"Amelia, honey, where have you been? You haven't been answering the phone!" My mum immediately jumps on my case as soon as I answer the phone.
"I'm sorry, Mum, things have just gotten a little busy. How are you?" It's been a few days since I promised to call her, and I feel really bad, but things have been a little crazy for me. Dealing with all of this stuff with Rhodes has been really taking over a lot of my spare time and a lot of my headspace. It's been two days since we last talked, and I'm scared to be the first one to reach out. I'm scared that maybe I did something wrong and he doesn't want to talk to me.
"Oh, I'm okay, I miss you, sweetheart. How are things going?" She replies with a soft sigh; she sounds tired.
"I'm okay, work and school have been keeping me busy," I lie. "Are you getting enough sleep, Mum? You sound a little tired."
"Oh, I'm fine. Don't worry about me. I saw the paper the other day, and what a shock I got when I saw my little angel's face in the society pages!" Her tone immediately changes into one that is light and airy. I know it doesn't sound like a question, but I know I have to respond like it is one. If I had known I was going to be in the paper, I would have warned her, or maybe I would have forgotten like the terrible daughter I am.
"Yeah, uh, I'm sure it was a shock. Yeah, it was a charity event, quite classy. I stuck out like a sore thumb," I mumbled my way through the statement. I hadn't even told Mum that I was dating anyone, and this is the way I have to tell her? I should have talked to her on the phone more recently. I need to prioritize her a lot more than I do. I'm scared that I'm all she has, and I need to start taking that more seriously.
"Don't you start with that. You looked absolutely stunning, and who was that handsome boy you were with?" she asks. I'm not sure how much research she's already done on Rhodes. I hope not as much as I have over the last few weeks of knowing him. The articles about his hotels and charity work are inspiring; he talks so passionately about the various causes he supports. But the slimier tabloid issues describe him as an arrogant playboy who has flings with models and young members of royalty. I'm scared the articles bearing my name and photo will soon begin, and I'll be added to a long list of names detailing his conquests.
"That's, um, that's Rhodes. We've been sort of...dating," I stutter out finally. She doesn't say anything for a few moments, and it makes me quite nervous. I know she always wanted to have these sorts of conversations with me as I was growing up, but I was less than interested. She would always ask me if I had any 'little crushes,' and she even tried to have the sex talk with me, which went about as well as you can imagine between two very awkward humans having to have such an awkward conversation.