Chapter 5

Chapter Five

" H ey, sweetheart. Smells good in here," Dad says before dropping his briefcase onto the dining table.

"Thanks." I'm only making mac and cheese. He's being way too nice about my cooking, and we both know it.

"How's your day been?" he asks me.

I picked up Sebastian from his office right after school. He was busy so I didn't stick around to chat. "It was okay," I say, plating up two bowls full of the macaroni.

"Just okay? Did you see any of your old friends?"

"In passing." I place the bowls down and glance at Sebastian, who is asleep in his rocker by the table.

"Anyone Sebastian here would want to meet?" Dad questions, not so subtly.

"I saw him," I say.

"And?"

"And nothing. I saw him. We didn't speak." Technically, Orlando did say a few words to me. My mind goes back to the way his body felt pressed against mine. I wanted to reach out and wrap my arms around his neck. Pull him closer to me…

"You didn't talk to him?"

"No, Dad, I didn't. What am I supposed to say? Oh, hey, remember how we dated for a few weeks about fifteen months ago? Well, now we have a kid together ."

"It'd work." Dad smiles. "You're overthinking it, Aleeka. He's your son's father, whoever he is, and he deserves to know that and make his choice. Imagine if I didn't know about you?"

"That's different. You were married," I say. "And you weren't seventeen."

"You're not asking him for financial support, Aleeka. You don't need that from him. You're asking if he wants to be a part of his son's life," Dad replies while digging into his pasta.

"I know. How was the office? Good being back?" I attempt to change the subject.

"It was good. Nothing really changes."

"Meet up with any of your old friends?" I ask my dad, being a total smart-ass.

"Funny," he says. "I have an early meeting tomorrow. I need to leave at seven. Can you drop Sebastian off at the office on your way to school?"

"Sure. Or I could just stay home with him," I offer. "Homeschooling is a good option."

"It's not an option we need. I want you to give it a go, Aleeka. Trust me, you'll thank me one day."

"I'm sure," I groan.

After dinner, I take Sebastian upstairs. He has his own bedroom, but he still sleeps in my room. His crib is set up by my bed. I like having him close. When he wakes up, I spend the next hour playing with him and telling him all about how I saw his daddy today.

My father is right. Orlando should know. I just need to figure out how the hell to tell him.

After bathing and getting Sebastian back to sleep, I finally fall into bed. Exhausted, I pick up my phone. There's a message from an unknown number. So I open it and my heart skips a beat when I read the words.

Unknown:

You didn't answer my question.

My hand shakes as I type out a response.

Me:

Who is this?

Unknown:

You know who it is.

Me:

Orlando?

It has to be him, right? I can't think of anyone else it could be.

Unknown:

How many other guys did you ghost?

Me:

I didn't ghost you.

I click the save button next to the number and add his name to my contacts. It's different from the one I had before.

Orlando:

You left without a word. Didn't answer my messages. That's the definition of ghosting. So answer the question, Aleeka.

His question. Did I miss him? Every single day.

Me:

I tried to call. You blocked me.

Orlando:

I never blocked you. I had to change my number. Now, answer the question, Aleeka.

Me:

Every day.

I admit it. I missed him so much. I shouldn't have. I should tell him we need to talk, but when he reads the message and doesn't respond again, I set my phone on the table next to my bed and close my eyes. I only have a couple of hours before Sebastian wakes up.

I'm late. I misjudged the traffic. The student parking lot is full. The only spot left is towards the back, which means I have to run into the building.

The moment I walk into my first class, everyone stops and stares at me. I'm sure I look like a hot mess. I feel like one too. "Miss Bateman, nice of you to join us. Take a seat," Mrs. Valmade, the modern history teacher, says.

"Sorry, miss," I mumble and look around the room.

There's one vacant seat. I glance at it and then at the person sitting next to it. Orlando. Of course. I make my way over to the desk and sit down, doing my best to ignore his presence. I unpack my bag and focus on the teacher. Or at least I pretend to. It's really hard with him right next to me.

Just before class is about to end, I finally work up the courage to look at him. "Can we go somewhere and talk?"

Orlando glares at me. "Is talking a euphemism for fucking?"

My eyebrows draw down. "No," I tell him

"Pity, my answer would have been yes if it were." With those parting words, he gets up and walks out of the room, before class has even finished. Of course, the teacher ignores his disappearing act. They all do. The Valentinos can do whatever they want around here.

At least now I can say I tried. I asked him to talk and he blew me off. That's on him. Right? It's not like I can tell him that he's a father or at the very least a sperm donor via text, now can I?