It was October, and Sarah was alone in the house. Shawn was at his office, Jake at the gym, and Maddy at school. It was a two story house built only a few years before they bought it. It was nice and Sarah was content living there the past couple decades. She was cooking on the stove and reminiscing of her twenties, nothing in particular, when Jake returned home. She called to him, “Jake?”
“Yeah!” he called back to confirm.
“I’m making some eggs and sausage if you’d like some.”
“Isn’t it kinda late for breakfast?” he asked, turning the corner into the kitchen.
“Well I had a different breakfast and just wanted this for lunch. Are you okay?” As Jake came into her view she noticed he was holding his abdomen with his right hand and walking awkwardly.
“Yeah, my stomach just hurts.”
“Did you hurt it at the gym?” Sarah asked worriedly. She started stepping toward him. She had the doubled concern of both a mother and a nurse, always thinking of possibilities to her children’s ailments. Usually it was nothing, but she was always concerned.
“I don’t think so,” he said, “It just started hurting.”
She stopped to turn off the stove, letting the food cook through with the remaining heat. “Let me feel.”
“Feel what?”
“Your stomach.” She put her hand where he had held his. “Does this hurt?”
“No, not really.”
She moved her hand a little to the left, “how about this?”
“Still no.”
She moved her hand down to just above his waistline and pressed lightly. He recoiled at the touch and said, “Yeah, yeah that hurts.” He laughed a little which hurt more.
“You might have a hernia,” she said. She knew she shouldn’t have said that, putting undue worry onto Jake, but it slipped out. Sarah had a tendency to blurt things out.
“How do you know?” he asked.
“It usually hurts around there, and lower. Also people get it from lifting heavy things.” she said. “Here, take off your shirt, let me see if you have any bumps or anything.”
Jake was a little worried now, as what she said made some sense. He took off his shirt, feeling only a little weird doing it in front of his mom. Sarah watched the spot that hurt as he took off his shirt. Her eyes shifted. It had been a long time, she realized, since she had seen Jake shirtless. His room was upstairs, so was a second shower, and he wasn’t one to walk around shirtless. Sarah was surprised at the definition in his muscles. More than that though was a thought that made her uneasy. Jake’s pattern of hair on his lower stomach reminded her so much of Shawn, specifically Shawn forty pounds ago. She had felt something she shouldn’t while looking at her son and quickly shook the feeling. She would learn though that once the thought has been realized, it can’t be completely erased, and the harder one tries to forget, the less they do.
“I don’t see anything. Turn to your side.” He did. “Hmm, well I don’t see any protrusions.”
“That’s good,” he said.
“You should go to the doctor though, to be sure.”
“Maybe. I’ll see if it goes away.”
“Alright,” she said disapprovingly. She wanted him to be checked out, but also wanted a minute to reflect on her earlier thoughts. She turned back to tend to the food. “Are you going to want any?” she asked.