Before We Were Fifty

Chapter 6

I stayed at the hospital all night with Lukas. Laying in the hospital bed with him on one side and Dulcie curled up on the other- I hold both of them close as Jamie snoozes in an arm chair. Dulcie may not be my kid, but I know I love her just as much as my son. I never expected Jamie to come back into my life the way he had. I never thought he'd want Lukas or me for that matter. Now, well, now he's here with me as if we were always together- twins and all. But Dulcie's not mine and neither is Jamie. Yeah he's getting a divorce, but that doesn't mean he's going to be mine. And what about my mom? Son of a sea cook, how am I going to tell her? Gruhh, this is not going to be taken lightly. Looking down at the children curled into my sides, I smile and kiss their heads, when Jamie's phone goes off. He jolts awake and grabs it so not to wake the kids. Giving me a quick smile and the one minute finger, he tiredly goes into the room's bathroom and shuts the door, but I can hear the conversation all too well.

"I'm at the hospital...no, she's perfectly fine. Millie...no, everything is fine it's for...Millie, I know I was supposed to...You can't do that! This was one time.... Millie, please listen to me...I am listening...But you can't....Millie..Millie... Fuck!" He breathes out heavily. That didnt' sound good at all. When he comes out, he plasters on a fake smile I know all too well and sits at the end of the bed on Dulcie's side.

"Everything okay?"

"I had to take Dulcie back to Amelia last night. She thinks I'm being irresponsible and is threatening to take Dulcie away for good. She doesn't let me explain anything and is unfair about the situation." Putting his hand through his hair, it's more than visible that he's trying to not get angry or upset with me. I wouldn't care if I was him- I'd scream or cry, but I guess that just means I'm uncontrolable. "She's gonna try to use me taking this movie deal as bad parenting. It's not fair."

"She can't do that, this is a source of income for you."

"Yeah well she wants it all for child support, which I'll split now." I give him a sideways look and he looks at me as if I'm stupid. "I have to help you with him too."

"No, you really don't. I'm able to take care of him finacially. I don't want your money, Jamie. I don't need it. And I highly doubt she does either." Sitting up, I gently lay the children back in bed together and cover them up. They instantly snuggle the other and I pull Jamie to the window as I hop up on the windowsill so we are eye level. "Look at me...Jamie. Look."

He raises his eyes slowly to mine and I place my hands on his broad shoulders.

"I don't need you worrying about Lukas and I. Dulcie is most important right now, okay?"

"But..." He tries to interupt me, but I place my finger to his lips.

"This custody battle is just going to get harder..." This is gonna suck. "And I think it's going to get ten times harder if you bring up Lukas. Jamie, I'm not saying you can't see him, I'm just saying I think you should keep that he's your son a secret."

"Dakota, I just got him..."

"You're not losing him Jamie. But to be able to keep Dulcie, you're gonna have to let him go- just until the final verdict, okay? If Amelia finds out that you have another kid, her attorney is going to call you negligent and irresponible so that the judge plays in Millie's favor. I don't want to see you lose her...so you have to dissociate from Lukas." His eyes cast downward to my torso and his head droops. This is hurting him so much right now. "You'll also have to only see me on set."

"Dakota." His face shoots back up to mine and I place a hand on his cheek.

"Jamie, she's going to have someone following you and taking pictures- videos maybe, she can't get you on camera with another woman. She can't. So, we can't see each other unless it's for fifty or if other cast members are with us."