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“He’s right. Parents can get into serious trouble if they break the plans they agreed upon in court.”
“He could?” Brax asks.
“Oh yeah,” I nod. “They’re set up and monitored to keep you safe.”
“And I don’t get a say?” Color rises in his cheeks.
“I think this is a conversation you should have with one of your parents. They have the power to change things.”
He scoffs. “My mom is too busy being happy and in love with her husband.”
“And your Dad?” I can’t picture New as the type of parent to blow off the concerns of his child. Not with the incredible examples of parenting he had growing up. He was so close to his Dad.
“I don’t think he cares.” He mumbles.
I hum. “I have a hard time believing that.”
“You were just arguing with him the other day.”
“That’s different. You’re his son—.”
“And you were his best friend in the whole world, right?” His chest rises and falls rapidly.
“I was once.” This adorable pintsized mini New is ripping my heart with his questions.
“What happened?”
Your mother.“The two-year age difference caught up with us. There’s a big difference between a Senior and a Sophomore.” The lies hurt to deliver. The truth is a secret we’ve both kept silent about.
“That’s not right. You don’t just leave people behind who care about you.” His defense is about so much more than my broken relationship.
“I made new friends. And I have people like Fey and Ellis in my life. Things change. We can’t stop that from happening. But we can control the way we respond to it. I know your Dad. He wants to hear this.”
He frowns. “When we were younger, he took care of me. When I fell off my bike and skinned my knee, he was the first one helping me get home so my mom could clean my wounds. When our parents weren’t around, he did it himself.”
“He did?” Brax asks.
I nod. “When I fell out of a tree we were climbing, your dad carried me home.”
Braxton’s jaw drops. “When your Dad cares about someone, there’s nothing he wouldn’t do to keep them happy and safe. But you have to be able to talk to him too.”
“What do you mean?”
“Sometimes when we’re angry, what we want to say doesn’t match what comes out.”
His mouth forms an O, and I laugh. “It happens to all of us. Maybe you can choose a time when you feel relaxed—”
“When I’m at Pages. I always feel the best when I’m there.”
“It’s a pretty magical place, isn’t it? I spent a lot of time there when I was growing up.”
“Brax. Owen won! You’re going to play him,” Ethan yells, waving his friend over.
“Thanks for talking with me, Ms. Daphne.” He flashes me a smile before he jogs off to join the other boys.
“That looked like a nice heart-to-heart.”
I smile as Fey approaches me. “If by great you mean Awkward, yes. The poor kid wanted to talk to me because he heard I got dumped and had to sell my house like his parents.”
