Erik's workday couldn't have ended any better than it had today. He started work at the grocery store in a great mood, and even though his shitty boss here attempted to rile him up, he refused to take the bait and confidently did his job. Afterwards, he browsed the discount shelf for any useful items he could buy to bring home for his mom to cook with. He found a couple of discount meats that were promising and picked them up. One was a pound of ground beef and the other was a 10 pack of pork chops that could feed everyone. The prices were decent for the discount shelf, and with his employee discount, he could get an extra percentage off.
Further browsing of the nonperishable shelf, he found a party pack of M&M's that had been ever so slightly damaged with a box knife, so they were discounted. He thought about that for a moment before deciding against it. It was better off putting that money toward vegetables that could keep for a little bit. Discounted veggies were rare, but he managed to find a few that had the cheapest list price and knew that at this time of month and year, he would be hard pressed to find cheaper at his workplace. So, he picked up an onion and a 5-pound bag of potatoes to take home.
This was a really decent haul, if he said so himself. He marched up to the checkouts and meticulously entered his employee ID as well as loyalty shopper card number to get the most discount. He then scanned all his items carefully to make sure they all registered before he placed them in the appropriate set of bags he kept in his backpack. He always kept a thermal bag in his backpack in case he found something worth getting that required being kept cold. Taking his receipt, he prepared himself mentally for the 2 hour walk home.
Erik found that it was still raining outside at the end of his shift, but he didn't let the rain get him down as he could finally process all that Liona had said to him today as well as the good news he could bring home about his raise at one of his jobs. He felt his face flush as he thought about how Liona had basically told him she liked him in that way. He of course had to ask about what she liked and saw in him and had been really surprised by her answer. She thought he was cute, which was laughable, but he found it somehow endearing coming from her rather sounding like an insult. She also liked his work ethic and his ability to hold his anger back and she said he was smart. He didn't think he was smart, but if she thought so, it must be a compliment.
'When did I start thinking that these things coming from a rich kid would be endearing, sweet and make me feel all kinds of fluttery sensations?' Erik asked himself as he walked home in the rain. 'What is it about Liona that makes me want to open up to her? To tell her everything I've gone through?' He continued to ponder. He didn't know, but he did know that the idea of her and him together as a couple was starting to seem like something that wasn't just a mockery of him and his poor status.
He was still extremely hesitant, but the idea itself was something that had started to take root, he just didn't know how fast that root was going to grow, or what fate had in store for them. But he would find out soon just how quickly events that would shake him to his core would come about.
When he reached home, the trailer was quiet with not a light on, which meant that everyone was asleep, even his baby brother. He carefully turned on a small lamp they had that would give him enough illumination to see by and then quickly and quietly put the food he had purchased today away for his mom so that she could turn it into meals later. He could cook as well as Nikki and Kylee. Although Sarah and Heather were learning to make food decently enough at their mom's side as they helped her in the kitchen more and more.
Once everything was put away in its place, Erik turned out the light and headed straight for the bathroom to strip off his soaking wet clothes and change into something dry. He was exhausted and more than ready to hit the sack. It may be spring break, but it was no break for him. He and his siblings had been forced to go to school for the remainder of this last semester since the school officials thought they would need that extra time to adjust and learn their way around.
In reality, he knew it was because they couldn't get their school records from their previous school, because again, for whatever reason, schools they attended in the past tended to let the poorer students slip through the cracks and only if they made waves were there any records for them, like truancy or detentions for fighting. Although their last half dozen schools they had been really quiet at and barely made a peep, until that confrontation with the rich girls that had harassed Nikki, and he had been busted for shoplifting.
Erik gave himself a mental shake as he crawled into his top bunk. Nothing bad like that would happen here. They knew better than to get involved with those types of people now… But wait. What does that mean for him? He was involved with Liona, and he had even accepted her friendship. Does that mean he trusts her? Did he really? And what about her proclamation of getting closer and letting feelings grow? Was he really just going to accept that at face value? He was so confused. They had been in this city for just a couple of weeks and already he was getting tangled up with a rich kid and was slowly letting his guard down.
Rolling over in his bed, being careful not to wake his sister on the bottom bunk, Erik tried to push those thoughts out of his overly tired mind. He had to get to sleep, he had to be up in four hours to walk to work. He usually had no problem sleeping as soon as his head hit the pillow, but tonight his brain was filled with warring thoughts of Liona and her funny and sassy personality.
The next thing Erik knew was that his mom was gently waking him up and he had the worst thing to happen to him in a long time… He was so embarrassed as he realized what was going on. He thanked his lucky stars that it was still pitch black in the room and he was still covered by his blanket.
"Erik, breakfast will be ready in five, hurry up and get ready, or you'll be late getting out the door." His mom said quietly.
He groaned quietly as he didn't want to get up at the moment with this predicament. "I'll be out in a minute." He replied, praying his mom would leave him alone long enough for him to make a beeline for the privacy of the bathroom where he could take a very cold shower.
Thankfully his mom left right after waking him up, which allowed him to hurry to the bathroom to get ready for the day. He felt so exhausted. He hadn't slept well or for very long, and to top it off Liona's face kept visiting him in his dreams, which had obviously led to this morning predicament. But now that he was in the bathroom and the shower was running, it wasn't helping any as his brain kept drifting back to her pretty face with that oh so cute dimple. He willed his reaction to go away, but even the cold water he had running over his body wasn't helping.
Finally, after just a few extra minutes, he made his way to the kitchen where his mom was feeding Tyler a bottle and singing a song from his childhood to him as she worked on breakfast for the rest of his sisters. As he slid into his seat, his face still a bit red from what he had to do to get her out of his head, his mom chose to bring up his earlier predicament in the most humiliating way. Sometimes his mom's nursing knowledge was a pain, especially if she used to try and educate him and his sisters with it.
"You're at that age, Erik, there's nothing to be ashamed of. It's a perfectly natural physiological response…"
"MOM!" Erik squeaked, completely mortified.
"Just promise me that if you find a person that interests you enough to want to have sex that you'll come to me so that I can help you be as prepared as possible. I may be able to get some free condoms from the museum clinic, if I ask my boss. In fact, I think I will ask today, just to be on the safe side…" His mom was talking like there was nothing wrong in the world with this conversation he so did not want to be having with her.