The hardest part about moving across the country was leaving his parents behind. Theo hadn't realized just how often he went to them with questions regarding everything from child rearing to dinners for one, and even though those same concerns had kept his landline hopping for these past eight months, it just wasn't the same. Especially today.

He'd had flowers sent, two dozen white, pink, and red roses in a pair of fancy vases, but half the fun in flowers on Mother's Day came from seeing his mothers react in the flesh, watching them jokingly bicker over which of the two identical arrangements was prettier.

He was just about to grab his gloves and head down to distract himself with his newest automotive acquisition when two unexpected things happened near-simultaneously—there was a knock at the door and his phone began to ring. Caller ID demanded he answer the phone first, but after asking a suspiciously giddy pMom to hang on, Theo got the door, claiming a well-padded and mysterious package he hadn't ordered.

"Was that it? Did you get it?" Paloma asked, voice still bubbly when he got back on the line.

"I think so?" He turned the package over in his hands. "What is it?"

"Open it up and see."

He did. It was a Samsung tablet, one that he was quickly assured he wouldn't have to keep.

"It's just for today, pea. We put an envelope with postage in there so you could get the filthy technology out of the apartment first thing tomorrow morning." He heard laughter in the background, too deep for Paloma.

"Ha, ha. So, what do I do with it?" he asked, sliding the cold, metal rectangle out of its bubble wrap cocoon.

"Press the button on the right side, and when the screen comes on, tap the blue S."

A little under a minute later, during which he fumbled with the tablet in an effort to determine which of its sides was considered its right, Theo got it working. The screen filled with his mothers' smiling faces, iMom pushing forward and giving the camera a theatrical smooch. She laughed again as pMom wiped away the smudge she'd left behind. Theo found himself smiling back. There were even teeth involved.

"Happy Mother's Day, guys," he said, holding the tablet as gingerly as he would a toddler with diarrhea.

"We got your flowers, honey. They're lovely."

"Mine are lovelier, but Paloma's are nice too."

Overlapping pMom's muttered response, Theo said, "I'm glad things haven't changed around there. I get two of the same arrangements and one's always prettier."

"It is!" The camera shook like Redmond had been hit by the big one. When it stopped jittering, Theo could see the two vases of flowers, the one on the right just a little more vibrant than the one on the left. The roses stood taller, and he could have sworn there was an extra red on the right too.

"I see what you mean," he said, jumping slightly at Paloma's tinny reaction.

"You two are the worst!" she crowed, chuckling with amused disbelief.

They chatted for quite a while, and even though it was lovely and amusing and it dulled a little of his yearning for how things used to be, Theo never quite adjusted to the weight of the tablet in his hands or the fact that he couldn't see more than what the viewfinder's rectangle allowed him to. He felt stodgy, like he was an old man wandering through a growing cloud of irritation, and eventually his mothers must have noticed he was slipping into regular silences because they efficiently began to wrap things up.

"Now is about the time we get in our walk," iMom said, "so we'll let you go. I'm sure you've got places to be." Even though she was right and he did have multiple errands to run, the obvious end of the conversation turned prior annoyance to a pouty wistfulness he tried to push away. It was idiotic, how you could want to be left alone one minute and yearning for companionship again in the next, but he supposed that was just the way of these things.

"Remember, you can send us the tablet back whenever you want!" iMom said, her smile wide even though her eyes were wistful.

"I'll do it soon," he confirmed. "I wouldn't want you to get too far behind on your reading."

"Reading is not as important as seeing you," pMom said. "So, if you want to call a few more times before you go to the post office, it'd be welcome."

Theo smiled and nodded. He might just do that.

After they said their goodbyes and he wished them a Happy Mother's Day at least nine more times, they finally hung up. Theo sat unmoving in the silence for a minute or two, then got up with a sigh, sliding the tablet back into its envelope.