He dropped a Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtle action figure back into the box and looked up at me, his expression blank.
“What?” he asked.
I knelt down beside him.
“You doing okay?” I asked.
Aiden reached into the box and pulled out a plastic Batman figurine.
“I suppose,” he said unconvincingly. “I was just thinking.”
“About?”
“My Mom, actually.” He glanced up at me. “She never met Cayden.”
“Oh.” I wasn’t sure how to respond, so I sat down next to him and put my arms around his shoulders.
“I was…well, I was kind of thinking about calling her.”
“You were?”
“Yeah, Justin and I talked about it yesterday. The thing is, I have no idea what to say to her.”
“Maybe you could just start with hello,” I suggested.
“Yeah, that’s what he said.” Aiden leaned his head against the top of mine. “It just doesn’t seem like enough. I haven’t talked to her in eight years.”
“That does make it difficult,” I agreed, “not impossible, though. I think dialing the number might be the hardest part.”
“Yeah, it is.” He lifted his head and placed the figurine back in the box. “What were you asking me before?”
“I was trying to find the cheese,” I said, remembering.
“I think I used the last of it.”
“Ugh!” I sighed stood back up. “I guess I’m heading to the store.”
“Cool,” Aiden said. “There are a few things we need, so I started a list. It’s in the bathroom.”
“In the bathroom?” I crossed my arms as I stared at Aiden.
“Yeah, it’s a great place to think.”
“About food?”
“Well…sure! I mean, it’s the logical end, ya know?”
“You are not right in the head.”
“Never claimed to be!” He grinned as I tossed my hands up and went to find the list.
With my purse in hand, I climbed into the jeep and headed to the supermarket. Driving the monster vehicle around had been a bit of a challenge at first, but I was getting the hang of it. It just didn’t having the turning radius I was used to, and I kept hitting curbs.
After parking successfully for once, I headed inside. I looked over the list as the cart I had chosen wobbled down the aisle on a bad wheel. I probably should have taken it back and chosen another one, but I wanted to get back to Aiden as quickly as possible. He wasn’t quite healed yet, and I didn’t like leaving him alone for too long.
I gathered up zucchini, mushrooms, spinach for a salad, and more eggs. Damn, Aiden ate a lot of eggs. Toothpaste was on the list, so I headed over to the pharmacy section of the supermarket. There was a green toothbrush just like the one Aiden had for me that first day, and it made me smile.
I glanced around, wondering if we needed anything else. I wasn’t even sure where Aiden kept extra toilet paper, but figured I should get some. Men just didn’t seem to stock up on the same things women did.