Rex

Pulling into the garage beneath my unit, we hear the old Bob Seger song Rock and Roll Never Forgets and it keeps getting louder once we approach my front door. Felicia and I exchange puzzled looks as I insert the key to unlock the door. Opening it, we’re both surprised to see Mom dancing around the living room, singing the lyrics to Michael. “You can come back baby, rock and roll never forgets,” she sings, twirling around to suddenly realize she has an audience. “Good God!” she exclaims with wide eyes, clicking the remote to turn down the volume. “This kid loves rock and roll,” she says, her eyes dancing with delight.

“At least now I’ll have someone to inherit my old CD collection,” I reply with a shrug.

“And how did you discover this?” Felicia asks with a giggle.

“He kept on crying after you left, so I fed him, changed him, and everything else I could think of, but he wouldn’t stop fussing. I turned on TV and that didn’t help at all, so I clicked on your Sonos and Bob Seger started playing. Within a minute, he stopped crying and a few minutes later, he was asleep in my arms. So this time, I thought I would try it again.”

“That’s my boy. I remember listening to Dad’s Bob Segar CDs when I was just a kid too.” I reach out and take Michael from her. His face literally lights up at the sight of Mom and Dad. “I was about ten years old, though, not four days. We’ll have to get him a little leather jacket for fall.”

“You’re hilarious.” Felicia rolls her eyes and reaches out for him. “Have you changed him and fed him?” she asks Mom.

“Yes. He should be all set. And Rexton, if you think those little quarter-sized turds stink, you’re in for a surprise when he starts eating baby food,” she says, giving me a knowing look. “Those little things are nothing. I want to see your face when you open up the first real blowout.”

“The one the other day really stank for some reason,” I tell her. “They haven’t been that bad since, but I still think it was something that she ate.” I motion for Mom to take a seat on the couch. “So how did your talk go with Jessica this morning?”

“She’s having a hard time accepting that you and Felicia are going to be raising her child,” she says with an exasperated look. “I kept trying to steer her toward the fact that she had committed a crime, but in some warped way, she still views him as a love child. She still has feelings for you.”

“She has a strange way of showing it,” Felicia says with an irritated look. “I’m still getting messages from old friends who saw that last video she posted. I haven’t even replied to any of them, because what can I say?”

“I would just blame your new fiancée,” Mom says with a laugh. “We all know it’s his fault.”

“Harsh!” I take a step away from the two of them and act as if my feelings are hurt. “I thought avoiding confrontations with Jessica was the way to go, but I’m going to call her tomorrow. Maybe we should have lunch or something.”

“I think that’s a good idea,” Mom says, suddenly noticing Felicia’s ring. “Oh, my God! Let me see that!”

“Your son might have low moral standards, but at least he has great taste.” I reach out to take Michael from Felicia so she and Mom can gush over my purchase. “Come on, little guy. Let’s go put you to bed.” He keeps struggling to open his eyes, so I know he’s worn out from a stressful evening. “Sorry we left you alone with that crazy Grandma,” I whisper, giving him a kiss on the forehead. He coos and blinks at me as if he gets my humor. I can’t believe how quickly this little guy has stolen my heart.

“So, where have you two decided to get married?” I hear Mom asking Felicia in the other room. I wait intently for her answer since things have been happening so quickly that we haven’t talked about it much.

“When I was a kid, my cousin got married at this place that overlooks Big Sur,” she says in a hushed voice. “I think it was just south of Carmel.”

“That would be beautiful.” Mom pauses for a few seconds, most likely trying to think of connections she has in the area. “But are you planning on getting married soon?”

“We should, especially with Jessica making a fuss about our being unfit parents. But I suppose places like that book up a year in advance,” she replies with a sigh.

“Yeah, I’m sure you’re right,” Mom says, still sounding like she’s holding back something. “You and Rexton will have to talk about it.”

“I’m pretty sure he wants something small and simple,” she replies. “I’m fine with that too.”

“Well, don’t give in too easily. Your wedding is a big deal, so don’t settle for less than you really want.” I feel my face flush and I’m hoping she’ll drop the topic. I’ve been thinking about a way to surprise Felicia with the perfect wedding, so I don’t want Mom raising the bar on me.

“Felicia, do you want to come tell Michael good night?” I yell, hoping to pull her away.

“Sure!” She comes around the corner, flashing her little boy a smile.

“I’ll go see Mom to her car.” I step aside, changing places with her, acting as if I didn’t overhear what they were just talking about. Entering the living room, I give Mom a stern glare.

“What?” she mouths, pretending that she wasn’t meddling.

“I want to surprise her with the perfect wedding,” I whisper, guiding her out into the hallway. “Felicia hasn’t been able to get in touch with her dad, so the first thing I want to do is track him down. Then we’ll figure out the best place to hold a beautiful little ceremony.”

“Okay, but you’d better make sure she actually wants her father there.” She returns my glare. “He left them a long time ago, and you’d better believe there’s some deep-seated anger inside her. Even if she doesn’t acknowledge it. The last thing you want is her breaking down right before her own wedding.”

“You’re right. I’ll give her mom a call and see what she thinks,” I reply, realizing that maybe neither of them would want him there. “Does Cindy still have that place by Carmel?”

“Yeah, that’s where she spends most of her time nowadays. I thought of mentioning it to Felicia, but I thought I’d better talk to you first.” She winks to let me know that she’s done a good thing. “Well, I’d better be getting home. Your father got off early tonight, so he’s probably bored by now, sitting around and waiting for me.”

“Or he’s just sleeping,” I reply with a chuckle. Growing up, the only nights that dad got off work early were when the rest of us were out of the house. When we would get home, he would be passed out cold in his recliner with the TV blaring and a half-empty bottle of scotch sitting on the coffee table beside him.

“I know he’s out cold, but you could let me pretend that he’s sitting around missing me,” she says, slapping me on the arm. “A girl can dream, even at my age.”

“You know, I’m really enjoying this side of you,” I tell her, stepping forward to wrap my arm around her again. “You’ve lightened up a lot in the past few months.”

“Having a little grandson has reminded of what’s truly important,” she replies with glassy eyes. “I feel like I’ve been given a second chance, and believe it or not, so does your father. We both realize we were a bit too career-focused while raising you and your sister. You actually had it pretty good compared to her.”

“Which might explain why she basically abandoned us,” I add, feeling like she’s no longer part of the family. “Maybe I should give her a call.”

“I think you should. Let her know what’s going on,” she says, her eyes taking on a steely look. “We haven’t been able to connect ever since—”

“I know. But you know as well as I do that you’ll need to apologize.” I rub her back, knowing that being estranged from her only daughter has been really hard on her. “You’re a psychiatrist and you were just trying to help.”

“Yeah, I wasn’t trying to imply that there’s anything wrong with her,” she says, biting at her upper lip. “It was just hard to watch her go through such extreme highs and lows. I know the drugs can feel like they dampen your creativity, but they also soften the downside.”

“I’m sure she already knows that, and she’ll have to come to her own realization some day.” I give Mom another squeeze. “At least I’m straightening out, so now you’re batting five hundred.”

“Yeah, it beats batting zero.” She cracks a smile before turning toward her car. “I’ll be over to spoil Michael some more on Sunday.”

“Sounds good. He deserves to be spoiled rotten.” Watching her car disappear into the darkness, I pause for a moment, gazing up at the starless sky. I would love to get married on the beach. Especially Big Sur. That place is gorgeous.

Heading back inside, I’m a little surprised to find both Michael and Felicia already fast asleep. They are both so adorable. I slip off my clothes, carefully slide into bed next to her, and click off the lamp. Deep down, I’m genuinely excited about everything that’s going on, except for the shit with Jessica. Hopefully, I can make some headway with her tomorrow.