As Melissa left the building, she stared daggers as she passed the loitering boys who were still standing out front, none of them able to make direct eye contact with her.
The sound of the minivan door slamming awakened Michael from his backseat nap. âMmm...Mom? Is that you? Are we home yet?â He asked groggily.
Melissa once again looked him over tenderly in the rear view mirror. Michael could tell she was deep in thought about something, but he did not have the slightest idea about what. Melissa sighed and shook her head. âNo honey, Mommy just had to make a stop real quick. Sorry if I woke you up from your little nap. You looked so peaceful back there. Weâll be home in a minute or two, so donât you worry about a thing. Just lay your adorable little head back down and go back to your nap.â
Michael shrugged and once again closed his eyes. A few minutes later, the car pulled into the driveway and they arrived back at the house. Getting out of the van and opening its side door, Melissa tapped Michael on the shoulders and told him to follow her inside. When he went to unbuckle his seatbelt, he was surprised when he felt Melissa lower her hand and began to unbuckle it for him. Without even asking, she took one of his hands in hers, and with another arm on his shoulder, began gently guiding him out of the car.
âMom, Iâm fifteen years old. I know how to unbuckle a seatbelt!â Michael whined.
Melissa just giggled. âI know that, honey. Mommy just felt like helping you a little, thatâs all.â
Michael rolled his eyes, but he was further embarrassed when she did not seem to let go of her grip on his hand. With a playful pat on his butt, she led him up the driveway and through the front door, where Michael excitedly began running up the stairs to his bedroom, eager to hop back onto his Switch and resume the game of Mario Kart he had been playing with his friends earlier. Anything, really, to not have to think too hard about the events of the day.
âHold on for just one minute!â Melissa said, stopping him dead in his tracks. âBefore you go running back up there to rot your brain in front of that television, thereâs one more thing that we need to do.â
âUgh, what now!â Michael barked in frustration. Hadnât he already been through enough today? Apparently not.
âYouâll see,â was the only response he got as he was once again dragged by the hand into the living room, where Melissa wordlessly guided him to the couch. She sat down onto it and gave him an inviting smile, patting her lap as if telling him to sit on it. This confused Michael, as he had not sat on his motherâs lap since he was a child. In his confusion, he hardly noticed her pulling him closer until he was quickly losing his balance and falling into her matronly embrace.
Melissa wrapped her arms around the confused teen, who was now firmly in her clutches. and showered him with kisses. âOh my sweet baby boy, itâs been too long since weâve cuddled like this, donât you think?â Melissa began, holding Michael dearly as he struggled desperately to escape. It was of little use, however. She was much stronger than he ever was. Melissa only cooed in response at his pathetic attempt, and continued talking to him as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening. âFrom now on, as part of your therapy, weâre going to have a half hour of bonding time like this every day. I know the world can be so hard for you, so itâs important that I show you how much Mommy loves you. From here on out Iâm going to be giving my special little guy lots and lots of affection! Dr Thurman thinks that more bonding time between the two of us will help you break down those silly walls you put up and soften you up a little. Iâm just glad I get to spend more time with my little boy again!â
Michael was aghast. The look on his face was one of pure shock as he continued to fruitlessly struggle for his freedom. âSoften me up?â he whined, âWhat do you mean, soften me up?â
Melissa grabbed the pacifier Michael had been using earlier from her blouse pocket and forced it into his mouth. He attempted to spit it out, but she simply held it there until he gave up and began suc-king on it. At that same moment, his body went limp with defeat. Melissa, finally sensing that he had been adequately tamed, adjusted his body so he was now sitting up and began to stroke his hair.
âWell baby, as you can see, the therapy is only going to work if you can set aside your ego and let mommy give you all the wonderful love and nurturing that she knows you need. If you keep thinking of yourself like a big boy and letting your pride get in the way, youâre never going to get in the right headspace for the therapy to work, and youâre never going to get better. As far as youâre concerned, you need to spend lots of time with mommy because mommy knows best, and itâs going to be very hard to give my baby boy what he needs if heâs constantly fighting me every step of the way. You need to get used to Mommy being in charge. Youâre not as big as you think you are, and youâre never going to be able to accept yourself until you stop trying to be something youâre not! Youâre not a big boy, youâre mommyâs precious little baby!â
Michael wanted to spit out the pacifier and object, but just as he was about to do so, Melissa pulled him in tighter and began to rock him back and forth. âShhhhh . . . donât fight me on this, baby! Just embrace it and I promise youâll feel better. Canât you do that for mommy? Canât you just let her hold you for a few minutes and see how you feel afterwards?â
Michael looked into Melissaâs loving blue eyes, which were staring directly into his inches from his face. He had to admit, a part of him did enjoy the positive attention, and he loved his mother enough to not want to disappoint her. Still, cuddling with his mother at the age of fifteen? Wasnât he a bit old for this sort of thing?
âUmm . . . I dunno, Mom . . .â Michael stammered nervously, unsure of how to respond, and cringing at how dumb his words sounded while he was muffled by the pacifier that he still held in his mouth. Melissa did not avert her gaze, however, and after a few moments her sad, puppy dog eyes began to dig their heels into his fragile sense of guilt. âI guess we can try it for a few minutes,â he squeaked, âbut it just feels . . . weird.â
The look of sadness on Melissaâs face quickly disappeared, and a warm, content smile re-appeared in its place. It was a good enough answer for now.
âThatâs what I like to hear, honey,â she whispered softly into his ear, re-affirming her vice-like grip on his body now that she had the answer she desired. Michael, however, began to wonder if he made the right choice when she then grabbed his pacifier, which he had moved to the side of his mouth slightly to be able to talk, and re-positioned it firmly in the middle of his lips. His look of concern was unmatched by Melissa, who now looked completely confident that she had gotten what she wanted. She began stroking his hair as she continued to whisper.
âI really miss this, you know. I used to love holding you like this when you were younger. It just feels so right to have my little boy sitting on my lap again, right where he belongs. Do you remember those times, darling? Back when you used to depend on mommy for everything? You were quite the needy little one back then. Always running to your mommy in tears, crying over every little thing that upset you. But then mommy would hold you close and make it all better, wouldnât she? Just a few minutes on mommyâs lap, a couple kisses on the cheek, maybe a lullaby, and presto! No more tears for my little cuddle bug! If only things were so simple these days. Now Iâm lucky if you even give me a hug before you leave the house . . .â
Melissa did not seem to notice Michaelâs embarrassment as he squirmed uncomfortably on her lap. She was just happy to have her little boy back where she wanted him. Michaelâs face grew a crimson shade of red when she then reached down and kissed his forehead, her grip on him somehow growing even tighter and more indulgent as she did so.
âHoney, can you do me a favor?â Melissa asked him suddenly in a voice that almost seemed as if she was talking to another version of him somewhere deep in her nostalgic state.
âMmm-hmmâ Michael responded, his voice muffled by the pacifier. Judging by the events that had so far transpired today, he was rightfully worried where this might be headed.
âI know this may sound strange, but I think itâd be good for you to start calling me Mommy again. A big part of your new therapy is to help teach you that you donât have to do everything alone; that you have people who love you and want to help you, and I think if you started calling me Mommy again it would help you remember that Iâll always be there for you when you need me, and that you donât need to try to be more independent than youâre capable of being. Youâll always be my beautiful baby boy, and I want you to know that you can come to your mommy for anything. Do you think you can do that, sweet pea?â
Michael thought about it for a second. He didnât like the sound of this one bit. All this time, he had thought that the point of his therapy was to help him grow and develop as a person, yet all these new treatments seemed to do was regress him even further. Now his mother wanted him to start calling her mommy again, just like he did when he was a toddler. It was all very confusing, and yet at the same time he had no reason not to believe her. Devoid of many real friends or close acquaintances throughout most of his life, Michaelâs relationship with his mother was one of the closest ones he had. Even with all of the uncertainty that today had brought him, if he could be sure of one thing, it was that Melissa loved him very much, and that she never had anything but his best interest in mind. Michael let out a deep sigh.
âDo I have to, Mom?â He asked with a mild whimper. There was no point in even asking, really. Melissa always got what she wanted from him eventually.
âPlease honey? Canât you just do this one thing? Mommy is working so, so hard to help make you feel better. All I want is to make sure my little pumpkin gets everything he needs. If not for you, then can you at least do it for me?â Once again, she was giving him a pleading expression with her puppy dog eyes.