[TLH/SinKid] Loan job interview

>"Well, thank you for coming, and good luck with the rest of the process."
>Loan grabbed the woman's hand and gave it a shake. Solid grip. slight downwards tilt. Just like she was taught. "Thank you for giving me the opportunity. When can I expect to hear from you?"
>The woman gave a slight smile. "If you're successful, we'll contact you within the week."
>"Excellent, hope to hear from you soon."
>The two of them said their farewells, and Loan departed.
>The moment she left the building, she hesitated.
>Then dashed off to the nearest bush to bring her breakfast back up and into it.
>She grabbed a handkerchief from her bag and wiped her mouth clear. While her anxiety was still flaring up bad, it was a little better after that.
>Shame it was something Liena had made for her.
>Pulling herself back up and dusting herself off, she walked to the parked car.
>Tapping on the door, her mother looked up from her phone and gave her a small wave.
>"So, how'd it go?" Lori asked as she entered the car.
>"Fine." She replied, softly.
>"Just 'fine'?" Lori chuckled. "You puking in the bush over there says otherwise."
>"A-are you mad at me?"
>"What? No, of course not." Lori smiled, placing her hand on Loan's. She moved her hand away, and her smile dipped slightly. "I remember my first job interview. Heh, I was an absolute nervous wreck myself."
>"Yeah, but..." Loan sighed. "I'm 21. I should have a job or have finished college-"
>"Loan, stop."
>Loan stopped immediately, fearing punishment if she continued.
>"Look..." She sighed. "It's not your fault."
>Loan blinked.
>"I pushed you too much when you were a kid. It was wrong of me to do that, I should've let you do things at your own pace."
>Lori placed her hand on Loan's again and held it. Loan's eyes widened a little and she locked up.
>"I'm... I'm proud of you, Loan. I'm sure everyone else will be, too." Lori paused. "And your father would have been, I'm sure."
>Loan remained motionless as her vision began clouding up.
>How long had she waited to hear those words?
>Loan sniffed, and felt herself begin to cry.
>She turned to look at her mother, almost expecting some kind of cruel expression or chastising remark for crying like this.
>Instead, she got a sincere and kind-hearted expression, a look she had only ever given her sibling Chris.
>Loan broke down into audible sobs, and pulled herself close to her mother as well as the seatbelts could allow, clutching her tight.
>Lori did much the same, herself becoming quite teary-eyed.
>Soon, Loan had regained her composure, and let her mother go. "S-sorry."
>"For what?" Lori smiled, wiping a tear from her own eye. "Hey, because you did well, how about we go grab some lunch and you can tell me all about it. How does that sound?"
>Loan smiled. The first genuine smile she had since... jeez, far too long. Her eyes were still wet from before and she was still sniffing. "Burgers?"
>"You read my mind."
[written June 18 '18]