by Ann, Natalie
“Shit,” Sebastian said. “I don’t want to meet anyone.”
He looked at Paige but neither of them said a word. The kid’s world was being turned upside down again so they were going to let it all play out.
The waitress came over and brought them drinks and asked if they wanted to order. “We’re waiting on one more person,” Paige said.
“He’s ten minutes late,” Sebastian said. “Maybe he won’t show.”
“And if he doesn’t then it’s something we’ll document for the future.” Noah already had Travis looking into Eric. He hadn’t told Paige, as he didn’t want her to worry or even offer to pay for it. It was family for him and his family stuck together. When he got the report back, he’d share what it said...maybe.
Ten more minutes went by and Eric walked back with a hostess. The guy looked like a loser. He was about five foot eight, blonde hair that was pulled back in a ponytail, and looked like he hadn’t shaved in days. He had an open flannel shirt on over a ratty white T-shirt with some rock band on the front. Nothing was tucked in, everything hanging out over old faded jeans with a hole in the thigh that looked like they might not have been washed in weeks.
This wasn’t a fashion statement. The guy looked like a bum.
“Eric,” Paige said, standing up.
Eric pulled a chair out and sat down without acknowledging anyone. No manners at all. “So you’re my kid,” he said to Sebastian. “I told everyone you were.”
“Then why did you wait so long to come see me?” Sebastian asked.
“I didn’t know about you until recently and my lawyer told me to do it this way. I’d have a better shot of getting custody of you then.”
“What?” Sebastian asked. “I’m not leaving Paige. I’m living with her.”
“But I’m your father,” Eric said. “I’ve got a right to you.”
“I don’t think this is a conversation to have right now,” Noah said. “Everyone agreed to meet to get to know each other and go from there. A custody battle could be long and costly.”
“Not if I’m the father,” Eric said, scratching under his arm.
The waitress came over and took everyone’s order, Eric ordering a beer with his burger. Noah kept his mouth shut as much as he could. Paige wanted to jump in and argue, he could see, but he shook his head at her. They just had to let things play out.
Sebastian was scowling and finally said, “Do you know how to cook?”
“What?” Eric asked.
“I asked if you knew how to cook. I’m a growing boy and need to eat. Would you be able to cook me food?”
Paige rolled her eyes at the question, but the kid wasn’t stupid. It was his way to see what Eric was made of. “I can put a sandwich together like the next person. I can make hot dogs and stuff. You’re old enough, I’m sure you know how to cook. If not then maybe you aren’t in the best household where you could be taught that.”
The guy was a dick. Sebastian jumped in. “I can cook just fine. I know how and was taught.”
“Then I don’t see a problem,” Eric said. His beer was placed in front of him and he took a long sip of it.
“What do you do for a living?” Paige asked.
“I’m in between jobs right now.”
Not surprising. “What did you do when you weren’t between jobs?” Noah asked.
“Does it matter? A job is a job and brings in money. What do you do? Oh, let me guess. I bet you’re some kind of big shot or something. At least you think you are.”
He’d never been a big shot a day in his life nor did he think he was one. “I’m a high school principal,” he said back.
“I should have figured. You look like someone that likes to have control of minors that have no rights.”
Just like he was controlling the urge to not put his fist in the guy’s face. Good Lord, he hoped Travis found a dumpster full of shit on this guy. Maybe he lived in a dumpster. “So where do you live?” Noah asked.
“I’m staying with friends right now until I get a job.”
Interesting. “You’d need to show the courts that you could provide for Sebastian if you want custody. No job and no stable place to live isn’t going to work in your favor.”
“Yeah, but I’ll get the money Sebastian gets and that will set us up fine.”
“What money?” Paige asked.
“Doesn’t he get some kind of social security or something since his mother is in jail?”
Now this was all making sense to Noah.
“First off, Cora isn’t in jail,” Paige said. “She’s in a psychiatric hospital. Second of all, I pay for everything Sebastian needs. He doesn’t get support for anything and neither do I.”
“What?” Eric asked. “I had a friend whose father was in jail and he got like a thousand dollars a month for it. That was years ago too. It has to be much more now. Plus all sorts of other benefits like food stamps.”
“I don’t know what or why your friend got anything, but Sebastian doesn’t get a cent from Cora or anyone else. Nor do we get any public assistance.”
“Speaking of money,” Sebastian said. “Child support. Paige, we can ask for child support for fourteen years, right? That should be a nice big check.”
Noah held back his laugh and was glad their lunches arrived. Eric’s face looked a little white over the possibility of that and he didn’t even bother to answer but rather started to eat before all the plates were set down.
The conversation pretty much stalled at that point. Every time someone asked Eric a question, he put food in his mouth or took a drink.
By the time the check arrived, Noah had had enough and just took it to pay. He’d planned on it all along but knew this was just a free lunch for Eric. He figured the guy would sneak out of the window if he had to come up with any money for the meal.
“So where do we go from here?” Paige asked.
“I need to talk to my lawyer,” Eric said.
“Us too,” Sebastian said. “I’m thinking of how all that child support could help pay for my college.”
Eric left as soon as Sebastian said that and Paige started to laugh. “That was mean.”
“He had it coming,” Sebastian said. They were still sitting at the table. Noah would get up and leave when they were ready.
“Well, at least we know his true motivation.”
Noah wasn’t going to add that he was pretty sure Eric was going to disappear again now that there was a threat of him having to come up with money rather than getting it. But Sebastian was smiling and it was best to end the day on a good note.
“Who’s up for shopping?” Noah asked.
“You hate to shop,” Paige said. “Your mother told me that.”
“I do, but there is a new video game out this week and I thought maybe I would grab it.”
“Sweet,” Sebastian said. “Can we get some cookies in the mall too? I’ve got money. Even I’ve got a job.”
“We’ll get some cookies,” Paige said. “My treat for you not throwing me under that bus that I pretty much feed you sandwiches and hot dogs.”
“You’re getting better,” Sebastian said.
“I am,” she agreed. “But we know the true cook of the house is you.”
“And Noah. He cooks better than both of us.”
Noah read between the lines. A father had to feed a growing boy and that was what Noah planned on doing.
42
Not True
A week later Noah was walking past the gym when he heard yelling and what sounded like fighting again. He had to stop walking by this area.
He moved in quick and saw Scott Wimple wiping blood from his nose with Sebastian standing to the side looking smug but trying to hide it.
“What’s going on?” he asked. No one was holding anyone back.
“You’re girlfriend’s kid just elbowed me in the nose. Isn’t that immediate suspension?”
He looked at Fred Wilson. “What happened?”
Fred shrugged. “
I was in the office answering the phone.”
Figured the guy wouldn’t be around to witness it or Sebastian waited until he had his chance. And just like last time, they were playing indoor soccer because it was raining outside. Deja vu all over again.
“Sebastian?”
“We were both going for the ball and he cut me off. You know how clumsy I am. Guess our feet got all tangled and I swung my arms around trying to get my balance.”
He wanted to laugh at the smirk on Ian’s face, but he couldn’t. He had to be not only the principal, but an adult, and somewhat of a parent too.
“Anyone else see it differently?”
There were plenty of kids shaking their heads with smiles on their faces. Underclassmen and the like probably happy to see Scott get some of his own medicine.
“Scott, you’re with me to the nurse. Sebastian, change and get to my office.”
On the way to the nurse’s office Noah asked Scott again, “Did he purposely put his elbow to your face or were you going for the ball?”
“He did it on purpose.”
“Were you both going for the ball?” Noah asked.
“Yes.”
“Did you try to block him?”
“Isn’t that what we’re supposed to do?” Scott asked sarcastically.
“Then it looks to me it’s the way everyone says. He’s not denying his elbow met your face, he’s saying it was an accident.”
“And there is no way to prove otherwise, is there?” Scott asked.
“I don’t know, you tell me, Scott. Is there?”
He stared the kid down that had done this to plenty of other kids for years. “No.”
“Then we’re done here. Go get cleaned up with the nurse.”
Ten minutes later there was a knock on his doorframe. “You wanted to see me.”
“Come in and shut the door.”
“Am I in trouble?” Sebastian asked. “It was an accident.”
“Wyatt was famous for saying that too when he knew he might get in trouble.”
Sebastian slumped down in the chair. “A taste of one’s own medicine never hurts.”
He snorted. “What’s going on with you?”
It’d been over a week since that lunch with Eric and just like Noah predicted the man ghosted. Even his lawyer didn’t know where he was. A few calls were made to Eric’s mother who claimed she hadn’t talked to him.
Travis had dug up some dirt on Eric but nothing more than he suspected. The guy couldn’t hold down a job to save his soul and pretty much couch surfed until he got some cash in his pocket. His only arrest came from unpaid parking tickets.
But the man was a loser through and through. He’d seen kids follow in their parents’ footsteps enough in his life and was thrilled that Sebastian seemed to be going in another direction. He had Paige to thank for that.
“Nothing.”
“It doesn’t seem like nothing to me. Your science teacher told me you didn’t hand in two labs this week.”
“I didn’t know I was being watched. Is it because they know you’re with Paige? Or are you still tracking everything I do?”
“No one is watching you. I’m sure some of it has to do with me dating your aunt, that your teacher felt she could say something to me. And I’ve never tracked anything you did.”
The kid looked miserable and he was pretty sure he knew the cause. “You don’t care enough to track me.”
“That’s not true. I don’t track you because you need to figure it out on your own. I’m not your watchdog. You’re doing a good job, or you were, and now you’re going down the shit drain again.”
“You swore.”
“I did.”
“No one wants me,” Sebastian said looking out the window.
“That’s not true and you know it. Paige wants you. Your grandfather wants you. I do.”
“My mother didn’t. Or she did but couldn’t care for me. Now she can’t even ask how I’m doing. She thinks I betrayed her and wants nothing to do with me. She’s easily letting Paige take me now too.”
“If she thinks that, it’s her loss. We all know the truth.”
“And I find out who my father is only to have him take off because he thought I had money. Come on. I’m a kid.”
“Life sucks,” Noah said. “You know it and I know it. You have to make the best of what you’ve got. Paige puts you first over herself. Always. You know that. You’ve said it yourself. Didn’t you say you didn’t want to be a burden to her?”
“Yeah. I was going to leave last night.”
“What do you mean by leave?” he asked slowly, not liking where this was going.
“All I’ve done is cause trouble for Paige. I just figured if I left or maybe went to live with Grandpa she could have her life back.”
“Don’t even think of it,” he said. “Paige loves her life the way it is. You’d break her heart if you left for those reasons.”
“But she deserves to have the life of a single thirty-year-old. She shouldn’t be raising me. I was wrong to put the pressure on her to adopt me.”
He wanted to tell Sebastian to get those thoughts out of his head but maybe this was a talk that should be between Paige and Sebastian and he shouldn’t interfere. “Listen. You should talk to Paige about this. I know what she’ll say, but if you give her a good reason why you want to live with your grandfather she might listen. If it’s because you are back to thinking you’re a burden then get your head out of your ass and grow up. You didn’t want to get to know your father and now that he’s out of the picture you’re mad. Make up your mind, kid, on what is going on.”
“I’m not mad about Eric. I want him gone.”
“Then it’s because you think your biological parents don’t want you?”
“Yeah. I’m not good enough for them. I couldn’t be what they wanted or wanted me to be.”
“You know, sometimes in life we can’t be what others think we are or want. We can only be what we want to be and know we are the better person and are true to ourselves.”
“Easy for you to say. You’ve always had everything.”
“I’m not going to lie and say I didn’t. I’ve got a great family and support system. One that was there for you too. They want to be there for you. But not everyone I’ve been with wanted me the way I would have liked.”
“How’s that?”
“You’ll understand someday when you’re dating.”
“Paige wants you. I know she does. Even though I set you two up, she really loves you and she’s afraid that you will think I’m too much trouble or headache and won’t stay. I’ve been nothing but a problem since the day I was born. This is why I should leave.”
“I thought you were a smart kid, Sebastian, but you sure aren’t acting like it now.”
“Why’s that?” he asked, crossing his arms.
“I love Paige. You didn’t set us up, but if you think you did, then we’ll let it go. But the truth is, before your aunt, I had rotten luck with women. Sometimes no matter what you do or are, you’re just not enough for someone. That’s their problem and not yours.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that you have to love yourself first and then others can love you. Don’t put pressure on your aunt to make a decision because you’re having a moment. She’d choose you any day over me and you know it.”
Sebastian held his stare. “Would you fight for her?”
“With every breath I’ve got. I’m not going anywhere. You’re both stuck with me.”
* * *
“I can’t believe you got into a fight again,” Paige said when Noah brought Sebastian to his house. They were having dinner there and staying the night. They were trying to do it a few times a week now. He’d been hinting around for them to move in, but it was way too early in her mind. Just too much drama going on and she wanted to make sure they did it for the right reason.
“I didn’t get into a fight,” Sebastian argued. “My elbow conne
cted with his face when he blocked me. He almost cried too. Little pussy.”
“Sebastian!”
“Sorry, Paige. But it’s true. Then he tried to rat me out. When he did that shit to me I didn’t rat him out. I sucked it up. He’s a little girl who had it coming.”
“Regardless. You know better,” she said. “What happened to Words Matter?”
“My words are he’s a pussy.”
Noah started to laugh and she shot him a look. “I get it. It’s a guy thing. But can you please stop with it?”
“Yes,” Sebastian said.
When dinner was done and he was in his room at Noah’s watching TV, Paige and Noah retired to bed. “He’s been ornery for a week.”
“I told you why,” Noah said.
“I know. I’m glad you called me and explained it beforehand. You’re so good for him, but now I’m worried that he’s going to fall back into his old ways.”
“He won’t. He needs a firm hand now and again. You didn’t always do that to him. I told him like it was and he needs that too. Coddling isn’t always the way to go.”
“So I’ve been doing it wrong?” she asked.
“You’ve done it right for him. You do what’s right for both of you, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t hear something different from someone else when it’s needed.”
“He looks up to you,” she said. “Thank you for telling me he wants to leave. I’ll talk to him tonight about it more, but he seems like nothing is wrong with the three of us.”
“I think he thought it over. We had a little man-to-man talk and maybe he’s okay now. I told him he should talk to you and if he doesn’t bring it up, maybe I got through to him. I’m torn between telling you and keeping that conversation between him and me, but the adult in me knows you have a right to know his thoughts. The friend in me wanted to protect his words and our conversation.”
“I can’t give him those man-to-man talks,” she said. “Maybe my father has been and I don’t know about it. Maybe he needs it more than I realize.”
“Which is why I was firm with him. He didn’t want Eric in his life and none of us did. But he still wants a father figure. You know as well as I do he does.”
