Reunited Paths: A Father's Journey (Harvey Specter ff)

Shattered Trust

As he walked towards the school, Mike let out a sigh as he watched his peers and took in his surroundings. The hallways were crowded with students chatting and laughing, but Mike felt like an outsider. He didn't feel like he belonged here. He hoped he could just fade into the background and no one would notice him.

He missed the comfort of his old school, where he knew everything and everyone. He hadn't been popular but everyone knew him by name and he was friendly with his peers. He missed school mornings with his friends, they would ride their bikes together talking back and forth the entire 15 minute journey. Here, everything seemed foreign and unwelcoming.

Mike took a deep breath and tried to push the thoughts away. He knew he had to focus on the present, but it was hard when the past kept pulling him back. He missed the days when he and his friends would meet at the gas stations and sit on the curb talking and eating snacks until the sun went down. The thought of never seeing them again was unbearable. Mike knew he had to find a way to get back to Brooklyn, to the place where he felt he truly belonged.

He carefully navigated his way to the office, dodging groups of peers and faculty members who were discussing their weekends before the first bell.Mike slowly opened the glass door labeled "Main Office" and walked inside, waiting for the door to close being him.

He didn't know what Harvey had told the school, but Mike could handle almost anything; he was quick on his feet, his mom and several previous teachers had told him so. With all the confidence he could muster, he said, "Hi, my name's Michael and this is my first day."

Before he could finish, the lady at the main office, who had short, graying hair and wore glasses perched on the edge of her nose, spoke very fast, "It's nice to meet you Mike! Can I can call you Mike. Your dad had mentioned you go by Mike. I can call you Michael, if you'd prefer?"

Mike opened his mouth to reply, but quickly closed before she got and walked to one of the back offices. She spoke loud enough for Mike to hear her, "let me just grab a few things, and I'll be right back." Mike nodding, knowing she couldn't see him. He felt odd and wasn't unsure what to do, so he just stood there. He shoved his hands into his pockets, shifting his weight between both feet and waited for her return.

She came back moments later, with the principal and a hefty stack of paperwork. Mike thought it was odd that no one asked where Harvey was, didn't parents accompany their twelve year old children on their first day at a new school. The more Mike thought about it, the more he realized that Harvey probably pulled strings. Harvey was good at finding loopholes and bending the rules, no wonder he had become a lawyer.

After exchanging small talk with the secretary and the principal, Mike took the pen and the paperwork from her hands and sat down on the chair opposite her desk. He let out a sigh he didn't know he was holding in and began with the first question.
He had started by writing his legal name — Michael Ross.

He paused after writing it, and just stared at it for a moment. He had been born Michael Specter; his last name coming from his dad obviously. But about a year ago, He had begged his mom to go to the courthouse and get his name changed officially. He never thought his mom would go along with it but to Mike's surprise, she did. He had his name legally changed his name from Michael Specter to Michael Ross.

Mike had stated that he didn't want to identify with his dad's last name anymore. He had hated his dad for abandoning him without any explanation. He hated having to explain to everyone that his parents weren't just divorced; his dad had never felt the need to be in Mike's life. He hated that he had to deal with his classmates mocking the situation and saying things like his dad probably didn't want a kid like Mike, and that's why he left. It had done tremendous damage to his mental health.