PEACHY KEEN
My father and I boarded a night flight scheduled to arrive in Denver at ten in the morning. I'd already said my goodbyes to my mother and Ben at the gate—they'd given me plumeria and orchid leis and I promised to call at least once a week. My mother had come home a day early from Boston to see my off. She'd said things went well with her old boyfriend Fletcher but refused to elaborate. I could tell she was pleased by the attention because she laughed at little things and her voice was full of joy. I'd found out from Ben that Fletcher had taken her to a Brookline piano bar where she sang, "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling."
As I headed down the ramp, I knew going to the prom with an Asian girl had distanced me from my mother. She didn't want to hear Laura's name and she avoided topics that might lead me back to her. Because my mother wasn't getting love from my father, she expected Ben and me to make up for it. She figured that, since she'd put herself on the line to keep the family together, she'd earned an unconditional love that prohibited her sons from loving other women. After admitting I was attracted to Laura, my mother treated me in a perfunctory manner, the way a jilted girlfriend treats a former boyfriend. I had taken Laura out that summer while my mother was away but I didn't tell her about the dates until Ben mentioned it. Ben was now her favorite son because he'd become her confidante. She waved goodbye with one arm around his waist and he seemed embarrassed because he kept looking around the airport to see if anyone was watching. There was a sparkle in my mother's green eyes and I knew the intrigue with Fletcher had revived her. And she had Ben to keep her company while the other two men in her life were heading off to Colorado.
I followed my father into the 747. He'd given me a vinyl briefcase for graduation and that, along with a windbreaker, was my carry-on. I'd stuffed the briefcase with packages of Yick Lung mango seed, cans of Mauna Loa macadamia nuts, a Hawaiian Beach calendar, and a two-pound sack of Hinode rice.