"Do you have a child?" his question makes me dart my eyes towards him, but notice his big ones are on the items I have in my cart.
I completely forgot about this.
"I...No, those are for my nephew who I sometimes take care of," I say the first lie that comes to my mind, hoping for him to not be doubtful about it. "Oh, how old is he?" he does not show any mistrust. "Three years old."
"Aw. He must be so adorable," he believes what I tell him, causing me to feel even more self-hatred. I hate lying and hiding such a thing from him. "He is," I bring one hand up to my face to rub my jawline, but my phone bothers me.
< The baby's crying, hurry please ]
[ I'm coming >
I put it back in my pocket, the disappointment remaining inside of me. Maybe one day he will care, maybe.
"It's him?" he guesses as if my reaction made it obvious, and I nod. "I have to go back home."
"Alright, we'll see each other tonight anyway, right?" he focuses on that only, so I do the same. "Yes, I'll be there to take care of you."
"Good, that's all I want," he lands his hand on his cart, and since this not about Gael but my baby, I do not stay here. "See you tonight," I turn around and say goodbye, and he tells me the same words, so I leave and hope to not be too late.
30 minutes later...
I walk back inside the house after parking the car in the garage and grabbing all the items. I put everything down on the floor and take my shoes and jacket off, not hearing my baby and wondering if he is okay. I leave the bags at the door, and I walk towards Luca's bedroom.
I open the door, in a kind manner, but hear Gael leave a room. "He's in his crib because he wouldn't calm down."
"Didn't you check up on him?" I ask but do not expect him to relieve me. "I did, but he absolutely wanted you to be there and didn't understand you were busy, so I left him alone."
"Do you know that he's just three...?" I cannot keep quiet, feeling exhausted to have to handle this, but his stare turns dark. "Do you know that I have work to do?"
"I know," I enter the room to not hear him anymore, to not see him anymore, and I close the door behind me. "Mommy..." his small and unsteady voice breaks my heart, and I turn around to head towards him but notice his eyes full of tears. "My baby," I bend over to pick him up and hold him in my arms, and he hugs me with his small arms. "I'm so sorry, mommy was shopping to buy you some diapers, and your favorite milk," I rub his back to try to reassure him, feeling some ache in my chest. "Was daddy mean to you?" I lower my voice and speak in his ear, but he nods while sobbing.
"What did he do?" I run my fingers up his back to stroke the back of his head, and he wipes his tears away. "He screamed..." his voice trembles. "I'm sorry for being a bad boy, mommy..."
"You were not a bad boy, baby," I do not allow him to believe so, knowing how good of a son he is. The only problem here is his father. "You're the best boy on earth," I press a kiss on his wet cheek, and he wraps his arms around my neck, not letting go of his precious teddy bear. "Were you scared because mommy was away?"
