Chapter 117

Matteo stood in front of the door, gazing at the knob, knowing he had to go into the room eventually, but it felt easier to stall time. He knew this door separated him from his father.

He sighed. He wasn't a kid anymore; he was a man who could make his own decisions.

He turned the knob and pushed open the door. His mom was alone in the room, and when she saw him, she smiled so brightly that Matteo was beginning to wonder if those white teeth didn't ache.

"Matteo," she stood up from the bed and hugged him, sniffing into his shirt while he wrapped his hands firmly around her shoulders. Oh, God, did he miss her, this woman who was the basis of his existence and who supported his choices?

She pulled back, "Maya, say you tell her you not come?"

He smiled. Hell yeah, this was it, her grammar mixed with that sweet voice that followed him around as he grew; she would have quickly taken classes, but she shook her head at all of it.

His father had joked about it,