My Life Is a Cliché

My mom and I stood in the living room, listening to the two girls laughing.

“Is there something you want to tell me?” she asked and I stared at her.

“Maybe later,” I muttered. “We have worked to do.”

She frowned at me but nodded anyway. “Are you going back to the ranch today?”

I nodded. “I’ll be back around lunch time, though.”

Katie came out, wiping tears from her face. “I just got a call from my boss,” she said. “I have the day off.”

“Do you want to come back with me?” I asked my mom and she nodded.

“Bye,” we said to Morana and Katie and we got into my car.

“So did you and Morana talk about it?” my mom asked.

“Yeah.”

“She’s a wonderful young woman.” I only smiled. “Are you thinking about marrying her?”

I nearly swerved off the road. “We just started dating, Mom. Don’t you think it’s a little early to talk about marriage?”

“Did I ever tell you about how your father and I came to be married?” I shook my head no. “We were in our early 20’s,” she began, her eyes bright. “We started dating. We were together for… hmm… I think it was three months maybe? He proposed in the sweetest way.”

“So, the moral of the story is….”

“It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been together,” she answered as we pulled into the ranch, “as long as you’re in love.”

I turned the car off. “Well, I’m not in love with her just yet,” I said.

She patted my arm. “Just wait, my dear. You may find that you do.”

“It would be better than the alternative.”

She pressed her lips together but didn’t answer. We got out and I went into the barn. My dad was going to show me how to catalogue our inventory while my mom groomed the horses. We stayed in the barn for several hours, just working on the ranch and doing all the things necessary for running a business. Now I could tell why Morana enjoyed it so much.

By the time I was done, it was well after lunch and I was exhausted. I pulled into the parking garage, relieved to see that the car was still in the parking spot. I climbed the stairs, yawning, and tripped into the door.

My head rebounded against it and I heard running feet. Katie opened the door while I rubbed my forehead. She snorted.

“Graceful,” she said and I walked in, rubbing my eyes.

“Where’s Morana?” I asked but my answer came by the sound of another plate breaking.

“Oh, come on!” she yelled.

Katie grimaced. “She’s been at this all day,” she mumbled.

“Why haven’t you stopped her?”

She pointed to the floor by the couch. “She’s thrown a couple glasses at me already. I’m not going to keep it up.”

I chuckled and rolled the sleeves up on the button up flannel I was wearing over my black wife beater.

“Need some help?” I asked, walking into the kitchen.

She spun to me. Her hair was messy and her eyes were wild. It was pretty terrifying.

She pointed a mixing spoon. “Out,” she snapped. “Don’t you smirk at me! I will get this done or so help me I will kill something.”

I put my hands up and backed out, my smile only getting wider. Well, until she threw the spoon at me.

“Told you,” Katie snorted, picking up the two plastic cups off the floor.

“That’s pretty terrifying,” I said, listening to the running water.

“When she’s going like that, the best thing to do is wait for it to pass.”

At the minute, my mom walked in with some groceries. She heard Morana in the kitchen.

“Why are you two just standing in here?” she asked indignantly and I took a bag from her, wanting to see the sight. “She should be resting!”

I followed her into the kitchen.

“Morana,” my mother began.

This time Morana was holding a knife.

“I swear to God!” she snarled. “Out! All of you! I’m almost done!”

To my surprise, my mom put the groceries on the counter and took the knife from her.

“Did you take your pain pills?” she demanded, hands on her hips.

“She made me,” Morana pouted, pointing toward the living room. “She even made me take an extra one! Can you believe it!?”

“What did you take it with?” my mom asked.

Morana rolled her eyes. “All I had was some whiskey Ian brought over. I took, like, one sip.”

My mother shook her head wearily. “To the living room with you, missy,” she commanded.

“No,” she snapped. My mother looked at me and I nodded, approaching Morana. “Hatch, if you put one hand on me, I will castrate you in your sleep.”

“I’m not going to put a hand on you,” I said. “I’m going to put both on you.”

She screeched in anger as I picked her up gently by the hips and put her over my right shoulder.

“Put me down, Hatch!” she yelled but I just ignored her.

Katie was in the living room, doing her best not to laugh. She moved the pillows and I let Morana bounce a little. She crossed her arms and legs so tightly we’d probably need a pry bar to get her loose again.

“Ian brought whiskey?” I asked Katie and she frowned.

“He brought whiskey?”

“She took her pain meds with the whiskey,” I explained and sat beside Morana who was trying to slide off the couch. When she continued to struggle, I put my legs across her lap, leaning against the arm of the couch. “When was Ian over?”

Katie’s eyes were wide. “He brought whiskey?” she repeated angrily. “I told him not to bring any kind of alcohol! Not with her taking such strong pain meds. I am calling him.”

She got up and walked into her room. I looked over at Morana but she was passed out. I laughed and yawned, closing my eyes, too.

-Morana’s POV-

When I woke up, I was still on the couch. I had drooled in my sleep. A pair of legs were crossed on my lap and I blinked, rubbing my eyes. To my right, Isabelle was reading a magazine with a cup of tea. To my left, I found out the legs belonged to Thaddeus who was passed out.

“How long have I been asleep?” I asked around a yawn.

Isabelle smiled. “About five hours.”

“Why do I feel so weird?”

She sighed. “Your friend’s boyfriend brought alcohol over.”

“So?”

“I guess you were a little out of it and took the pain medicine with the alcohol.”

My eyes widened. “You’re kidding.” I tried to sit up but I couldn’t with Thaddeus’s legs on me. “And why are his legs on my lap?”

At this, Isabelle laughed. “You were on a rampage in the kitchen. You were trying to clean dishes that were already clean. When Katie tried to stop you, you threw some plastic cups at her. You threw a mixing spoon at Thaddeus, and then threatened him with a knife.” I blushed but she was still chortling. “So, I made Thaddeus carry you out here but you were still struggling. I guess this was the only solution he could think of.”

“Will there ever be a time I take this medicine and not make a fool of myself?” I asked, shaking my head.

She giggled. “Katie still isn’t back,” she added. “Apparently, she is incredibly upset with her boyfriend.”

I fell back against the couch and winced when my shoulder hit it. Isabelle handed me the remote and I turned the TV on, resting my hands on Thaddeus’s legs while I turned a movie on.