The Neighbor II

The Past Always Returns

"Do you like that, Mikey? Should we get it for mummy?" Ben was out Christmas shopping with Michael while Cassie stayed at home to do the finishing touches on her book. She was also limiting her outside experience with being almost seven months pregnant now.

Ben kept walking along the jewelry section and stopped whenever Michael pointed at something and said, "Dat one!" Ben chuckled at the next one he pointed at and said, "I think that'll be a little too flashy for mummy. How about...this one?"

Michael shook his head. "No?" Ben asked. "Why not?" Michael crossed his arms and said, "No shine!" He loved shiny objects. "Well, it doesn't need to shine," Ben tried to explain, "it needs to look pretty. Do you think that will look pretty on mummy?"

He watched as Michael studied the necklace a bit more. He then nodded, making Ben sigh in relief. He didn't need to fight with an almost two year old on jewelry. He looked up to the woman behind the counter and said, "We'd like to look at this one please."

The woman took out the necklace from behind the glass and set it on the counter. "You sure on this one, Mikey?" Michael nodded, so Ben told the woman, "We'll take it. How much?" She started to ring him up as she said, "One thousand-two hundred and sixty-three cents."

Ben whipped out his credit card and handed it to her. As she swiped his card, Ben was tickling Michael's stomach. "Must be chump change for you," a voice said behind him. With furrowed eyebrows, Ben turned around.

"Brian," he said. It was Cassie's father. "What are you doing here?" Brain sighed and stripped off his gloves as he said, "I heard my other daughter was here and in dyer need of money. The missus and I opted to spend Christmas here with her. We tried to look up Cassie, but we couldn't find her name."

This was odd. Ben wasn't sure if he should be worried or not. "Well, to be honest Brian, I'm not sure Cassie would want to see you anyways. You can't seem to choose which daughter to love more and after you testified for Sarah in court...you hurt her."

He seemed calm, but he was actually bubbling up with rage at the memory. The way he spoke up for Sarah, saying she would never do such a thing or do it intentionally. That's how Sarah got off easy. Cassie cried for an entire week after that.

"I can understand that," Brian told him. "Anyways, we're only here for a few days. Tell Cass we're here and if she wants to see us, great. If not, then I understand. We're at the Hilton in Times Square."

Ben had to take a deep breath like he and Cassie have been exercising for the past few months, but it wasn't making him feel any better in this situation. "Do you even know that she's pregnant, Brian?" He harshly asked. "Do you know how old Michael is? Have you seen her books displayed on shelves, have you been following her career? Have you even cared to call her?"

Brian looked a little taken back. Before he could answer, Ben said, "No, you haven't! You favored one child over the other for all the wrong reasons and she hasn't forgiven you for that yet and neither have I. So fuck off."

He turned back to the counter and gave the shocked employee his best smile. He took the necklace and his receipt and said, "Thank you, darling." He didn't look back to Brian, but Michael was staring at him in wonderment for some reason.

**

"My dad?" Cassie asked in disbelief. "You ran into my dad? At a fucking Macy's?" Ben sighed and told her, "Yeah. Believe me, I was just as shocked as you." Cassie looked a little distressed. "Did he say why he was here?" She asked.

He didn't want to tell her, but he knew he would be in for a world of hurt if she found out he knew Sarah was here the whole time and didn't tell her. He actually didn't know she was still here. He thought she might have left after they ran into each other.

He took a few deep breaths, then took her hands in his. "He said that...they were here to see Sarah. She's in the city." He watched his wife's face contort in confusion. "What?" She asked. "She's here? In New York?"

Ben nodded and gripped her hands tightly. "Now, listen to me, Cass—." She ripped her hands out of his and stormed out of the room. "Cass!" He called as he ran after her. "Cassie stop and listen to me!"

He grabbed her arm and turned her to face him. When she saw the look on his face...it was one she hasn't seen in months. It was his frustrated, controlling face with rage in his eyes. "You will not do anything about this, do you understand?" He practically growled.

"Your parents are low-life, oxygen waisting pieces of shit and your sister is even worse! You are heavily pregnant, you are already stressed with work, so will not get yourself worked up. Do you understand me?" The grip on her arm was getting tighter and tighter.

Cassie tried to get her arm out of his grip, but he was too strong. "Ben, your hurting me," she said through gritted teeth. He ignored her and repeated, "Do you understand?" As she was struggling to get her arm away, she shouted, "Yes, I understand, now let go!"

He let go of her arm and she stumbled back against the wall. She was staring him down and looking him over. "You didn't take your pills today. If you did, you only took one." Ben smirked and shook his head. "I am just ticked off that your dead-beat father and mother are still siding with your sister," he explained. She shook her head and said, "No, you didn't take your pills. You're yourself again."

Ben "oh'd", then walked slowly up to her. "No," he told her, "I'm not myself. I haven't been myself for five fucking months. And do you know why? It's because of the pills. I literally changed for you. My entire personality has changed because I'm afraid you are going to pack up one day and take my children from me. I know you said you can't do that and I know you can't, but it's the mere thought. You may think I am being myself right now, but all I'm being is a husband who wants nothing more to protect his wife from her fucked up family."

Cassie was breathing slightly heavier and crossed her arms. He continued, "I swear to God, if I could..." He stopped himself, but then she asked, "What? You'd kill them like you did yours?"

Suddenly, she felt a sharp slap against her cheek.

"Don't you ever talk to me like that!" Ben yelled. "I am trying to help you!" Cassie was in too much shock at the moment. He hit her. He actually hit her. "You...you hit me," she told him with tears in her eyes.

He scoffed and shouted, "Because you deserved it, you ungrateful bitch!" He hit the wall, then started storming upstairs. What in the hell just happened?

Ben slammed the door to the bedroom, then made a b-line to the bathroom. "Not taking my pills," he muttered. "Damn straight I'm not." He opened the medicine cabinet and took out the prescription bottle and opened it. He took two of them out and dropped them in the toilet.

He knows she checks every night. He's not stupid. Lucky for him...she is.