Finding Jezebelle

"Hand me the onions honey," my mother asked. My mother, though originally from Des Moines, Iowa, had sounded like she was from the South for as long as I could remember. I don't know why, but dad always said that that was why he noticed her in the first place so I guess that it all worked out in the end.

I grabbed the bowl full of diced onions and handed it to my mom along with the tomatoes. She threw me a thankful smile. My mom is actually really organized unless she's cooking. It seems that anything to do with the kitchen just makes her scatterbrained. I never did get it, but she always aid that the kitchen was the one place that she didn't have to think. So I guess that when it came down to it, all she just took it all to the extreme. That was why either me, Gabriel, or our dad had to be with her in the kitchen at all times.

Today was my day.

I continued sauteing the ground beef and sprinkled some cayenne pepper onto the meat. I actually really like to cook as a hobby. It's kind of like this fun mix of science and art. Actually it's the only kind of art that I can get. I think that was why I usually had more days with mom in the kitchen either my dad or brother (sometimes combined). Not that it bothered me. I was willing to do it. It meant that I had more time to spend with mom and me and my mom were a lot more a like than me and my dad ever had been. It wasn't his fault. That simply was the way that I was. I didn't know how to be like my dad.

My mom started humming off tune along with the radio that was playing some song I had never heard of by a pop star whose name was only vaguely familiar. When it comes to music, I don't really know that much. I guess I had just never really taken the time to care about it. Sure my mom had tried to tell me that I could sing when I was little but I never believed her so it didn't matter in the end. I remained a science nerd who wasn't a half bad cook. It wasn't a bad lot in life. I actually kind of liked it. I mean if that's what you're good at in life than why shouldn't it make you happy?

The doorbell rang and I couldn't help but flinch a little. The sound was eerily unfamiliar and just a little shrill. I wasn't sure if I was ever going to be able to get used to it. The rest of the house was actually really nice and spacious, it was just the doorbell that was driving me crazy. "I got it!" Gabriel yelled from somewhere beyond the kitchen. I wasn't too surprised and I wasn't going to argue with him either. After all, he, my dad, and Jake had been hanging out together in the living room since about four when I had been kicked out to help mom make dinner.

I could hear vague voices at the front door as soon as it opened, Gabriel's loud and friendly, the other one not much better. The door slammed shut and footsteps started moving down the hall. "Hey Mom," Gabe peeks into the kitchen and both me and our mom look his direction causing him to roll his eyes. "Hey Moms," he teased with a smirk. "WIll two more for dinner be okay?" he asked giving mom this innocent look. She had never been able to resist from either of us. Dad could though so we could only ever use it when he wasn't around. He generally smacked us upside the back of the head if we did and told us the opposite of what we wanted to hear for trying to pull off the con.

"Sure," my mother said with a soft smile. Me and my brother both knew that she wasn't quite there. Her tone spoke it all. Her brain had kindly already taken its baggage and hitched off for a holliday. We were used to it so honestly it didn't bother any of us, but being in a new place had me a little anxious for a approval I guess because all I could think was that I wanted these people to not judge my mother for the way that she was.

"Hey guys," Gabriel said turning back to the mysterious beings standing in the hall. "Why don't you meet Mom since you're staying." My brother was grinning and I wasn't quite sure what that meant but when the two people stepped into view, I instantly forgot about the meat. There was the girl: Jessica. She still looked beautiful too. The guy next to her, I had seen sitting with her in all of her classes and it made me wonder if they were dating or something. "Mom, this is Marcus and Jessica Hayne. They live next door."

This time mom did come a little bit more to reality as she turned and wipped her hands off on her apron and moved forward to greet the two teens. "Hello to you both. I'm Abigail Morgan. It's so lovely to meet you two."

Jessica's head was bowed, looking down at the bowl she held in her slender arms. She brought it forward to my mother like some kind of sacrificial offering still choosing to not look up and I wanted to know why. It was more that I was really hoping to get a glance at her pretty face and I was getting absolutely nothing. "It's nice to meet you Mrs. Morgan. Our mom sent us over here with some of her potato salad. She said to apologize for not coming, but her and our dad are going out on a date tonight. It's their anniversy.

My mom smiled brightly taking the bowl and setting it onto the island in the middle of our kitchen. "That's alright," she promised. "At least you two have somewhere to eat now instead of staying home alone. I can't imagine that would have been all that great."

Marcus shrugged and put and arm around Jessica's shoulder. I could feel my stomach do a flip. I wanted to be the guy with that arm around her shoulder. God I was being stupid. I was getting jealous of her brother. That had to be wrong. That had to be wrong on so many levels. "Oh you don't ever have to worry about me and Jez," Marcus said with a grin that reminded me more of a smirk than anything. "We always find something to entertain ourselves."