Her Boy [A Benson Fan Fic]

Three

Calvin whined as Olivia led him into another building to look at apartments. Casey was right behind her, and she was trying to not snap at Calvin.

"I'm so bored," Calvin grumbled, as Olivia gently pulled him out of the way of a few other people.

"I know, but-"

"Can't we just go home? I want to play a game or something," Calvin whined as he halted. Olivia bumped into him and placed her hand against the wall to stop herself from falling. 

She let out a slow breath before looking down at Calvin.

"We need to find a new place to stay because I am not sleeping on my couch for the next... however how long your mother is going to be gone! Years could go by, and I refuse to sleeping on my freaking couch. So please, stop whining," Olivia grumbled.

She had reached the end of her rope and snapped when she didn't want to. Calvin looked at Olivia with wide brown eyes before turning and sprinting away. Olivia swore under her breath before shoving her purse into Casey's hands and going after Calvin.

///

Olivia found Calvin on the bottom floor underneath the stairs. He had his legs hugged to his chest as tears slipped down his cheeks. Olivia frowned deeply and raked her shaky fingers through her hair, before squatting down beside him. Calvin slipped closer to the corner, as he buried his face in his pants.

"Calvin, I'm sorry," Olivia breathed.

"I hate you," Calvin mumbled.

"I never should have snapped at you. I'm so sorry. I just want us to both have space... like a place you can keep all your toys and clothes. Maybe we can get you a bunk bed for when you have friends over."

"My mom will come back any day now. She is not abandoning me!" Calvin yelled.

Olivia gnawed on the inside of her cheek before nodding slowly. 

"No, she isn't abandoning you. She'll be back. We just don't know how long she needs to be gone for. I want you to be comfortable. So can we look at this apartment? There are schools close by that we will look into next. Okay?"

"I'll look, but I'm not happy about it. I'm done talking to you," Calvin huffed. Olivia nodded weakly, before standing slowly. She stepped out from under the stairs, before reaching her hand out to Calvin. He bumped into it as he passed her, before stomping up the stairs.

"Good thing I have never had kids, because clearly I suck at being anything close to a mom," Olivia whispered to herself.

///

Olivia submitted applications for two different apartments. Both were in decent school districts, which was the next thing Olivia had to look into. Rafael informed her that as Calvin's guardian, she was required to send him to school. It didn't have to be his former school, but he had to go to school. 

"Hi," Olivia frowned as she accepted Rafael's request for a video call. He smiled at her, but the smile faded when he noticed the exhaustion covering her face.

"What's wrong? Have you been crying?" He questioned. Olivia laughed softly and nodded. She dragged a shaky hand over her cheek before speaking.

"I'm an absolute mess... What's up?" Olivia breathed.

"Do you want to talk about why you are a mess? Because I'm-"

"I'm a shitty guardian, Rafa. But didn't we all expect that? I don't have a maternal bone in my body," Olivia sighed.

Rafael frowned deeply as he wished he were in the apartment with her. He wanted to hold her and try to reassure her, but he didn't want to overstep.

"Liv, you are doing the best you can. Calvin-"

"Calvin hates me. He told me that today. So why did you call? I need to keep researching schools and pick the right one for Calvin."

"Yes, of course. So I got in contact with the judge that signed the paperwork. You are going to have a few home visits to ensure everything is going smoothly with Calvin. A social worker will contact you soon."

"If things don't go well, will they take him?" Olivia asked. Right now, she wasn't sure this was the right fit. Calvin needed someone who knew what they were doing. Someone who didn't snap at him when they reached the end of their rope.

He needed a mother, not her.

"It depends on the situation. Vivian personally picked you to take care of Calvin, so unless you are abusing him or neglecting him, these visits should be easy peasy," Rafael smiled, yet he knew his answer wasn't what Olivia had wanted.

"I've gotta get some sleep. Goodbye," Olivia breathed.

"Liv-" Rafael started, but his voice cut off when Olivia ended the call. She closed her laptop slowly and ran a hand over the back of her neck.

///

Olivia fell asleep at her breakfast bar, a school's website open on her laptop. Calvin walked from Olivia's room and swallowed hard when he saw Olivia sitting there. He quickly turned back into the bedroom and grabbed his backpack, then he left the bedroom again and walked towards the front door.

Calvin slipped the chain off before trying to turn the deadbolt. It was sticking, so each time he tried to turn it, nothing happened. 

"What are you doing?" Olivia asked, as she turned to look at Calvin. He spun away from the door and bit his lip as he looked at Olivia.

"N-nothing."

"Really? Because it looks like you are planning on leaving," Olivia replied, as she rubbed her eyes with her fists.

"Don't talk to me," Calvin snapped.

"Hey, don't talk to me like that," Olivia replied. It was too early for them to have another fight.

"You aren't my mother and-"

"Yeah, I'm not your freaking mother, Calvin! But your mother is off somewhere getting high! So unless you want to go stay with some strangers that may treat you like crap, then we have to work together to make this work! I'll respect you and you'll respect me... I am still your guardian, so that means I'm supposed to take care of you and keep you safe. Please don't fight me and make this even more difficult than it already is!" Olivia yelled, as she walked towards Calvin.

The boy looked up at her with tear-filled eyes. He swallowed hard before flinging himself at Olivia, his arms wrapping around her waist as he sobbed into her chest.