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Hollyhill Valley is postcard picture perfect. Main Street is all dressed up for Fourth of July; American flags on every post, store windows decorated in red, white, and blue.
Tobias’s eyes are wide and curious as we park and hop out. He puts his hand in mine as we walk down the sidewalk.
“Mommy, look! Wow, look at that car! And look a police officer!”
I smile down at my little boy. “Come on, curious kitten. Let’s see if we can find some ice cream!”
He giggles as we skip down the sidewalk, hand in hand. We find a cute little ice cream shop and stop. Tobias gets a chocolate while I get the strawberry.
“Good ice cream, little man?”
He nods, looks up at me with chocolate smeared across his face.
“Soooo good, mommy!”
Laughing, I grab the napkin and gently wipe his little cheeks. “Good, baby. We’ll finish up, then head home to do more unpacking. Want to do your room first?”
“Oh, yes, please!”
We finish up and walk back to our car, getting in to drive the short ride home. Our road is so peaceful and quiet, trees lining the sides with cute little houses set off along the road. Everybody is close enough to walk door to door, but far enough away that everybody has enormous yards and plenty of space and privacy.
I pull into our driveway and smile at our little brown cottage. It reminds me of a witchy gingerbread house; dark brown shingle siding with cream trim and a round door. There’s some ivy growing on the chimney and little flower boxes in the front bay window.
Tobias hops out and runs inside. I follow him up to his bedroom, where he’s already putting toys and books on his built-in shelf.
I grab the wooden pieces out of a large box and put together his bed frame. It’s all light wood and gives it a very cute, rustic vibe. Grabbing the mattress leaning against the wall, I plop it down and smile.
“There we go! Now, to make your bed and you’ll be all set, Tobias.”
The next box is all his blankets. His fitted sheet is ivory with little green leaves on it. The green matches his green comforter. A black and white buffalo check throw blanket completes the bedding.
Pillows go on next; white shams on the back ones, green on the next ones, two small buffalo check throw pillows, and his little black throw pillow that says‘wanderer’completes the look.
I grab the other random throw pillows and put them on the window bench with his special bear stuffed animal. Tobias is just finishing up putting all his toys on the built-in shelves, so I grab his huge picture of a fuzzy cow and hang it above his bed.
Looking out the window, the sun is setting, which means bedtime for my little man. “Alright, big guy. We’ll take care of all your clothes tomorrow, okay? Put your jammies on while I get your toothbrush ready.”
Heading in the bathroom, I already have most of it unpacked and ready to go. This and kitchen things were some of the first things we unpacked and put away. Tobias comes running in just as I finish putting the toothpaste on.
“Brush really well! I’ll be right back.”
I head back into his bedroom to dig through the mountain of boxes in his closet, find the one labeled‘Pajamas’and open it up. Fishing around, I find his little short set and place it on his bed.
Walking back into the bathroom, I nod, letting Tobias know he can be all done. He finishes up and we head back into his room. Tobias finds a book and puts his pajamas on, crawling into bed.
“What did you pick out tonight?” I pick the book up and smile. “Teddy bear picnic again! Oh, I love this one.”
Opening it up, I start to read. But not even five minutes in, Tobias is snoring away, teddy bear tucked under his arm. I lean down and give him a soft kiss before putting the book away. Turning on all his nightlights, I close the door and head down the hall to my room.
Flopping down on the mattress that’s on the floor, I sigh and roll to my side. “We’re gonna be just fine. Everything will work out.”
We needed to move. We needed this change. Tobias’s father is… well, not the best. He wanted nothing to do with me once he found out I was pregnant. I wasn’t the woman heneededin his life, apparently. He wanted a morematurewoman. Somebody who is only good for looks. I have a brain and that’s a no-no in his family.
While sometimes it makes me sad, I know I got lucky by escaping his clutches. I can live my life the way I want with my art and my beautiful son.
Here in Hollyhill Valley, Tobias and I can start a new life, free from Derek’s reach. Nobody knows us here, and it’s the best feeling in the world. Back home, everybody knew Derek had dropped me. I was like a leper. Not one person wanted to help me. Not having any family, I bucked up and did it all on my own for Tobias. I make my own money, work my own job, and do it all without Derek’s filthy money or his family.
I smile as I lay my head onmypillow inmyhome.
