Page 51 of Wreckage of Me
“How is he?” I ask, but still don’t show much emotion. I can’t afford to.
“He’s really happy, honey,” Ma rubs my arm up and down. “I am proud of you for having the courage to do what you did,” she’s getting chocked up now.
“What do you know about what I did or didn’t do?” I challenge her.
“I know everything, honey,” she assures me. “I knew everything from the start,” she confesses.
The information surprises me while at the same time comforts me. Her knowing everything can only mean that she was smart about her moves, about everything she did when she took my son to live with my brother.
“Does Wyatt know?” The less he knows, the better for everyone involved I decide.
“Not much,” she admits. “I pretended like I was clueless. He was so worried about me,” she smiles with sadness. “I didn’t want him to come after you guns blazing…”
“Like Ali would ever let him do that,” I start laughing, thinking of all the ways my sister-in-law would kick my brother’s ass if he wasn’t on the straight and narrow.
“She is such a good girl,” Ma gushes over Wyatt’s wife. “She’s so good to Ethan, Dyl,” she calls me by the nickname my brother always had for me while growing up. “She makes sure he’s doing well in school, and now that she’s expecting…”
“She’s what?” How did I not know my brother and his wife are going to be parents?
“Alison is pregnant. She looks so beautiful, and they’re so excited,” Ma continues talking, unaware of the storm of emotions ravaging my brain.
“So what are they gonna do about Ethan then?” My heart is beating out of my chest. What’s gonna happen to my boy now? And how stupid of me for not taking into consideration that they may want to have their own kids at some point.
“What do you mean?” Ma is giving me a confused look.
“If they’re having a baby, are they still keeping Ethan?”
“Dylan, you’ve got to be kidding me. Of course they’re keeping him,” Ma slaps a hand over her chest in shock. “He is so excited about his new baby cousin, can’t wait to meet her.”
“It’s a girl?”
“Yes, they just found out. Ethan wants to name her Parker,” Ma explains. “After Peter Parker, I guess,” she shrugs, making me laugh.
“So they’re treating him well then?” I ask one more time. I have no idea why it is so important for me to know this piece of information. But all of a sudden, it means everything to me.
“Nobody could treat him any better, Dylan,” Ma assures me, causing the fist around my heart to loosen up a tad.
“He’s not calling Wyatt Dad?” I feel a lump in the back of my throat when I ask that. It’s so irrational of me.
“No, Wyatt is hisUnka Wyatt, Ethan says,” making me laugh in the way she says it. “And Alison is his Ali, even though apparently Wyatt takes issue with people calling her that. That’s his thing he said.” Sounds like my brother alright. He may have left the club years before, but his inner possessive asshole remained.
“That’s good.” I don’t really have much else to say on the topic. I just want to know the kid is okay. Happy.
“I told him about you,” Ma confesses in a quiet tone. “Stories from when you were little, playing with Wyatt,” she gives me a teary smile. “He’d like to see you, I think.”
“Yeah?” I smile back. This entire exchange is so unexpected.
“Definitely,” she confirms.
We stand in the large entryway of the house I’m renting with Sully and Puck, unsure of what else to say.
“Would you like to sit down?” Sully butts in when the silence becomes uncomfortable.
My mom jumps in surprise. “Oh, Sully, I didn’t even see you there.”
“Good to see you, Arlene.” He grabs her in a hug which she is more than happy to return. She’s always liked him.
We then walk to the living room where we each take a seat, with me and Sully facing Ma who chose a comfortable chair that’s placed on the opposite side from the couch.
