Page 2 of We're Just Friends
I felt my heart sink as I watched our daughter sitting there in front of the French doors that led to our backyard. The same backyard we used to play together as a family. The same backyard that had housed seven birthday parties with Cam at the grill and me smiling and laughing with family. The same backyard I had unceremoniously tossed half of his things into when I found out about Lydia.
“I’ll contact you after I hear back from my lawyer,” I whispered angrily into the phone.
I maintained eye contact with my sister the entire time. Annie was fully aware that it was Cam I was speaking to. She could see it in my face, that knowing look between sisters.
Cam started to speak, but I ended the call, feeling satisfied with hanging up on him.
Go be with Lydia, you good for nothing piece of... Don't let him ruin anymore for you.
“Just an old friend,” I lied as I walked into the kitchen. I kissed Caley on the top of her head. My eyes shifted up to my sister, who gave me a sympathetic smile. I winked at her and pulled back, brushing a piece of hair from Caley’s face. “How was school, honey?”
“Today I got to read in front of the whole class,” she said, pulling out her notebook. “Miss Johnson said that I did a good job, but she didn’t say that to Suzie.”
“Now, now,” I said, walking over to the refrigerator. “What have I told you about saying mean things about other people?”
Caley was quiet for a few minutes before replying with a poking lip, and her eyes turned to the floor. “That it’s not nice.”
Annie sat down on a stool at the kitchen island, sipping on a bottle of water while scrolling through her phone. I let out a sigh, turned the oven on, and leaned over the kitchen island, looking at the screen on my sister’s phone.
“Anything new,” I asked, looking at her timeline.
Annie just shook her head, hitting the ‘like’ button on a meme about getting older. She continued to scroll. “Her principal is getting divorced.”
“He probably had an affair with an ex from high school too,” I whispered, turning back to the fridge to pull the chicken out. Annie looked up at me with a scrunched nose and wide eyes. I shrugged, glancing at my daughter, who was doing some sort of dance in front of the windows, watching her own reflection. “Relax. She didn’t hear me.”
“Where’s Daddy,” Caley asked, skipping back over to the chair and grabbing her pencil.
I paused as I placed the third chicken breast into the dish, casually looking up at Annie, who met my gaze. Caley was fully aware we were getting divorced, but Cam’s lack of presence had been painfully noticeable lately.
“Daddy is just busy with work,” I lied again, placing the last chicken breast into the baking dish. “But he loves you so much.”
Annie went over to the refrigerator and pulled out a bag of mixed salad greens, removing herself from the middle of the loaded conversation.
“Did you talk to him today,” Caley asked.
Annie didn’t look up as she rinsed the salad off in the sink, paying a little more attention to it than was necessary. She wanted to give me plenty of time to respond before Caley asked another question.
I topped the chicken breasts with marinara sauce and a bag of shredded mozzarella while deciding how to answer. Caley may have been aware of the divorce, but not all of the details. She was much too young and didn’t need to know about her fathers’ infidelities.
“No,” I lied for the third agonizing time, putting the chicken parmesan into the oven.
She spun to face Annie, my brow scrunched and raised, my lips twisted. I whispered to her as I approached. “Am I a bad mother?”
Annie shook the water off her hands, turning and wrapping me in a hug. “You’re the best mother, and you know it.” Annie then began to set the table for all three of us, placing Caley’s setting in front of her homework. “What class are you working on?”
“History,” Caley said while writing in the answers on a worksheet.
I finished preparing dinner by putting some baking potatoes into our second oven, a gift from Cam on our first Anniversary when I was going through a baking phase. Annie walked over to me, eager to get at least a little bit of information about the phone call while Caley was distracted.
“What did Cam say,” she whispered as I wiped my hands off on a dishtowel.
“I’ll tell you after dinner.” I forced a smile.
Even though Caley was too young to fully understand what it meant to have an affair, I wanted to keep the details of the divorce away from her. I didn't want to be the type of parent that badmouthed the other one. I had seen the movies, and that never turned out well for the kid or the mother.
Annie and I sat down to help Caley finish up her homework, repeatedly telling her what a good job she was doing in school. I couldn’t believe how fast she was growing up, which was even more of a reason for Cam to be involved in her life. A part of me wished that Cam could have been there with all three of us, encouraging Caley to study hard and do well in school. I didn't even recognize the man he had become. Or maybe I did, but I just never wanted to admit it to myself. The timer on the stove rang out, pulling me from my moment of pity.
“Dinner’s ready,” I said over-enthusiastically.
