Make It Count by Megan Erickson

raise at work because they promoted me to manager at the day-care center.”
    “Really?” Alec grinned. “That’s awesome. Pie for dessert to celebrate. On me.”
    She pursed her lips and shook her head. “Nope, on me. I’m the one who got a raise.”
    “Whatever, we’ll see who’s the quickest on the draw when the check comes.”
    She narrowed her eyes, so like his own. “You’re on. So how you doin’, baby?” she asked, taking a sip of her tea, the familiar scent of peppermint wafting across the table.
    He never lied to his mom. Not even by omission. “I don’t know. Kinda stressed.”
    She frowned. “Classes okay?”
    He rolled his lips between his teeth. “Yeah. I mean, they’re hard but I’m doing okay. Just . . . stuff.” He mumbled the last of his sentence and looked down at the table, running a finger over a crack in the top.
    A waitress approached their table and they ordered sandwiches for lunch. Grilled cheese and tomato soup for his mom, tuna melt for him. When the waitress left to fill their orders, the bell over the front door sounded, and Alec turned to see the new customers. Kat walked in with another girl he didn’t recognize. Kat scanned the room with her big blue eyes. When she saw him, she smiled slowly and gave him a tentative wave. He hadn’t seen her since their . . . tiff at his place.
    When he turned back around, his mom’s eyes were on Kat. Then she turned those intelligent pale green eyes on him.
    “Who’s that?”
    Alec took a sip of his water and swirled the glass around in its little island of condensation.
    “Alec?” She said his name slowly.
    He looked up. “That’s Max’s girlfriend.”
    She shifted her eyes to where Kat sat in a booth with her friend. “Something I need to know about?”
    She could read every emotion on his face. Damn her.
    “It’s kind of complicated. I’m actually tutoring her and . . . I think I’m starting to like her. I mean, like her like her. She just . . . she needs to be treated a little differently than a lot of girls and Max . . . doesn’t do it. He doesn’t get her and I don’t think he ever will. It drives me nuts.”
    His mom cocked her head slightly to the side. “And you think you could treat her right?”
    He shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m sure I’d screw up but I’d at least try.”
    “She’s really pretty.”
    “Hell yeah. I mean. I know she is. But I don’t even notice that as much anymore. I notice her laugh and her wit and . . .” Alec widened his eyes in horror. “Shit. I do really like her. Fuck me.”
    “Stop swearing.”
    “Shit. I mean, shoot. Sorry.”
    “But Max—”
    “I know, Mom. I know . Even if they break up, I’d be a shit—er, I mean, crappy friend if I tried to date her.”
    His mom sighed. “This is one area I don’t have advice for you, honey.”
    “Yeah, I know. It’s my problem to figure out. Right now, I want to help her with her grades so she passes her classes.”
    And that’s when Kat suddenly bounced up to their table.
    “Hey, Alec,” she said, her smile wide, and his chest hurt at the sight of how pretty she was, having been reminded of her looks by his mom.
    “Hey, Kat. This is my mom. Mom, this is Kat Caruso.”
    “Hi!” Kat beamed. “Nice to meet you.”
    “Nice to meet you, too,” his mom said. “You’re also a student at Bowler?”
    “Yep. Your son is my statistics tutor. He’s great at it.”
    Alec smiled. It was easy to get into his mom’s good graces. Just praise him in front of her and she’d love you forever.
    “Yes, by high school, he was teaching me trigonometry functions I didn’t even know existed.”
    Kat wrinkled her nose. “Ew, trig. ”
    Alec’s mom laughed.
    “Well, I have to get back to my table. Nice to meet you Mrs. Stone. Alec, we have a session tomorrow, right?”
    He nodded. “Yeah. But I can’t make our meeting time. I have a group project for one of my classes. Can you meet later?”
    “Yeah, um . . . do