Chapter 16: Negotiation

“So, Brandon, Mae says she told you to sit here so we can talk privately.”

“I’m here for one reason, Dolores. I need to know that we’ll never go through this again. It’s been hard on me, but that’s not what matters most. You’ve hurt your son. To see him suddenly feeling lost, thinking he had no parents now, it just tore at me.

“Ron is a fantastic kid. You know my history. Until Aunt Nora rescued me, I knew only that I had no father, and my mother was far more interested in booze and sex than me. I went without food for days at a time, Dolores. There is nothing worse for a child than seeing their only parent unloving and going off the rails.

“At least Mae was there to love Ron this time, while you were busy thinking about that Pete guy instead of your son.

“I can’t watch that boy be so unhappy. I really can’t. It hits me too hard.”

“Brandon, I understand. I promise to do everything I possibly can to rebuild his trust. But I’m begging you to think about this. My son’s anxiety stems from watching me take you in, take care of you, and love you. He saw everything, except for the wonderful sex.

“Then, because of my stupidity and foolish fears, I caused a huge fight, and you were suddenly gone. I am deeply ashamed of my awful behavior, and I promise to never again cause this kind of useless misery and division.

“Brandon, Ron will be fine, I think. As long as somehow you and I can restore and resume what we had together. Desperately, that’s what I want for us. I’ll do anything to make that happen.”

“Then, go get a paper and pen. We need an agreement.”

“OK, I have them.”

“The next time you have a tantrum like this, it’s the end. You cannot compare me to Pete or Laurence, ever again. Particularly in front of your son. If you think I’m withholding information, you need to have a calm and private discussion with me. Otherwise, I’m gone.”

“Ron and I were just starting to have a relationship. I can see that he was starting to hope I could be more for him than just his mother’s boyfriend. Then he sees you rage at me for no reason. If you show no respect for me then he won’t either. He can’t. You stomped on his hope, by implicitly comparing me to a nasty old boyfriend from years before he was even born.

“You cannot ever do this to him again. First you told him and showed him that we were in love and had a future together, and then you cruelly flipped, showing him the opposite. THAT’S why he’s talking about being homeless. THAT’S why your son is distraught.

“Take your pen, please. Write, ‘#1. Ron’s security and feelings come first. Disagreements cannot escalate to where he is ever unsure of our love for him, and our respect for each other, even if we are arguing or, God forbid, no longer in love.’ That’s number one.

“It will shatter my heart to leave here, to leave you, but I will go tonight rather than see Ron ever again crying like that.”

“Mae tells me you have a lot of money. I asked her to drive me over to Rochester so I could catch a bus for Faribault and stay with Aunt Nora. No, don’t get upset. That was IF we failed to work out our problems. But that reminded me. I’m absolutely destitute and dependent on you, and the inequality bothers me. A lot.

“I need a vehicle. Something good in the snow and safe for me to drive Ron, like to school, where he should be going five days a week now, by the way. With my left knee injured, I can drive OK with my right foot, as long as there’s an automatic shift. I need you to set aside $20,000 for something used that meets those criteria.”

“No.”

“Really, no?”

“Don’t be upset; I’m setting aside $55,000 so you can buy something new, like a medium-sized SUV with 4-wheel drive. We could even go with a plug-in hybrid since I get plenty of extra juice from my solar panels. I leave the details up to you, although you should talk to my good friend Billy, who sold me my super pickup for a great deal.”