When Brie goes out to the movies, I sit down next to Aiden and open my laptop. I need to write. When I have no energy at all, I listen to audiobooks to escape. When I have some energy, but not enough to sustain myself entirely, I read to escape. But right now, I feel a ball forming in the pit of my stomach. It’s an energy that needs to be expelled, one way or another. The best way to get rid of it is to write. I open a blank document and start typing. It starts with an emotion. I describe how much I hate Blake and how much I love Aiden. But these words quickly morph into a story. I type until my fingers start to ache and my wrists develop a dull shooting pain going back to my elbows. I’ve always been susceptible to carpal tunnel, but typically it takes longer than just a few thousand words for it to feel this bad.
I shake my head as I close my laptop. It’s Blake’s fault. Yet another thing that he has caused. Fuck him!
“Excuse me,” an unfamiliar female voice says. I look up and see a woman with dark hair, which is cut bluntly at the shoulders. She has high cheekbones and tired eyes. I’ve never met her before, but the resemblance is uncanny.
“Oh, Aiden.” She runs over and grabs his hand. I get out of my chair to make room. Tears run down her cheeks as she kisses his hand over and over again. Suddenly, I start to feel queasy again. The nausea is far from gone, even though the medication is helping. But anytime I feel at all upset, or over-stimulated, I start to feel nauseated again. I move over to the sofa and sit down.
“I’m so sorry,” she mumbles, half looking over at me, but mostly touching Aiden as if she’s making sure that he’s real.
It takes her a few minutes to fully gather herself. When she finally does, she looks over at me. Her cheeks are still wet and her lips are puffy from the avalanche of tears.
“Hi, I’m Ellie,” I whisper, extending my hand. She pulls me close to her, giving me a big warm hug. I exhale deeply, letting myself relax into her.
“Hi, sweetie,” she says. “I’m Arlene Black, Aiden’s mother.”
The last bit isn’t necessary. Anyone who knows Aiden would know that she’s his mother immediately. They have the same far-off stare, the same large eyes, and chiseled jaw. That’s not to imply that she is at all manly. No, she’s actually quite feminine.
“I’m so sorry that we have to meet under these circumstances,” she says, sitting down next to me. I don’t know what I was expecting, but Arlene Black is quite ordinary. She’s average weight and height and she’s dressed in a casual pair of black pants, boots, and a white blouse. I try to remember what Aiden said she did for a living, but nothing comes to mind.
“Did you talk to the doctors, Mrs. Black?” I ask.
“Oh, please, call me Arlene,” she says. “Yes, I did. Do you think they know what they’re doing?”
I shrug. “I have no idea.”
“I’m going to look into this a little more once I get a hold of myself a bit. I just found out.”
“I’m so sorry I didn’t call you. It’s just that…I didn’t know any of your information.”
The truth is that it hadn’t really occurred to me to call her. Aiden mentioned her only once to me. But I also would have no clue as to how to go about trying to find her. I was too wrapped up in my own grief to give calling his relatives and letting them know about this any thought.
“The police reached out to me. They said that Blake attacked him.”
“Yes.”
“I’ve always had a bad feeling about him. Even when they were first getting friendly at Yale,” Arlene says, shaking her head.
I doubt that it was that obvious, but we all have to say things to ourselves to make us feel better.
“He attacked you as well?”
I nod. That word, attacked, sends shivers through my body. Suddenly, a flashback. I see Blake’s face before me. I try to breathe but choke up.
“Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to…” her voice trails off as she hands me a cup of water. As soon as an ice cube touches the tip of my tongue, the memory of Blake vanishes and I find myself back in the hospital room.
“No, I’m sorry. It’s all very…fresh, still.”
She nods and sits back down next to Aiden. I make myself comfortable next to her. Neither of us speak for some time. The silence is comforting actually. I let my thoughts drift and, for a while, I hear nothing but the beeping of the machines.
“So, how did you two meet?”
Chapter 3 - Ellie
When we get to know each other…
With that one question, Arlene shatters the quiet and brings me back to reality. How did we meet? Well, actually, I auctioned myself off to the highest bidder at a private auction that your son hosted on his yacht. He ended up paying the highest price and then he did bad things to me. Really bad things that I really loved. This is not exactly the kind of truth that a mother wants to hear. I want to lie. But I can’t. What if she knows the truth? Our relationship hasn’t exactly been kept out of the gossip papers.
“We met on his yacht,” I say. It’s not a lie, but it’s not exactly the whole truth either.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Arlene asks. I nod and smile.
“It’s still hard to believe that my son can afford something like that. He didn’t exactly grow up in the lap of luxury.”
“Very few people are as wealthy as he is,” I say after a moment. “You must be very proud.”
She shrugs. “I always wanted him to pursue his passion, but I never cared much about money. He gets that from his father.”
“What does his father do?” I ask.
“He’s a sanitation worker. Garbage man.”
“Oh, okay.” I nod.
Sensing that I’m somewhat confused by her statements, she explains. “Dean, my husband, was…is…a dreamer. He worked in sanitation all of his life but that didn’t stop him from thinking up a million different ways to make money. When he isn’t drinking, he’s scheming. There’s always that perfect business idea just around the corner.”
I don’t really know how to respond to this except to nod along.
“Aiden is a lot like Dean. When he was a kid, he was always starting businesses. A lemonade stand. A snow removal business, even though he didn’t even own a shovel. He borrowed ours, broke it, and then got a loan from one of his customers to buy another one. The difference between Aiden and his father is that he has dedication and follow through. And a good, very good, work ethic.”
“Yeah, Aiden is a hard worker.”
“Dean and I are going through a divorce. I don’t know if Aiden told you. We have been separated for years.”
“No, he didn’t.”
In fact, come to think of it, Aiden has told me very little about his family. Up until this moment, I didn’t even know what his mom’s name was.
“I’m sorry about that,” I add.
“Don’t be. Dean and I have had a very complicated relationship for many years. He’s an alcoholic, you know.”
I nod. No, I didn’t know. And I don’t really know how to respond to this statement either. I have never met Aiden’s dad and have nothing really to contribute to the conversation except for more questions.
“So, Aiden said he grew up in Boston?”
“Yep, Waltham. It’s not too far from there.”
“So, what did you do for a living?” I ask. Oh, shit. That’s a loaded question. What if she was a homemaker? I didn’t mean to make her feel bad.
“Did? I still do. I’m a nurse.”
“Oh, okay.” I let out a sigh of relief. “I just thought since Aiden is so…wealthy that you wouldn’t have to work anymore.”
“I don’t, but I enjoy what I do. I worked as a nurse for many years. I no longer work at a hospital, but I can’t very well just sit around all day like Dean drinking myself to death. I teach nursing now.”
“Oh, that’s interesting.”
Brie can’t come back soon enough. I’m growing exhausted talking to her and I still feel quite queasy. Suddenly, I feel so
sick to my stomach that I have to excuse myself and run to the bathroom.
“So, how far along are you?” Arlene asks, much to my surprise. I stare at her, dumbfounded.
“Um, twelve weeks,” I mumble. “How did you…?”
“Like I said, I’m a nurse. A very good one. Your face is flushed, your breasts look tender, and you just ran to the bathroom to throw up. It doesn’t take a detective.”
I rub my eyes and run my hands through my hair.
“We’re not really telling anyone,” I say after a moment. “I mean…that’s why Aiden didn’t tell you.”
“No.” Arlene shakes her head. “Aiden didn’t tell me because he hates me. I doubt that he would’ve even told me at all if he wasn’t lying here in a coma.”
I look away. I want to desperately know why he hates her, but this doesn’t seem like the right moment. She just found out that she will be having a grandchild. I want her to enjoy it instead of focusing on why her child dislikes her so much that he had kept it a secret from her.
“I’m very happy for you both,” she says after a moment.
“Thank you. It was a surprise.”
“From the deer in headlights look on your face, I’d say so.”
To say that Arlene has a jagged edge to her would be an understatement. If this is how she is with practically a stranger, I can only imagine how she is at home. I don’t necessarily dislike her, she’s just putting me on guard.
“It’s going to be okay, you know,” Arlene says after a moment. “You’re going to find out that you’re actually capable of being a mother. And a good one at that.”
“Wow, thank you,” I say, taken a little aback by her generosity. “I really appreciate it.”
“I wasn’t the best mother, but I tried my best. Children are always disappointed. The least you can do is to give it your all.”
Chapter 4 - Ellie
When he shows up…
I don’t exactly know what to do with all the information that Arlene states, so I just zone out a little and nod along. She is definitely the teacher type, a kind of person who loves to give out advice, regardless of whether anyone is listening to her or not.
“So, what was Aiden like when he was little?”
“Sweet boy. Very sweet, indeed. But also kind of a recluse. He had a hard time making friends.”
I nod. Who doesn’t?
“He spent all of his time with computers. He loved to read science fiction and fantasy, watch Star Wars and Lord of the Rings, all the usual lore. But he wasn’t a nerd in the traditional sense. He wasn’t a big fanboy, someone who goes to the comic book conventions, places like that. So he didn’t make a lot of friends with kids with similar interests.”
There’s something about her manner of speaking. It’s like she’s there, but she’s not. Detached. A psychologist giving an opinion about a patient to a colleague.
“When he got older, he became withdrawn, private. Even more closed off.”
Suddenly, I get the overwhelming urge to slap her. She is sitting here talking about her son, my fiancé, as if he’s not here. As if he can’t hear her.
“He seems to have gotten over his issues with people,” I defend him. “I mean, he did start Owl.”
“A tech company? Places like that only foster his kind of isolation.”
“I’m not sure what you’re trying to say, Arlene.”
“That my son has some challenges when it comes to people,” she says with an incensed expression on her face. “I mean, you are the one who asked about him as a child.”
I don’t know what Aiden’s particular issue is with his mother. All I know is that I dislike her. A lot. Her judgments and her dismissive attitude, it just makes me want to tell her to go to hell.
Just then, someone bursts through the door. He runs over to Aiden and plops his whole body on top of his. Arlene turns around to face the window in disgust. The man is about her age with a significant bald spot. He has a protruding beer belly that makes him resemble a grizzly as he maneuvers around.
He keeps calling Aiden’s name over and over again, much to Arlene’s annoyance.
“Ellie, this is Dean, Aiden’s father.”
I mumble a polite hello. This doesn’t seem to be the right moment for anything else. Eventually, Dean pulls himself away from Aiden and looks at me.
“You’re goin’ to be a grandfather, Dean,” Arlene says as a matter of fact. Now, I seriously want to punch her in her stupid face. Who the hell does she think she is? Just because she figured something out about me, and I was stupid enough to reveal it, does not mean she has the right to blabber it to just anyone.
“Really? Oh, wow!” Dean walks over to me and gives me a big warm hug. There is genuine affection emanating from him in addition to a strong odor of booze.
The three of us stand around looking at Aiden for a few moments. None of us would be here were it not for him and he’s lying there, listlessly. Asleep. For who knows how long?
Brie comes in with a few doctors who again gather at the far end of the room to discuss the situation before telling any of us anything. I make brief introductions and then sit back down on the sofa. There have been way too many social interactions for me for one day. Exhausted, emotionally drained, and sick from being pregnant is not the best way to meet your fiancé’s parents. Perhaps, I wouldn’t have had as much contempt toward Arlene if I had met her under other circumstances. But life throws at us what life throws at us, I guess.
Finally, the doctors turn around and tell us their opinion. It’s a good idea to keep him in the medically-induced coma for some time longer. How long? They don’t know. Their big plan is to just monitor the situation and see how it goes. I shake my head. Dean melts into a nearby chair. Arlene narrows her eyes.
“I think we would like a second opinion,” she says.
“Yes, of course. You are definitely entitled to it.”
Arlene talks out loud about flying out a doctor someone had recommended to her. Or even flying Aiden to a better hospital. Brie and I exchange looks while Dean just looks down at the floor.
“I don’t think flying Mr. Black anywhere is a good idea,” Dr. Briggs says. “His condition needs to be monitored. It’s very precarious. It could make him a lot worse.”
“How much worse can he be?” Arlene exclaims. “He’s already in a coma.”
“Many people successfully come out of medically-induced comas. We just have to monitor him and wait. I know that this is very difficult,” Dr. Briggs says. She is polite and composed, but I can tell that Arlene is trying her patience.
“No, no, no. This can’t be it. Money is no option. Do you understand that? We can have anyone in the world here.”
Dr. Briggs looks at her blankly.
“Are you seriously telling us that you are the best in the world?” Arlene asks, crossing her arms. I feel the need to butt in.
“Arlene, please, they’re doing the best they can,” I say.
“That’s not my concern. They may be doing the best they can, but my son deserves more than this. They think I don’t know how medicine works? The reason they’re conferring like that in the corner is to come up with one position and to stick with it. Well, this isn’t the law. This isn’t some hypothetical argument that we’re making. We’re talking about my son. Aiden Black.”
Dr. Briggs continues to respond, trying to convince her that they’re doing the right thing. Other doctors and nurses also pipe in. But it’s all to no avail. The more they argue, the more insistent and certain she becomes. It has to be her way or the highway.
I still have no idea what it is that happened between her and Aiden, but I’m getting that sense that she was trying to steamroll him the way she has been trying to steamroll his doctors and clearly steamrolled his father. I’m pretty sure that Aiden got fed up with it though. He’s not one to be controlled easily.
“What do you think, Ellie?” Arlene asks, turning to me. I shrug and shake my head.
“Honestly,
I don’t know,” I mumble. Arlene narrows her eyes. I’m not taking her side and that’s a problem. “But a second opinion couldn’t hurt.”
“Goddamn right!” she exclaims and gives me a warm hug. “You see. The women who love this man understand.”
I feel sick to my stomach and it’s not just because I’m pregnant. The truth is that I have no idea what we should do. I want to believe Dr. Briggs and the rest of the doctors, but what if I’m wrong? What if waiting isn’t good? What if…
There are so many things that I don’t know, can’t know. I mean, if the doctors don’t know, how are we, mere laymen, expected to make these decisions?
“I think it might be best to have another doctor come out here for a second opinion. Instead of doing something rash like going through all the trouble of moving him,” I say.
Brie smiles at me, approvingly. But when I turn to Arlene, I see a completely different expression. She looks pissed. Her face is flushed and her ears look like they are about to have steam coming out of them.
“Let’s just see what they have to say,” I say to appease her. “I just want what’s best for him.”
“And you don’t think I do?” she barks at me. I bite my lower lip and look away. I’m not good at confrontation or fighting. Actually, I sort of hate it. But that doesn’t mean that I’m going to let myself be bullied by her or anyone else. Getting another opinion is the right thing to do. The more doctors who can agree with Dr. Briggs and her team the better it is, especially, since money isn’t really a problem here.
Eventually, all of the doctors and nurses leave and the only people that remain are Arlene, Dean, Brie, and me. And, of course, Aiden. I want to ask them all to leave so I can be alone with Aiden again, but it doesn’t feel right. Things are already tense enough between Arlene, Dean, and me that I need to do something to smooth this over.
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