[Life of Haley] Easy Street

At first, it was hard for Haley to go back to living under her mom's roof. She'd spent the past two years learning to fend for herself. Whether it was balancing her budget, saving up for new clothes, or even something as simple as what she was going to eat that night, Haley had learned how to do all of that for herself. When she was living with her roommates, she was the de facto adult. And now that she'd moved back in with her mom, she wasn't given much opportunity to flex those muscles anymore.

How do you go from earning a living wage and paying for your own things right back to asking Mom for money?

"Oh Haley, don't you worry about that." Mrs. West would always say, "You moved back in with me so I'd take care of you, and there's no shame in asking your Mom for a little spending money while you're going back to school."

At first it was hard. But Haley took to living by the purse straps of her mother quite well after a few weeks into the semester. She'd spent so long scrimping and saving, barely getting by on her own meager paycheck, she'd almost forgotten what it was like to not have to worry about money. It was like she was a teenager again! If she ever needed anything—money, food, you name it—all she had to do was ask.

"Mom, can I borrow a couple of bucks for some new jeans?"

"Mom, Courtney and I are gonna go grab a bite, and it's my turn to pay..."

"Mom, do you think you could grab me a couple Pop Tarts if you go by the kitchen?"

All in all, Haley took quite well to domesticated life. With no job and no other responsibilities besides keeping her grades up, the prodigal daughter fell into quite the sluggish lifestyle. Wake up, eat a big breakfast, go to classes, eat lunch, go to more classes, and swing by Big Daddy's with Courtney to study three times a week. Then she'd go home, take a nap, and eat dinner. It didn't take long before our formerly self-reliant protagonist to get more than a little lazy.

It was a Tuesday, almost halfway through her first semester back at college, and Haley West couldn't have been more of a sight. With her only class canceled for the day (something about a flu outbreak) Haley had been living like a queen. She'd rolled out of bed at ten, eaten her biggest breakfast yet, and bundled up on the couch. Parked in front of the TV, wrapped up in a cozy comforter and pajamas, with her brown hair all frizzed, Haley couldn't have looked more spoiled if she'd tried.

"Haley, sweetheart?" Mrs. West called from the kitchen, "Since you're home, do you want me to make you some lunch?"

"What?"  called back, "No, I'm okay."

"Well you've got to eat, hun." Her mother peeked her head around the archway, "Besides, you're never home in time for lunch. You've got to be hungry."

"I mean, not really..." Haley made a face, her cheeks catching against their newly acquired girth, "I mean, you just made me breakfast."

"I could order a pizza?" Mrs. West suggested with a zealous smile, "So you don't feel like you're working your poor old mother to death. (Even though you're really not.)"

"I mean..."

Haley thought long and hard about it—she hadn't had a pizza since she'd moved out. She could barely afford dollar menu, let alone pizza. At least pizza that was any good. And where would Mom order from? There was a Pizza Hut down the road, and Dominos was all the way in Boiling Springs. Pizza Hut had that stuffed crust, and their sauce was so much better than Dominos. Plus they could order pasta, those breadsticks that she liked...

"Yeah, I could eat."

Almost an hour later, and you would have never known that Haley had eaten a stack of pancakes, half a dozen eggs, and half a container of bacon by herself. Mrs. West had ordered her daughter a whole pie, and it would barely last the hour. Bundled up in her lazy girl fortress of blankets and propped up with all kinds of comfy pillows, Haley snacked her whole day away!

A part of her felt guilty acting like this. The part of her that had learned the hard way that she couldn't just lay around all day. That there was work to be done and bills to pay. But as long as her mother kept insisting, Haley was going to oblige. And that felt bad shriveled up smaller and smaller was perhaps the only thing about Haley West that wasn't growing.

"Well you look comfy." Her mother said, waking her daughter up from an afternoon nap, "Aren't you going to meet with Courtney or something?"

"What? No, it's Tuesday. I'll see her tomorrow." Haley smacked her lips sleepily, her double chin catching slightly, "What time is it?"

"It's about half past four." Mrs. West brushed a clipped brown lock from being stuck on Haley's cheek, "Why don't you head up to your room, and I'll bring you your dinner when it's done? Sound good?"

"Mmmm..." Haley grunted sleepily, "Kay."

With as much trouble as one might expect from someone who'd eaten an entire pizza pie and its accompanying breadsticks, Haley rocked herself to a hunched position on the couch before rolling to her feet. Still cloaked in her comforter, Haley shuffled off down the hallway and into her room, where she collapsed face-first into her pillow.

"BURRRRRAP!" Haley belched as the contents of her stomach churned.

"What's wrong with having one little lazy day?" Haley thought to herself drearily as she drifted back to sleep, "I deserve it."