Escape

Chapter 13

11:37 am

As we reach the park I push the stroller with my free and and tightly hold Masons hand with my other. We walk over to the swing set and then I let go of his hand. I walk to the front of the stroller and unbuckle Austin from his seat. Then I pick him up and he sits on my hipbone with one leg on each side of me. I walk over to the baby swings and lift Austin into one. Then I grab the swing and pull it up as I step back. Then I let go let him and watch him swing back and forth. I turn around and see that Mason is sitting on the nearby bench with the stroller beside him. I walk over and sit down beside him. He looks at me and smiles. I see his hand lift up with his palm up and his fingers spread apart, gesturing for me to hold it again. I lift my hand and place the inside of my palm against his and interlock my fingers with his.

"So.." He starts talking, "how long are you staying at Julia's?" He asks me, looking at Austin.

"Um..." I stop and think for a second, " I'm not sure. However long her dad will let me I guess." I say, looking at Mason.
Mason switches his gaze to meet mine.

"Oh..I see" Mason says as his eyes drop and look at the ground.

Mason starts to get up and he lets go of my hand. I watch him pull up his pants and then push the stroller back over to Austin. Just then my phone sounds a jingle. It was Julia.

"Hey Cassy, how's everything?" She asks. I reply with,

"Good. Hand holding, him taking care of Austin, it's pretty amazing:)" and then I get almost an immediate response,

"Ouuu okay well I'm going to be home in about an hour, just to let you know." I respond with an "okay" and then shove my phone back into my pocket. Then I walk over to Mason, who is pushing a giggling Austin in the swing.
As I walk up to them I stand behind Mason and wrap my arms around his waist, then rest my chin on his shoulder. He turns his head slightly towards me and smiles, then leans forward to push Austin again. Then Mason turns around holding my hands in place so that they now rest on the small of his back. He looks at me and smiles, bringing his hands up and resting them on my shoulders. I smile and look up at him. Just then I notice that my teeth are chattering and my body is shivering.

"Would you like to go back?" He says, just loud enough for me to hear.

I nod and then he goes to get Austin out of the swing. I pull my sleeves down to cover up my hands and then walk to them as Mason buckles Austin into the stroller. Then grabbing the handle of the stroller, Mason turns the stroller to face me and starts walking forward. Then he lets go with the hand that's closest to me and wraps his arm around me.