the three of us {chim}

Piece 128

Author's POV

"Mam, I don't know what to say," Camille sits, stunned at her mother's words.

'We just have to fill them out.' Cheryl's last sentence echoes in Camille's mind.  She keeps looking at the papers, wondering what will happen when she tells her mother.

"Maybe a 'yay'?  Isn't this what you wanted, Millz?" Cheryl worries as she sees the teen slowly crumbling in confusion.

"I want your last name, yeah.  But, what's with this...contract?" The teen innocently asks.

"What do you mean—"

"What am I agreeing to?" Camille rewords it and tries to get her mother to see what she means.  Camille does not want to have to say it flat out, she knows it will break Cheryl's heart.

"To be me child — I'll have full custody." Cheryl answers and shrugs as she looks into Camille's eyes.

"Mam—" The teen stops as she looks away from her mother's intense gaze, "What about Dad?" She asks as she stares at the floor.

"I didn't know you wanted him to have custody,"

"It's only fair, Mam, you know that."

"Is it?  I've been looking after you, feeding you, taking you to school, put a roof over your head!" Cheryl increases her volume as she rants.

"Yeah, well Sara and Max did that, so it can't be that hard!" Camille shoots back as she becomes angry alongside her mother, who is now standing.

"I'm different from them!"

"I know!" Camille shouts, making Cheryl go silent, "Why do you think I want your last name?" She calms down and asks her Mam.

"It's not a rhetorical question," Camille tells her mother, who remains mute, "Why do you think I want to change it?" She repeats herself.

"I don't know, 'cause you wanna get away from them for good.  I don't know!" Cheryl stumbles as she sits back down, not sure where Camille is taking the conversation.

"Well, a bit, but also because I'm proud.  Or at least I wanna be proud to be a Tweedy-Walsh.  You think I like writing 'Tweedy-Walsh' on my school papers and then having to erase it when I remember it's not my actual name?  You think I like fighting with my football coach over what last name should go on the back of my jersey?  You think I like knowing that I live with my mothers, but I don't even have their last name?" Camille goes on as Cheryl's heart sinks.  She feels bad for raising her voice, but she still thinks James does not deserve any custody.

"I want your last name, not his, but custody is a whole different discussion." Camille straightens out the truth and waits for her mother's response.

"Baby, I just want you to be happy.  But—"

"But, you don't want him to be a part of it." Camille finishes her mother's unheard sentence.

"No, I just—" Cheryl sighs, "I just want you to be happy." Cheryl lets it go.

"So, I can give James custody?" Camille asks, needing an answer.

"Well, the court decides that."

"We're all in an agreement here, aren't we?  I mean, it can't be that hard." Camille shrugs it off as if it is nothing, but Cheryl begs to differ.

"It's harder than you think, bubs." The mother mutters and combs her fingers through the teen's hair.

"What do we have to do?"