That image haunted me for months afterward. My boy, sitting alone at a long cafeteria table, opening the sandwich I had packed while his classmates sat together and laughed about whatever kids laughed about.
I had asked Nathan about it once, gently.
“Honey, do you ever sit with anyone at lunch?”
“Sometimes,” he’d said, not looking up from his book. “I don’t mind being alone, Mom. Really.”
I did not push him. But I knew the difference between not minding and not having a choice.
The problem was that high school is not always kind to boys like Nathan. He was not bullied exactly, but he was not popular either.
When He Said He Wasn’t Going to Prom
So, weeks earlier, when my son announced during his senior year that he was not going to prom, I was not surprised.
I was sad in that quiet way only mothers understand.
“You’re sure?” I’d asked.
“Yep. I’m sure,” he’d said. “I don’t care, and you know parties aren’t really my thing.”
“It could be fun.”
“Mom,” He’d given me that small, patient smile. “I’d rather save the money. Honest.”
I let it go.
