(RIVALS) The Upside of Falling ✔️

Chapter 55: Always

Becca

"Just ... try not to be embarrassing, please?"

My mom turned around and gave me a stern look while placing her hand rigidly on her hip. "When have I ever done anything to embarrass you, Becca?" She asked innocently, genuinely forgetting the dozens of times she had embarrassed me in Brett's presence. I merely laughed and continued arranging the plates around the dinner table.

My mom opened the grill and the smell of meat wafted into the kitchen, making my stomach rumble with anticipation. Brett would be arriving any minute now for dinner and my heart felt like it was going to burst out of my chest -- and not in a good way.

"No embarrassing stories from my childhood. Got it?" I was being annoying, I knew it, but I wanted tonight to be perfect and my mother didn't exactly have the best track record when it came to not humiliating me.

She eyed me as she flipped the burgers on the mini grill on top of the counter. Satisfied, she closed the lid and wiped her hands on her white apron, the one I bought her for Mother's Day last year, and walked over to me.

"Becca, I promise I won't embarrass you." She said gently, grabbing a fork from my hand and placing it on the table beside a plate I had laid out.

"Tonight is important to me, Mom. Brett is a big part of my life now and so are you. I just want you two to get to know each other."

For the past week, I had been spending time at Brett's house with him and his mother. Slowly, she was healing. Brett told me that she was beginning to go back to her old self and shed some of the usual sadness that lingered around her. My relationship with Brett's mother was just that -- a relationship. I wanted Brett to have that with my mom, too.

"It's important to me as well," my mom replied, kissing my forehead. "I know how much tonight means to you, love. This is a big step. I'm proud of you." She smiled at me, her eyes crinkling at the corners.

"I never thought I'd find someone like him, Mom." I told her honestly, fidgeting with the fork on the table and re-straightening it.

My mom laid her hand on top of mine and smiled at me gently before saying, "I always knew you would, honey."

I took a deep breath and told my mom what had been weighing down my heart for months. "Watching you and dad split up destroyed any hope I had for love in the future. I was afraid, Mom. Afraid to be with Brett but ... he changed that. He changed me. I didn't expect to fall for him but ... here I am. I love him, Mom. I just want everything to work out."

My mother wiped a tear from under her eye as she walked around the table to me. She grabbed my hand in her own and reached up slowly to brush her thumb against my cheek.

"I never wanted you to be fearful, Becca," she hugged me tightly as she spoke, "mine and your father's fate is not your's and Brett's."

"I know that now," I replied, hugged her back. The door bell rang suddenly and my mother let me go.

"That's him," I declared, eyeing the kitchen to make sure everything was in place as I chewed on my lip. My mother laughed at my own nerves and smoothed my hair.

"I'll be on my best behaviour." After a moment, she added with a sly smile, "Get the door, Becca. It's not polite to leave him waiting." She walked back to the grill to gather the food as I steadied my heart and walked down the hallway to the front door.

Grabbing the knob, I tugged the door open and sighed contently at the sight of him.

"Hey beautiful." He winked at me as he leaned casually against the door frame, his arms crossed over his chest.