I crawled into the tent.
I climbed into the sleeping bag.
And I spent the night on the backyard lawn.
It was one of the most uncomfortable nights I can remember.
Every movement hurt.
The ground was hard.
My hip throbbed.
My back ached.
At one point, I woke up and found a squirrel sitting nearby, staring at me as if even it couldn’t understand why an elderly woman was sleeping in a tent in the middle of someone’s backyard.
When morning finally came, the sky was turning pink.
I unzipped the tent and slowly sat up.
My entire body hurt.
I could barely straighten my back.
Gabrielle eventually came outside.
She handed me a dry granola bar and a bottle of water.
“Something better later,” she said.
I thanked her.
What else could I do?
I sat there quietly, waiting.
I didn’t want to cause a scene.
I didn’t want to call Luke and complain while he was away on business.
Most of all, I didn’t want my grandchildren caught in the middle of a disagreement between their mother and their grandmother.
So I waited.
And then I heard a car.
A familiar engine.
I looked toward the driveway.
A silver sedan pulled in.
My heart skipped.
Luke stepped out.
He was home.
One full day earlier than expected.
His face lit up when he saw me.
“Mom!”
I stood up as quickly as my aching body allowed.
We hugged.
He kissed my forehead.
“I finished early,” he said. “I decided to drive straight home.”
Then he stepped back.
And his smile disappeared.
His eyes moved past me.
Toward the tent.
He looked at the tent.
Then at me.
Then back at the tent.
“What is that?”
I tried to make the situation sound normal.
“Uh, honey, you’re having the rooms renovated, so Gabrielle had me sleep out here.”
Luke didn’t respond immediately.
He just stared at me.
Then he looked toward the house.
“No.”
I frowned.
“What?”
“No, Mom. There wasn’t any renovation.”
My stomach dropped.
“What do you mean?”
“I didn’t have anything painted.”
He sounded confused at first.
Then angry.
“I personally prepared the guest room for you before I left.”
I didn’t know what to say.
Luke walked into the house.
I followed him slowly.
He went straight toward the guest bedroom.
The door was open.
