No Pressure

By Rachel Why

“Just remember: nobody is thinking about you. No one cares.”

“What the hell, Mom! Thanks a lot.”

She really is the most infuriating person.

“Look. You aren’t under a microscope. Everyone is mired down with their own lives and problems. People are utterly self absorbed.”

“So I’m free. Is that it?”

Mom looks up from her magazine. “Free? I never said that. You’ve got yourself to deal with.”

“Myself. And you,” I mumble, my whole body deflating.

“Well, I am your mother. Incidentally, do you always have to wear those horrible boots?” She returns to her reading. No response is required.