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"Excuse me!?"
Was he really being serious?
He didn't say anything more. All he did was walk into the house with Artemis who simply giddily followed him on the promise of sugar-coated cookies.
Gullible child.I needed to start security education with her.
I was left there, stunned, waiting for the cue to wake up from this short slumber and find myself still in the car. I stood there for a long time, before I felt a soft hand hold mine and lead me into the house.
"Sometimes, you need to set boundaries." The voice of the person holding my hand brought me back to the reality I wished didn't exist. It was Gretchen. "You need to make some certain people understand that you can be fine without them and that in fact, you're the one tolerating their shenanigans."
I looked at her and shook my head, still in disbelief. "I thought I was coming to help him cope," I said. "I thought he was depressed. And now, he wants to look for ways to make me useful," I uttered his words, still in mild denial that he just said that.
We were in the kitchen now, and Gretchen offered me a cookie jar which I took a slab of cookie out of and played with in my hands, my mouth feeling too dry to break anything, no matter how soft.
She shrugged, "He takes you for granted because you take yourself for worse."
"Harsh."
"But true," She pointed a spatula at me.
She was right. I needed to set for myself what I wanted to be.
"You can't just let fate control your life and toss you around any sphere it pleases. Neither should you let the decisions of a person."
"Well, I guess I never knew what I wanted for myself in the first place." I tugged at my hair, using my hands to straighten imaginary tangled strands.
"Now's the time to plan. No better time than now; isn't that what they say?" she giggled wistfully.
"I just...uhh ... don't want you to make the same mistake that I did, huh? That a lot of us here did." She looked away to conceal the droplet that flew from her left eye.
"Sienna," I heard a call from the hallway. It was deeper than I knew him to be, and I would not have recognized him if I didn't put two and two together upon hearing childish giggles.
He was probably coming with Artemis.
The entrance to the kitchen had no door, so I could see him enter.
"Mommy! I saw grandma." Artemis exclaimed.
The evidence was boldly plastered on her face. Her entire face was coated all over with flakes and sugary powder no matter the effort she had made to rid herself of it.
"Sienna, I..." he started.
"Not now, Alessandro," I cut him off. I picked Artemis up and mumbled into her cheeks, tasting the sugary chocolate of the cookie's imprint. "Let's go get you cleaned up, baby," I snorted. She giggled in response.
"Thanks for the cookie too, Gretchen. I have to retire for the night. See you tomorrow," I bid her, and she waved back. Giving me the discreet eye look and I returned it with a childish giggle.
"No, listen, you don't understand...I was..." the man tried again but I shunned him again as well. I would hear none of it.
"Drop it Alessandro. Like you said, we have a lot to discuss tomorrow, so can we just peg it till then?"
He nodded calmly. I was tempted to ask what it was with the dark shades he was wearing that made him look utterly ridiculous, but I held it in. His looks were his problem.
"My room is the same as last time, right?"
He nodded to that as well, swallowing hard as his Adam's apple bobbed up and down. Gretchen gave words to his gesture. "Of course, dear. Have a goodnight."
"Thanks!"
