Chapter 2

"YOU SLEPT WITH VICKY?!!!" yelled my dear little sister, right into my left ear.

With the volume of her voice breaking the fog in my brain, I gave a little mutter, "Well, it wasn't really sleeping. It was more like 20 minutes of comforting, hugging, caressing..."

"And fucking..." she added.

"Well yeah, if you want to be so blunt."

In a cold tone, she asked, "When did this happen?"

"The night before Vicky left for Massachusetts."

"What were you thinking? She was underaged, and her parents just died!" she resorted to yelling again.

"Uhh, reality check. I was underaged too. Vicky and I were in the same class, remember?" I said, as I got a bit defensive.

"Still! Her parents just died three days previous. How could you take advantage of her fragile state, that way?"

"You weren't there! You can't expect me to just ignore a half-naked, firm-bodied teenage hottie who for some reason was lying on my bed with her head on my shoulders and her naked legs rubbing my own legs."

"You could've tried!"

"I tried! I managed to last for about 30 minutes before she kissed me and started guiding my hands. What was a hot-blooded teenage boy supposed to do? Lie there like a rock? I was a freaking virgin back then!"

"You could've told her to go back to my room!"

"I tried, you daft cow! I tried, but she cried and cried and told me she just wanted to feel my love before she had to leave. I was young, OK?"

"Momma," I heard a small voice hidden by the kitchen isle, "Please stop crying. I'm sorry. I'll be good, please don't fight."

Lauren got down and pulled him to her lap, and said between sobs, "Oh, it's not you, baby. It's not your fault. It's not your fault."

Then the boy turned to me and Tell. "Please don't scold my momma. I'll be good. I won't make any noise. I'll keep quiet. I won't disturb anyone."

"No no, it's not your fault, little Vicky. It's never your fault. Stop blaming yourself. It's never your fault," Lauren said as she hugged him tighter to her.

I've always prided myself on being free from emotional distress in most cases, but just this once, I could feel my eyes water. No child should blame himself so badly, for whatever reason. No child should feel like he's the cause of everything bad happening around him. As if on autopilot, I took a step forward, gently took hold of the boy by his armpits and lifted him off Lauren's lap.

"No, it's not your fault. It was mine. My stupidity years ago made life hard for you, Vicky and Lauren. I can't imagine what you've had to go through in your young life, but I promise you, I'll take good care of you. If there's anything you want, anything you need, just tell me and you'll have it, OK?" I said as I held him so he sat on the crook of my arm.

"Thank you, mister, but I don't need anything," he said in his small voice.

Hearing that, Lauren's crying started again. When she calmed down, she said, "He learned long ago to not ask for anything. My dad would get all pissed whenever little Vicky asked for something. Mom was a bit nicer to little Vicky than Dad, and it was she who managed to persuade Dad into taking care of little Vicky after Vicky left. But even..." she stopped for some reason.

Tell, who was behind me, handed her another another sheet of tissue and Lauren blew her nose into it. Then she continued, "But even she took the same stance as Dad. And beyond feeding, education and giving him a shelter, he never had the luxury that other children took for granted. I had to save little bits of money from my part time jobs since I was 13 to let little Vicky have a small bit of childhood that he should've had."

"Momma, don't cry. I'll be good," the boy, my son said, which only caused a renewal of sobs from Lauren.

"You must understand," she said after her sobbing lessened, "it breaks my heart to do this, but I had to find you. My parents were adamant about me going to college and offered to take care of Victor while I went off to study. But I've lived with them all my life. I can't trust Dad not to let his temper get the best of him. And Mom, while she had always been at least friendly towards little Vicky, even she wouldn't be able to stop his temper. They have never been very enthusiastic about his arrival to this world. The only reason they even accepted Vicky into their home in the first place was because she was Mom's niece. I can't bear to leave him with them, knowing how they are."

"So you decided to take a chance on little Vicky's real father instead," Tell put in after Lauren was huffing with another sob.

"Yes. When I discovered Vicky's letter, I thought it could be another option. So I borrowed my mom's car and took him to Colorado after Christmas. I didn't tell my parents that I was going to meet his real father, I only said that I was going to a Christmas party that my friends held."

"I was in Colorado, the day before you were there. If only I went back there that day, we could've met. So how did you find out where I live?" I asked with a bit of regret.

She took out a piece of paper and gave it to me. On it was written my name and my address. "The old woman next door, I think her name was Mrs Stilskin. She saw me crying in the car and asked me to come in for some hot cocoa and a slice of cake. I didn't know what to do at that time. I was so lost. She sat me down and asked me what's wrong. Without realizing it, I told her everything. Then she told me to calm down and she gave me that," she pointed to the piece of paper, "and told me that it may have been outdated, that maybe you have moved, but that it should give me some clue as to where to find you."

"Good old Mrs Stiltskin. Baking cakes was her hobby. Remember Tell, how she would knock on our door just to give four slices of her cakes when we were young?"

"Of course," Tell gave a muffled giggle, "Whenever I smelled her cakes baking, I would always be sitting in the living room waiting for her to come offer us some of it."

"Did you like Mrs Stiltskin's cakes, young man?" I asked the small boy in my arms.

"She give me three," he said as he showed me four fingers. I just had to chuckle a bit at that.

She was about to take him back in her arms when I said, "So do you think you can trust me with your little boy?"

"You mean, you would take him in?" she said with a gasp.

"Of course, he's my son, isn't he? Even if I haven't been a father for the past seven years, it's well past time that I finally take responsibility for my actions."

Then Tell's hands appeared and she gently took little Vicky into her arms instead, "And I'll help in whatever way I can. Gosh, I never would've imagined that you'd have a son, Ricky," then she looked at Lauren, "How old is he?"

"Six," she answer between sniffles.

"I'm sorry," I said, as I gave Lauren a hug, "I have messed up really bad. I have destroyed his childhood, Vicky's childhood and I believe I have destroyed yours too. You gave away everything to take care of little Vicky, didn't you?"

"Yes," she said as she buried her face into my chest, "I didn't have time for any serious relationships, and even during the prom, my mind was filled with the thought of going home early. But it's all worth it. Little Vicky is such an adorable child, you'll see. When I got home after school or after my part time work, I would see him running towards me, with that huge innocent smile of his, and my life would feel so bright. He is the light of my life. This is very hard for me to do."

"Don't worry," I said as I rubbed her head, "You can come visit any time you want. Any day of the week. He may be my son by blood, but you're his real mother in every sense and purpose. I'll give him a childhood that other kids will envy," I smiled as she pulled out her face from my chest.

"Oh, don't. Don't spoil him too much, it will be such a culture shock to him. Then when I get him back, he'll be so spoiled I won't know what to do with him."

"Don't worry, I'll make sure he won't go overboard," Tell said with a giggle.

"Ah, I'm sorry," Lauren said as she freed herself from my arms, "Are you his girlfriend or something?"

"Girlfriend? Yuck! He's my brother! Don't put such thoughts in my head ever again," she said.

"As if I'd want my scrawny sister as a girlfriend," I said as I pushed out my tongue and made a gagging sound.

"Oh, you'd be lucky if you can find anyone half as gorgeous as me," she countered.

I wanted to respond but I just didn't know what to say that would be PC in front of a six years old kid, so I just laughed. Then I heard Lauren laughed along and before long, even Tell laughed. Only Victor didn't laugh, probably because he couldn't decide which was funnier.

I mean, there was a spot of chocolate on Tell's chin. And there was a trail of flour on her forehead. But I wasn't going to spoil the fun by telling her that.

The next day was filled with tears and more tears. Tell and Lauren kept crying as Lauren held little Victor tight to her, as if not wanting to let go. Tell was crying simply because, well, she's Tell. She has always been free with her emotions. Well, except for her anger. She liked to bottle it in and unleash it when it's least expected. That reminds me, I wonder when she's going to unleash her fury on me. I still haven't given any explanation for not being there on our Christmas night.

"Momma will be away for awhile, but I'll come visit every weekend. You be nice to Daddy, okay honey?" she said to the boy. I had asked her to spend the night here instead of getting a hotel room. Partially because I wanted to find out more about the boy from one who knew him all his life. Another because I wanted to ease his transition to living in a strange place while his mother's still here to comfort him if there's any trouble. I of course told them to use my room while I slept on the couch, since the guest room was already taken by Tell. There's another room, but I used it for storage. Maybe I'll fix that room up and turn it into a proper little boy's bedroom.

Lauren called her parents to say that she found Victor's real father and will be going back to get his things before hugging little Vicky once more and saying that she will return in a few day's time to send his toys and clothes. Little Vicky seemed to be having second thoughts as he hugged Lauren a bit tighter and refusing to let go. Lauren to her credit, didn't break into tears, this time. She patted his head and told him that it will only be for a few years, and he can see her every weekend, or call her every night. she further told him that she won't ever leave him alone.

I held one of his hands in mine as we bade her farewell and she drove off. I noticed that she kept glancing back until she turned the corner. I was slightly worried that she would get herself into an accident or something.

"You're my new daddy?" he asked when Lauren's car was no longer visible.

"Yes, and I'll take care of you as best as I can. You know what, since this is practically your first day here, why don't you and I, father and son, have an ice cream? Would you like some ice cream?"

"Momma said I can only have ice cream if I'm especially good."