3

Victoria

I flinched as I heard the sound of the café door opening. I peeked out from the kitchen and relaxed when I saw that one of our regular customers had walked in.

"Leslie, what's wrong with you?" Betty asked.

"Nothing," I casually said as I continued to wash one of our coffee pots.

Betty snatched the brush I was using and moved the coffee pot to the side.

"Leslie, you have been on edge for the past three weeks. You cringe every time that door opens. Now, what is going on with you?"

I let out a sigh. There was no hiding anything from Betty, but I couldn't tell her the truth; I did not doubt that she'd fire me if she knew about Michael's occupation.

"My son's father is an alcoholic, constantly cheating on me," I said. I felt disgusted as those words left my lips; Michael would never cheat on me, and he never drank more than one glass of whiskey or scotch. "When I found out I was pregnant, I decided not to tell him and leave. I don't want my son looking up to a man like that."

"You've been fine the whole time you've been working here. Why are you just now starting to get paranoid?"

"I spotted his cousin three weeks ago. I don't think he saw me, but I'm still paranoid."

Betty gave me a sympathetic look.

"Everything will be okay, sweetie. If he hasn't come for you by now, he'll stay away," she said as she pulled me into a hug. I wanted to believe her, but part of me was terrified, still feeling that Michael would find me.

Michael

I was going over profits when Dylan allowed himself into my office.

Shit. Why didn't I lock the door?

"Hey, Michael!"

"Get the fuck out of my office, Dylan."

Dylan scoffed loudly and said, "how was Chicago, Dylan? It was great! Thanks for asking!"

I just rolled my eyes.

"How was Chicago?"

"It was great. I saw something that may interest you. ".

"I've been to that city multiple times. What could you have possibly seen that would interest me?" I said in an annoyed tone.

Dylan smirked at me and threw something on my desk. I looked down, and my eyes grew wide. There were several photographs of Victoria taken from afar.

"Where did you get these?" I asked as I started going through the photos.

"I spotted her when I was strolling through Maggie Daley Park. She was with her friend Kelly."

I continued to stare at the photos; I couldn't believe that Dylan had found her out of all the personal investigators I had hired.

"Anywho, I wasn't sure it was her, so I -"

"It's her," I interrupted. I knew Victoria anywhere.

"Let me finish," Dylan said sternly. "I followed her and found out where she lives. I kept an eye on her apartment and got an opportunity to sneak in while she was out. That wasn't easy, and she has her place set up like Fort Knox."

"Good girl," I mumbled to myself.

"There's a nursery in her apartment."

I immediately looked up at Dylan, and he reached into his bag and took out a book.

"It looks like you have a son."

I snatched the book from Dylan's hands and looked at the cover; there was a sonogram picture. I opened the book and came across more ultrasound pictures. Eventually, I saw a picture of Victoria in a hospital bed, holding a baby in her arms.

"October third" was spelled out on the page. Nine months before that was when we celebrated our first anniversary. I remember that night; it was the best night of my life. Thinking back, I could vividly remember everything like it was yesterday. I remembered the taste of Victoria's lips, the smell of her skin, her moans of pleasure, her heavy breathing, her legs tightly wrapped around my waist, and the feeling of being inside her. It wasn't surprising to me that she got pregnant that night. We kept going round after round until we were both ready to pass out. I thought she was pregnant, but I never asked, and she never said anything. Instead, she left me.

I kept turning the pages until I reached the last picture. "Ten Months" was spelled out. I was shocked; the baby looked just like me. I looked up at Dylan.

"Thank you. Can you give me Victoria's address?"

"Texting it to you now," Dylan said while typing on his phone. Shortly after, my phone went off. "Alright, I have to go. Let me know if you need any help."

"That won't be necessary."

When Dylan walked out of my office, I went back to looking through the pictures of my son. I couldn't believe that I was a father. A feeling of excitement took over me. However, if I were to bring Victoria back, I would need to prepare everything. I called my cousin, Lucy; she was an interior decorator.

"What?" She answered.

"I need your help."

"Michael, I'm busy with two major projects."

"I'll pay you triple what you usually charge for your services, plus double for expenses."

"Wow, you're desperate. What do you need?"

"I need you to turn one of my rooms here into a nursery for a boy."

"What? Why?"

"You're an aunt."

"What?"

"Victoria and I have a son."

"Are you serious? How come you didn't tell me?"

"Well, you're a busy woman. However, I need the nursery set up as soon as possible."

"Michael, what's going on?"

I let out a sigh. My cousin Lucy knew me like the back of her hand, and I couldn't hide anything from her.

"Remember when Victoria left me?"

"How could I forget? I had to redo your entire house because you destroyed everything."

"Well, she was pregnant. Dylan just found her hiding out in Chicago."

"Wow. So what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to get my family. That's why I need you to put together a nursery."

"How old is the baby, so I know what to get?"

"The baby just turned ten months old."

"Okay. I'll be at your house as soon as possible."

"Thank you."

I sat back in my chair, still trying to process that Victoria and I had a son. Suddenly, I realized something: Victoria was one month pregnant when she left me. She had to have known. Did she deliberately leave to keep my son away from me? How dare she pull a stunt like that.

The excitement I felt was taken over by anger.

Victoria, just wait until I get my hands on you.

Victoria

"Slowly inhale, and then slowly exhale," the instructor said.

Betty suggested that I go to yoga lessons. I wasn't a fan of yoga, but I decided to try it anyway. I found that it did help ease the anxiety I felt. I had been going twice a week after work for four weeks. I began to think more clearly and rationally. If Dylan had seen me in that cafe, he would've told Michael right away, and Michael would be here by now. Everything was going to be okay. I could live my life in peace and raise my son independently.

"Alright, everyone, fabulous job today. I'll see you all on Thursday."

I slowly stood up and rolled up my yoga mat. I quickly packed up my things; I had to pick up Antonio from daycare.

"Leslie," someone called out.

I turned around and saw a man walking up to me. I slowly took a step back.

"You know, you should stay calm and relaxed after class. Otherwise, everything you've done during class is for nothing. Where are you hurrying off to?"

"Just because I'm hurrying out of here doesn't mean I don't try to remain calm and relaxed."

"Okay. You have a point. I'm sorry, I was just looking for a reason to talk to you."

"I'm sorry, I don't have time to talk. I need to go." I quickly walked away.

"Leslie!" The man called after me, but I kept walking. I could hear him running after me. "Where are you heading off to? I can give you a ride."

The man's words made me stop walking, and I turned around to face him.

"What makes you think I don't have a ride?"

"Well, I've seen you walk into the train station a few times."

"The train station is two blocks away, and you've said you park in the parking garage in this building."

"I've seen you walking in there while I'm driving."

"You've said that you drive north. The train station is east."

"Wow... You sure listen to everything, don't you?"

"You're very loud when you speak. It's hard not to listen."

"Okay. I've been following you after class over the past week. Just up to the train station; I was just curious."

I felt so stupid. How did I not notice that I was being followed? That is precisely why I never wanted to relax. I never should have let my guard down.

"Curiosity killed the cat," I said.

"Satisfaction brought him back."

I rolled my eyes and walked away.

"Leslie, please. I'm just trying to help."

I gasped at the man's words.

"Michael! My boss sent me home and told me to never go back, and she said it because I submitted my notice. Why would you do that?"

"I'm just trying to help."

"How are you helping? I just lost my job!"

"Victoria, we agreed that the job was not good for you. You know you weren't going to quit on your own; I had to step up and do that for you. You can always find another job."

I let out an aggravated sigh.

"This isn't an easy job to find."

"Hey, I'll help you find a new job. If you don't find one, there's no need to worry. I'll take care of you."

I never did find a job like the one I got fired from. I ended up having to rely on Michael.

"I didn't ask for your help, and I don't need it!" I snapped.

"Alright, calm down."

"Stay away from me," I said firmly as I continued to walk away.

***

I was feeding Antonio some Mexican rice and beans I had made; he was doing well with solid foods. In between mouthfuls of food, Antonio shouted out, "Dada!"

"Where did you hear that word?" I asked, not really expecting an answer. Naturally, I was disappointed. I had hoped Antonio's first word would be "Momma," but that wish wasn't destined to be granted.

Although I was somewhat glad Antonio had finally gotten his first word out, I was curious and worried. I wondered where he heard "Dada" from. I dismissed the question once I realized that Antonio was socializing with other children. One of the other kids possibly said, "Dada," and Antonio was just repeating it.

I finished feeding Antonio and put him in his playpen so I could shower. After showering, I took Antonio in my arms and sat with him, watching tv. I was startled by a sudden pinch at my breast. I looked down and saw that Antonio was trying to get milk through my robe, causing the fabric to get soaked with saliva and milk.

"Seriously? Aren't you full from your dinner?"

I let out a sigh as Antonio kept tugging at me. I freed my breast from my robe so Antonio could latch on to me and drink milk. I stared at him for a while and was in awe. I wondered how my body could grow such a precious little baby and what I did to deserve him.

After Antonio had his fill of milk, I burped him, and as usual, he fell asleep. I quickly changed into my pajamas and laid down, hoping to get decent sleep before Antonio woke up.

After a few hours, I was awoken by the sound of Antonio crying. Sitting in my bed, I could hear Antonio's crying turn into laughter. Confused about what was going on, I quickly stood up and walked to Antonio's room.

What I saw caused me to panic.