“Pajamas would be my guess.”
“Guess again.”
“Tee shirt and shorts maybe.”
“Hmm, no.”
“Ahh, nothing.”
“Yeah you wish,” she laughs reaching out and ruffling his full head of golden brown hair.
He flushes red at her wisecrack a fact that doesn’t go unnoticed by her. Ellen has always suspected her son is a bit more attracted to his mother than maybe normally a son should be, but instead of being repelled by this fact, the truth is she finds it to be quite flattering.
“You wanna hear the God’s honest truth hon. Can you handle it?”
“Of course,” he fires back still smarting from her wisecrack.
“I am wearing a bra and panties.”
“So big deal, Mom, I have seen you in your underwear before.”
“Yeah, true, but not since you were young and most especially what I am wearing now is not the bra and panties you remember from years ago.”
“Really, well what is so special about them?”
“First tell me something. You say you remember me from before in my underwear?”
“Yes.”
“And what do you remember?”
He shifts uncomfortably on the couch. He doesn’t want his mother to think he is some kind of pervert from him remembering how she looked in her underwear.
He takes a large swallow of his wine hoping it will allow him to relax a bit. He is not much of a wine drinker and the large swallow has the desired effect.
She senses his uneasiness. “I asked hon, so tell me. Don’t worry I won’t think anything bad.”
“OK, well, since you asked. I remember you always seemed to prefer white and . . .”
“And? Tell me, be honest.”
“There is nothing to tell. I guess white mainly.”
“I will say it for you. White and boring.”
“Yeah . . . maybe.”
“Well hon, the underwear I am wearing tonight is quite the opposite. Colorful and exciting I guess you could call it.”
“Really?”
She can see he is curious- which is exactly what she wants him to be.
“Here is the story. I bought what I am wearing maybe two years ago . . . along with a bunch of other sexy stuff. You know lingerie type things. I had hoped of . . . like . . . sparking an interest in your father toward me.”
“Did it work?”
“He got mad when he seen the charges on the credit card and made me take everything back. I did . . . almost that is. I saved what I am wearing now in secret.”
“Geez, what an asshole.” Thomas polishes off the rest of the wine in three large angry sips. Just thinking of what a prick his father truly was makes him emotional.
“Yeah, well, that was your dad. Anyways tonight I was feeling down and depressed and really not very good about myself. I was rearranging my closet to take my mind off of things when I stumbled across the only sexy stuff I saved. I decided on a whim to try it on. To see if it still fit . . . and then you knocked on the door. I threw the robe on over it of course.”
“But you were crying. Why?”
“Yeah, I guess because wearing my sexy stuff reminded me I have no one to be sexy for especially now that I am old and alone.” She finishes her nearly half full glass of wine in one large swallow as the anger swells inside of her.
He carefully gathers her hands into his. She looks to be on the verge of tears again. “Mom, first of all, you are not old. You still look fantastic and . . . I am here so you are not alone.”