THIRTY FIVE

My plan is going to hell in a handbasket, and I can’t bear listening to Aliyah sob into the phone like this. She needs me, and she needs me now. I don’t know what made me think I’d be able to smooth things over on the phone, but I was dead wrong, and I need to enact a new plan, because I need her too.

I head over to the elevator and push the button for Aliyah’s floor, with no set plan in mind other than getting to her.

“Aliyah? Hello? Can you hear me?”

She’s no longer yelling at me, but I know she’s still there because I can hear her crying in the background. This isn’t what I’d envisioned. Listening to her cry and hearing the pain in her voice is like a knife twisting in my heart. If I’m hurting this bad, I can only imagine what she’s going through.

Clearly Romina has lied to her about the details, but I hope Aliyah lets me clear the air and set the record straight.

I bulldoze my way out of the elevator and head down the hall in search of Aliyah’s room. Once her door comes into view I close the distance in two fast steps.

“Aliyah!” I scream her name and pound on the door with my fist. “Please open the door!”

My fists pound the door over and over, until suddenly it flies open, and there she is, with her red tear-stained face. Her hair is pulled back into a ponytail and her eyes are puffy.

Everything unfolds within a split second, even though it feels like a lifetime. I step forward and wrap my arms around Aliyah and to my surprise she doesn’t fight back.

“I’m sorry,” I say over and over like some type of meditative chant.

She buries her face into my chest as she sobs loudly. “How could you betray me like this?” I hear through the cries.

I tighten my grip and rock her back and forth slowly.

“I didn’t,” I whisper. “I didn’t betray you. You mean too much to me, and if I don’t know anything else, I know I would never betray you, at least not on purpose.”

“But Romina said—”

“Romina is a liar,” I proclaim boldly. “I’m going to tell you the truth if you just give me a chance. I know it probably won’t change your mind about the situation, but I still want you to know.”

I lead Aliyah over to the bed and we sit on the edge, facing one another.

“Yes, I dated Romina, but it was brief, nothing serious. She was a part of the social circle I’m in and one thing led to another on a few of those dates,” I say.

Aliyah grabs a tissue out of the box on the nightstand and dabs at her eyes. “Go on,” she says. “Tell me everything.”

I exhale and run my fingers through my hair. “There was no real chemistry between us so I stopped seeing her and stopped taking her calls. She thought she would get back at me by dating a friend of mine. Jonas was just looking for a good time, but he got more than he bargained for.”

“That’s for damn sure,” Aliyah says under her breath.

“Romina ended up pregnant, and I’ve asked her on numerous occasions about Andrew’s paternity. She said he wasn’t mine, but the dates were too close for comfort, so I set out to find the truth once and for all. Let me be clear though, I didn’t decide that until after I started seeing you. I didn’t go into this with the intentions of using you to get to Romina or Andrew.”

“Is that it?” she asks.

“No, there’s a little bit more,” I admit. “I’m wrong and I know it. I should have told you about Romina and the questionable paternity in the very beginning, but things between us were going so well. Honestly, I was afraid to say anything because I didn’t want to lose you, so I kept my connection to Romina and Andrew a secret. Just so you know, Romina has consistently assured me that Andrew isn’t my child, but I now know otherwise.”

I reach into my pocket and pull out the envelope I’ve been carrying around in my pocket.

“Here, see for yourself,” I say, handing the envelope to Aliyah.

Her hands tremble as she takes the letter from my hand.

“So, Andrew is your son?” she finally asks.

“Right,” I say. “I can’t say for sure that Jonas knows the truth, but I am Andrew’s father.”

She folds the paper back up and puts it in the envelope before handing it back to me with fresh tears in her eyes.

“Okay,” she says with a sniffle, folding her arms across her chest. “Are you finished now?”

I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose. “You may not believe me, but you’re all I’ve thought about these last few days. I’ve been agonizing over what I would say to make things right. I should have told you everything when I asked to start over with a clean slate. I’ve made plenty of mistakes and I’ll probably make a thousand more, but you weren’t one of them, and neither was Andrew. Romina doesn’t have my heart, she never did, but you do, and I want to make things right with my son. I love you and I never wanted to hurt you, Aliyah.”

She releases an audible gasp and I’m just as shocked as she is. I said the words, “I love you” for the first time. They rolled off my tongue so effortlessly, but I meant them with every fiber of my being.

“You love me?” she asks.

I reach out to grab her hand. “Yes,” I attest. “This hasn’t been a smooth ride at all, but I don’t want to give up on us, and I don’t want you to give up on us either. I love you with my mind, body and soul, Aliyah Delos Santos. Scout’s honor.”

Tears spring back into her eyes, but instead of wiping them away she leans over and kisses me. It’s not the hot steamy kiss we typically share, but this kiss has deep feelings behind it. It signifies two people coming together as one in an emotionally draining situation. This kiss won’t erase the heartache I’ve inflicted on Aliyah, but it’s a much-needed Band-Aid.