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“Hey, Bobby.”
He looked up at me, tears in his hazel eyes. He let out a deep breath, picking up his bag before getting up and walking over to me.
I turned to the secretary. “Is there anything else?”
“Just sign him out.”
“Yeah, okay.”
As I signed Bobby out from school, I worried that we were getting to the point of needing to have another meeting. We’d already had a few with other parents when Bobby was initially getting into fights. And then we had them with his teachers. I could tell the principal was getting frustrated.
“We’ll talk about this when we get home,” I told my son as we were walking out.
He nodded, and the two of us head towards the exit. When we got outside, I stopped short. Aiden was standing at the gates.
My initial response was to hold back my son. How did my ex know we were at the school? He must have followed me. That’s the only way. Unless he knew more than he told me. Confusion had me stuck to the spot, but I couldn’t just stand there all day.
I grabbed Bobby’s hand. The two of us walked towards the gate, and a meeting I never thought would happen.
“Hi, Aiden. This is Bobby.”
Aiden nodded to the boy. “Hey.” Clueless as to what was going on, Bobby nodded back.
My heart was beating a mile a minute. What was I supposed to say to Aiden if he asked about Bobby? Could I lie? It was what I’d been doing for the past few years.
“What are you doing here?” I kind of already knew, but I needed to double-check.
“I was following you because I felt like our conversation from last night wasn’t over. I have a lot more questions now.” He glanced over at Bobby. Was he going to notice? Aiden was always super observant, but if he didn’t suspect, then maybe he won’t put it all together.
“What questions?”
“What are you doing here?”
“Um, I had to pick up Bobby.”
“Why?”
“He’s my son.”
“I gathered that. Why are you picking him up early?” Aiden wasn’t going to let me get by easily. He’d keep pestering me until I confessed.
“He’s been getting into a few fights at school, talking back to teachers. Since it’s been happening for a while, I just have to pick him up whenever he’s misbehaving.”
“He’s been getting into fights?” Aiden turned his attention to Bobby. He walked over to him, kneeling down, so they were at about the same height. “Hi.”
Bobby looked up at me. I nodded, letting him know it was okay.
“Hello.”
“Your mom tells me you’ve been getting into fights.” Bobby nodded. “Why?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“I see.”
They continued to talk while I had an internal panic attack. Seeing them side by side, it was so apparent that Bobby was a mini version of Aiden. The word 'fuck’ was running through my head on a loop. I wasn't paying much attention to what was being said, but I should have been. What if I missed some crucial bit of information! I just had so many emotions running through my head.
Maybe running away from Aiden all those years ago was rash, but it had felt like the right choice. The only option, really. Most of the people in his family hadn’t liked me, especially his mother. There was never one moment I could point to that would explain all the hatred. I was always polite and gracious whenever Aiden had brought me around — which was rare, I only attended the occasional bar-b-q or dinner.
My guess was that it all boiled down to the fact that I wasn't one of them, the rich. There was nothing I could do to change that fact. Aiden knew a little bit about his mother's disdain for me, but he never realized how deep it ran.
She actually offered me money to leave him. I had thought she was insane, but that didn’t stop me. I’d never forgot that moment, and it played back in front of my eyes like a cursed movie.
Aiden's mother never wanted to talk to me. She avoided being in the same room as me as if I carried the plague or something. I'd learned to ignore it, for the most part anyway. It still kind of hurt when she so obviously left a room because I was in it. That’s why when she asked to speak with me privately, I thought something absolutely horrible was about to happen.
“Hello,” I knocked on the door but didn't go in. Mrs. Harris intimidated me so much.
I didn't really think she called me there to murder me, but the thought had crossed my mind, and I wasn't able to totally banish it from my thoughts. She had this presence that made me shrivel. My body was on edge, knowing that we were about to be in the same room alone for an indefinite amount of time.
