed the back of my head while she continued to whisper my name as if it was a mantra—one that she hoped would calm me down. And surprisingly, it did. She had never comforted me like this before and I clung to the moment, not knowing if I would ever have this kind of affection from her again.

She seemed to also be relishing our rare moment of tenderness.

For the first time in the seventeen years, eleven months, and twenty-three days of my life, my mom and I watched TV together without bickering. We even laughed at the same scenes in the romantic comedy she had put on. As we waited for the credits to be over and the next movie to start, she offered to make hot chocolates for us. My mom’s sudden displays of affection made me forget about what had happened that afternoon in Quickfood.

When it was time for bed, my mom followed me into my room and curled up beside me. At first, I thought that maybe she felt guilty for leaving me alone so much during the Gathering, but when I asked her why she wanted to sleep in my bedroom, she responded, “Because your father is working. His office called a few days ago. And I can’t sleep alone.”

She was being selfish after all. I should’ve known.