When Amara meets Trevor at a concert, she finally feels she has met someone who makes her happy and less lonely. But when Trevor wants to meet her mother, Amara discovers that her mother, Fiona, and Trevor have a shared past. At 29, managing a bustling restaurant and caring for my cat was my reality. The days were filled with people ordering their favorites, and fussy customers complaining about less ice in their drinks or portion sizes. And the nights were filled with playtime with Jasper, my cat.
This was my life until one weekend when I changed things up and took time off work to go to a concert with my girlfriends. That’s where I met Trevor. I’ve wanted to meet someone for the longest time because I had been single for a few years before meeting Trevor. “You’re not getting younger, Amara,” my mother, Fiona, would say in typical mom-speak. Naturally, I would roll my eyes and laugh at her in response, but I agreed with every word. “I’m not saying get married,”
she would continue well into her rehearsed speech. “I just want to know that you’re not lonely when you get home. I mean, Jasper can only do so much.” When I met Trevor, our connection was immediate — he was the person I had always hoped to find. His sense of humor rivaled mine and would send me into fits of laughter. And Jasper loved him. “It’s the way they make you laugh, that speaks volumes of who they are,” my mom would say. Again, she wasn’t wrong. But then, a few weeks into our relationship, Trevor caught me off guard. “I really want to meet your mom,” he said, his eyes earnest. I hesitated. Even though I liked where things were going with Trevor, it felt too soon. I wasn’t at that stage to take him home and introduce him to my mother — let alone my brother. “Aren’t we moving a bit too fast?” I countered, trying to mask my concern with a laugh. I couldn’t understand why I was nervous about the whole thing. Trevor was polite, charming, and always treated me with the utmost care — but something was unnerving about taking him to my childhood home.
