“Just watch him. Every time Sam’s around, Jeremy looks different.”
At first, I brushed it off as my mother being overly protective. She had always been wary of men after what Daniel did to me.
Jeremy was his usual cheerful self when it was just the two of us.
He laughed, played, and chatted endlessly about his day at daycare. But the moment Sam walked into the room, something changed.
His shoulders stiffened, his voice quieted, and sometimes he would start crying for no apparent reason.
It made me realize I needed to talk to Sam about it.
“Hey, can I ask you something?” I said later that night.
He glanced up from his phone. “Of course.”
“Have you noticed how Jeremy acts around you?”
“What do you mean?”
“He… he gets quiet. Sometimes he even cries.”
“Alice, I love that kid,” he said. “I treat him like my own.
Why would he—-“
“I know,” I interrupted, unsure if I had offended him. “It’s just… I don’t know.”
He reached for my hand and squeezed it. “Maybe he’s adjusting.
It’s a big change for him, right? A new father figure. It’s a lot for a five-year-old.”
I nodded, wanting to believe him.
A few days later, I picked up Jeremy from daycare, and on our way home, we stopped for ice cream. He sat on the bench beside me as he licked his cone.
“Hey, buddy,” I said gently.
“Can I ask you something?”
He nodded while enjoying his ice cream.
“Why do you get upset around Sam?”
His smile faded, and he turned the other way.
“You can tell me anything, sweetheart,” I said, turning him back towards me. “I won’t be mad.”
“I heard Daddy talking on the phone…” He looked at me. “And he said I’m a problem.”
I couldn’t process that.
“Are you sure, sweetheart?”
Jeremy shook his head.
“Yes.
He said, ‘Little Jeremy is a problem.’ I didn’t hear the rest because I ran to my room.” He hesitated before asking in a small voice, “Mommy, will he leave like my first daddy?”
Tears welled in his big, brown eyes. I couldn’t bear that.
I pulled him into my arms, brushing his hair back. “Oh, sweetheart, no.
I will never let anyone leave you, okay?”Continue reading…
