Chapter 29 Ethan #2
“His teammate was understandably upset and gave him the black eye. BHU has suspended him for two weeks for the fighting, but we don’t know if the family are going to press charges for the video.”
“What the hell were you thinking?” I ask Dylan, shaking my head.
“They came on to me,” he says with a shrug. “How was I supposed to know she was married, or they were related to Cole?”
“Are you serious, Dylan? Regardless of that, you recorded it and showed your teammates.”
“They were both aware I was filming. They fucking loved it,” he shoots back at me, and I don’t miss the flick of his eyes to Leni, who most certainly wasn’t aware when he took naked photos of her and shared them around. “They don’t have a leg to stand on with the cops.”
I shake my head. “We brought you up better than that.”
He snorts. “Yeah, right. Mum was fucking her personal trainer for years, and you were too busy with your precious team to even give a fuck about what either of us were doing. You didn’t even blink an eye when I applied to BHU.
You were just happy to get rid of me so the two of you could finally get a divorce and stop living the lie you’ve been pushing on me for the past twenty-two years.
Now you’re fucking my ex-girlfriend. Real classy, Dad.
At least Mum had the decency to go for someone a couple of years older than me. ”
I wince at the accusation that I never cared what he was doing.
As he got older, he spent more and more time in his room or going out with mates.
I just thought that’s what teenagers do.
It was never my intention for him to feel like he didn’t matter to me.
Yes, my relationship with Vanessa has always been strained, but we tried to make it work for him.
I guess that’s just another thing we failed at.
“You can’t blame your parents for your actions, Dylan,” Leni says quietly.
He laughs her off. “You think seducing my dad gives you the right to judge me?”
Leni flinches, and I shoot to my feet.
“Don’t you dare speak to her like that!”
“Or what?” he shouts back, jumping up and getting in my face. “You couldn’t handle Mum shacking up with a younger man, so you try to one-up her by fucking my ex? How sick can you get?”
My fists clench at my sides, and I breathe through my nose, trying to remain calm.
“You want to hit me, old man?” he spits, shoving my chest. I stumble but catch myself. “Go on. Knock me around a bit, see if that makes me see reason.”
“I would never hit you,” I say through gritted teeth.
“Sit down, both of you,” Vanessa snaps. “Fighting isn’t the answer.”
Releasing a frustrated growl, I take a step back and return to my seat beside Leni. She’s shaking, so I wrap my arm around her shoulder.
Dylan doesn’t back down though. “Why should I listen to anything either of you say? It’s not like either of you has been a good role model for healthy relationships.”
“Maybe not,” I concede, “but we certainly never taught you to objectify women. Grow up and take responsibility for your actions.”
“Fuck you.”
“Real mature.”
“Enough,” Vanessa shouts. She glances at Leni, who is playing with the hem of her hoodie as she stares at the ground. “I really think we should deal with this privately—”
“Leni has every right to be here, because of the naked photos our son took of her when they were eighteen,” I cut in, taking no satisfaction when my ex-wife flinches.
“Are you going to blame that on us as well, Dylan? Because from where I’m sitting, it looks like a pattern.
How many more times have you done this and not been caught? ”
Something flashes in his hazel eyes, and I feel sick to my stomach that my hunch has been confirmed.
“Look,” he says, levelling his gaze on Leni. “I’m sorry for what I did in high school. It was just something a few of the guys on the team did, and I didn’t know Theo was going to share them further—”
Blood rings in my ears, and I clench my fists at the mention of my right wing.
“—but hooking up with my dad to get back at me, or whatever this is, is pretty pathetic.”
“Enough,” I growl, tightening my hold on Leni. “This has nothing to do with us, and everything to do with you being hell-bent on fucking up your future because of your dick. You need help.”
“Ethan,” Leni says in a calm voice. “I think everyone just needs to take a deep breath before you all say something you’ll regret.”
Dylan snorts, and I open my mouth to snap at him, but Leni interrupts.
“You can think whatever you want about me, Dylan. I’m done caring.
I let what you did to me fester and turn me into someone I wasn’t, but I’m not giving you the power anymore.
I didn’t mean to fall for your dad, but I have, and I won’t apologise for that, even though I know it means I’m going to be a part of your life, because I would never expect him to have nothing to do with you. You’re his son.
“But your dad’s right, you do need help, only it won’t work unless you’re willing to admit what you’ve done isn’t right.
The way you treat women isn’t right. I get that you’re upset with your parents for what happened in their relationship, but you don’t have the right to be.
Their mistakes are their mistakes. That’s for them to rectify. ”
The room is silent when she stops talking, and Leni leans in and kisses the side of my jaw, murmuring, “I’m going upstairs while you guys talk.”
I squeeze her waist and give her a short nod, falling in love with her even more for knowing what I need.
Once Leni leaves the room, Vanessa sinks onto the couch beside Dylan.
“We’re trying to help you.”
He scoffs. “I think it’s rich the two of you are trying to help me, when you cheated on Dad for years, and he’s fucking my ex-girlfriend. So I like to record myself having sex. I don’t see what the big deal is. Everyone I sleep with is a consenting adult.”
“Except Leni,” I mutter.
“We were both eighteen. It’s not like I was an adult sleeping with a minor.”
“She didn’t know you were taking photos of her while she was passed out in your bed, Dylan. The photos you passed around to your teammates without her knowledge? That’s the issue at hand here.”
He narrows his eyes at me. “So, did she come to you to tell you what I did, and you made up for it by showing her how a real gentleman treats a woman?” I flinch at the heavy sarcasm lacing his tone. “Or is it just a kink of yours to sleep with the same woman as your son?”
“Dylan,” Vanessa admonishes, resting her hand on his leg, but he pulls away.
I sigh. “You can lash out at me all you like, and I’m sorry if it’s hard for you to accept me and Leni together, but that’s not the issue here. Don’t you see how your actions affect other people?”
“Maybe it would help to talk to someone,” Vanessa suggests.
“What? Like a shrink?” The scepticism is clear in his tone.
“We can’t force you to do anything you don’t want to do, but maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea if we all saw someone.” My thoughts drift to Leni. It wouldn’t be a bad idea for her either.
“What good’s it going to do?” Dylan asks, and for the first time in a long time there’s vulnerability in his voice. “It’s not like you and Mum are going to get back together, and I don’t have a problem. If you want me to stop filming myself having sex, then I’ll stop.”
I pause. “Is that what you want? For your mother and me to get back together?”
“Fuck no,” he admits, huffing out a humourless laugh. “You two were toxic together. I actually considered telling you about Mum’s affair so you’d break up sooner.”
Vanessa clears her throat, her hand toying with her hair. “Yes, well, I know I probably could have handled things a little better.”
“Whatever, Mum. You and Dad were miserable together. At least things kind of got more tolerable when your toy boy was boning you.”
I shake my head. “We weren’t exactly perfect, but I would have thought we taught you to respect women.”
Dylan hangs his head. “I don’t know why I took photos of Elena. Like I said, a few of the guys on the team were doing it…” His voice trails off as he meets my gaze. “I really am sorry.”
“It’s not me you need to apologise to.”
He nods, thoughtful. “So, this thing between you two is…”
“Serious? Yes.”
“Isn’t it like, illegal or something, to date your students?”
I rub the back of my neck. “She’s not technically my student, but we are keeping it quiet until she graduates. I had already given my notice before we started anything, and we’re both leaving Beckford.”
“Together?” he chokes out.
“Yes.”
His eyes move to his mother. “How do you feel about all this?”
She glances at me before returning her attention to him. “I just want you both to be happy.”
“You think seeing a therapist would help with that?”
Tears glisten in her eyes. “I do. We all have things we need to heal from, and I think it will do us all some good to seek professional help to move on from our past mistakes. Your father and I included.”
I soften my tone. “Dylan, you’re my son.
I will always be here to support you, but objectifying women the way you have been is not okay.
They’re real people, and they need to be respected as such.
I’m not shaming your kinks, as long as you’re doing it in a safe and respectful manner.
Those two women might have consented to you recording them, but I’m sure they didn’t consent to that video being shared around, did they? ”
His shoulders droop. “No.”
“I didn’t think so. This is why I think talking to a professional will help you explore your sexual urges in a healthier way.”
Dylan slumps back against the couch. “Whatever.”
He’s still resisting, but at least he’s not shutting down the idea altogether.
Vanessa’s right. None of us have really dealt with the marriage breakdown, and I guess we weren’t as good at hiding it from Dylan as we thought.
I’m not making excuses for his behaviour, because there’s nothing that makes what he did right, but I’m determined to help him through it, and Vanessa’s suggestion of therapy seems like the best option for all of us.