Chapter 11 #2
After I paid, Kai carefully tore open the wrapper, broke it in half, and gave me the bigger piece.
"Here, Mommy, you can have this."
"You have it," I crouched to his level, pushing the chocolate back. "Mommy doesn't eat sweets."
"But..." Kai frowned, thinking hard, then pushed it back with a serious expression.
"If you eat something sweet, you won't be sad anymore."
I froze, realizing he'd picked up on my mood again. Before I could respond, sweetness touched my tongue.
Kai had popped the chocolate into my mouth, giggling and showing his two little fangs.
When we got home, I went to the kitchen to make dinner while Kai kicked off his shoes, dumped his backpack on the couch, and sprawled at the coffee table to play with his Legos.
"Mommy, can I build a spaceship?"
"Sure." I stirred the pasta. "But don't scatter pieces everywhere."
"I won't!"
Moments later came the telltale clatter—pieces everywhere.
After dinner, Kai bounced off for his bath, emerging in his new rocket ship pajamas.
His little feet made pattering sounds in his slippers, hair still dripping wet. I toweled it dry, then blow-dried it. The dryer was loud, but Kai sat quietly, only flinching when hot air hit his neck.
"Tired?" I turned off the dryer.
"A little..." He rubbed his eyes.
"Brush your teeth, then bed."
Kai obediently went to the bathroom. I heard the water running and his muffled voice—he always hummed while brushing, though the toothbrush made it impossible to carry a tune.
When he'd finished and climbed into bed, I lay down beside him. Kai immediately burrowed into my arms, his small head on my shoulder. Our unspoken signal—story time.
"Where were we?" I reached for the well-worn copy of The Little Prince on the nightstand.
"The Little Prince went to see the roses." Kai's voice was thick with sleep. "But he was leaving his planet."
"I was too young then to know how to love her..."
Kai closed his eyes, listening quietly, his small hand clutching my pajamas, his breathing slow and even. When I got to the part where the Little Prince left his planet to travel the universe, he spoke suddenly, his voice small and muffled.
"Will he miss his rose?"
"Yes," I said softly.
"Then why did he leave?"
"Because he wanted to see the world." I closed the book, looking at him. "To explore other planets."
Kai nodded thoughtfully, curious as always. "Mommy, can we go exploring too? Like the Little Prince?"
I couldn't respond as calmly as usual.
Everything that had happened today replayed in my mind. I knew the risk of this decision could crush me, but I couldn't continue anymore—couldn't keep getting tangled up with Kayden, couldn't keep Kai in an environment where his biological father knew he existed but had another fiancée.
This was something I had to do.
"Kai. What if we have to move, go to a new city, would you want to?"
"Move?" Kai lifted his head to look at me, those silver eyes drowsy in the warm lamplight. "Like the Little Prince going to a new planet?"
"Sort of." I stroked his hair.
Kai thought about it. "Will there be a playground?"
I hesitated, then was honest. "Yes, but it might... not be as big as the one here."
"Oh." Kai thought some more. "What about our house?"
Smart child, always picking up on what adults left unsaid.
"It'll be smaller." Guilt washed over me. "Mommy's studio will be smaller, too."
Kai was quiet for a moment. I felt him shift in my arms, adjusting his position.
"Will there be a new school?" he finally asked.
"There will be. You'll make new friends."
"But what about Jamie?" Kai's voice went muffled. "And Bruce, and Emma... they're my best friends."
I couldn't continue. A six-year-old already understood what goodbye meant. And I was forcing him to leave his friends...
"Mommy, is someone bullying you?" He asked something I hadn't expected.
"Why do you ask?" My voice was rough.
"Because you looked really sad today." Kai lifted his head from my arms, looking at me seriously. "When you smiled, your eyes didn't curve up."
"No one's bullying Mommy." My heart softened. I touched his face. "It's just... some things need to change."
"What things?"
"Grown-up things." I didn't want to tell him too much. "But I promise to do my best for us. It's just... we might not have as many toys."
Kai looked at me, those silver eyes holding a seriousness beyond his years, then suddenly changed topics.
"Did the Little Prince go home in the end?"
"He did." I nodded. "Because he missed his rose."
"Will we come back?"
"Probably... not."
Kai didn't speak. I could feel him thinking, his small mind weighing something. Finally, he showed his signature smile with those little fangs.
"That's okay," he said. "The Little Prince went home because his rose was waiting there. But we don't have to come back, because..."
He patted my shoulder with his small hand. "Mommy is my rose. As long as I'm with Mommy, anywhere is fine."
I couldn't hold back the tears anymore, but I didn't want to cry in front of him. I hugged him tight, burying my face in his soft hair, hiding my sob.
"Kai..." My voice still carried that telltale thickness, and he caught it.
"Don't cry." Kai patted my back, his voice soft and young. "It scares me when Mommy cries."
"I'm not crying." I laughed through tears, refusing to admit it.
"Your voice sounds like crying."
"That's because I love you so much."
Kai smiled contentedly, nuzzling into my arms and pulling the blanket up to his chin.
"Mommy," he yawned, "can I bring my spaceship? I haven't finished building it..."
"Yes," I said gently. "You can bring whatever you want."
"My dinosaur collection, too?"
"Yes."
"All of them?"
"Maybe not all," I patted his back softly, "but your favorite ones, yes."
"Okay..." Kai yawned again, his eyes drooping. "Then tomorrow I have to pick which ones..."
His voice grew fainter and fainter until it disappeared completely. His small hand still clutched my pajamas, as if afraid I'd leave.
I watched his peaceful sleeping face—long lashes casting soft shadows on his cheeks, small nose, lips slightly parted, making little smacking sounds in his sleep.
Such a precious child.
Such a precious gift.
I made my decision silently.
Tomorrow, I'd talk to Anna about leaving.
The penalty for breaking the contract was high, but there was room to negotiate. I could try for remote work, try to keep my job. But if they refused, I'd work my hardest in the future to pay back what I owed.
As long as I could leave Baltimore.
Leave this mess behind.
Leave Kayden Blackwood.
I adjusted my position carefully to let Kai sleep more comfortably, then reached over and turned off the bedside lamp. In the darkness, I closed my eyes as hot tears slid from the corners again, disappearing into my hair.
I was walking an impossibly difficult path.
But as long as I was alive, as long as Kai was with me, when tomorrow came, when the sun rose again, everything would be okay.
It would be. It had to be.
Morning came with my phone ringing.
When I opened my eyes, Kai was still asleep, his little face buried in the pillow, sleeping soundly. Sunlight filtered through the curtain gaps, casting gentle light across his face.
I carefully felt for my phone and checked the caller ID—Anna.
Why was she calling at this hour?
I glanced at the clock. Only six-thirty.
Dread settled in my gut.
I slipped carefully out of bed and walked to the living room before answering.
"Hello?" I kept my voice low.
"Ella!" Anna's voice was rushed and panicked, nothing like her usual calm. "Check the news! Now!"
"What?"
"Someone leaked that you're a homewrecker!" Anna's voice broke. "It's all over social media, there are photos! God, Ella, what the hell is going on?!"
My mind went blank.
The phone nearly slipped from my hand.