He'd had a feeling that question would be the first one. He took a few seconds to have a mental debate on how to phrase it, and then just decided that he would tell most of the truth. "After dad died, mom had to take a pretty bad job." He didn't tell her what that job was specifically, but the grimace on his face as he said the word 'job' probably made it pretty clear that it wasn't the most tasteful thing in the world. "Before then, she was really...not hyper, but full of energy and life. Even afterwards, she tried to pretend, but it was just so exhausting for her. She would do anything for us, though. She always made sure we had everything we needed, no matter what sacrifices she had to make."
His eyes were half-glazed in remembrance, and his voice had taken on the wistful quality of someone talking about fond memories of better days. "She was beautiful, inside and out. She always believed the best in most people, which I guess is why she ended up in so many shitty relationships." He shook his head, snapping out of his memories, and finished, "Probably the best mom ever, but she was too optimistic. I got in trouble a lot, and people tried to tell her I needed help, but..." He shrugged a little and shook his head. "I don't blame her for it. All the stress she was under, she just wanted to believe that her kids were all okay."