COMING CLEAN

JENNA

A WEEK LATER

"Hey honey. How have you been?" Mom's excited voice carries over through the phone.

I nearly break down in tears at the sound of her peaceful voice. She sounds so happy, like she doesn't have a single bother in the world. I can't deny that I miss having so little problems in my life.

"Jenna?" She prompts, and it's only then that I realize she has been waiting on an answer, and I haven't given her any.

I clear my throat. "Sorry, I've just been really busy lately and..."

"Are you okay, sweetie? You don't usually sound this frazzled."

My eyes squeeze shut and I struggle to hold back the groan that's threatening to spill from my mouth. "I'm fine, Mom. Just that you were right and this working thing can be really exhausting."

She doesn't buy it, and her sigh rings with enough disbelief. "I'm your mother, Jenna. You should know better than to lie to me. What really is wrong? I can tell that something is, and it's not work."

The tears I've been struggling to hold back come