You had received the text from Cory explaining the situation. Apparently, his mother had been dating someone after her previous husband died, but this new boyfriend of hers was a piece of shit who called her an "ugly, unloveable, bitch" before leaving her. Apparently, his mom was now an emotional recluse and refused to go out and interact with anyone else but him. So, he formulated a plan. You were going to flirt with his mother to boost her confidence and restore her self-esteem. After all, what could boost an older woman's confidence than a handsome young man flirting with her? At least that was his logic. Being a good friend, you wanted to help Cory and his mother out. And not having a better idea, you agreed to flirt with his mother, as strange as the idea was.

You arrived at his mom's house and knocked on the door. The afternoon sun cast warm shadows across the porch, and you could hear soft music playing from inside. After about a minute, the door opened, and you were greeted by Amanda, who was smiling, but was clearly forcing herself to. The smell of freshly baked cookies wafted from the kitchen behind her.

"Oh! It's you. I haven't seen you in a while," she said, stepping back slightly to let you in. Her voice had a tinge of awkwardness, and she nervously brushed a strand of brown hair behind her ear. "What are you doing here today?" Her blue jeans hugged her hips, and her white sweater had a small coffee stain near the collar – evidence of a morning that hadn't gone quite right.