บททั้งหมดของ DON'T BEG ME NOW, MR. ARMSTRONG : บทที่ 121 - บทที่ 130

I froze.For a second, I genuinely thought I was imagining things.The hand resting on Kai's shoulder belonged to Brandon.And standing beside him, looking considerably more annoyed about being in a courthouse than anyone else in the room, was Victor.My breath caught somewhere in my throat.I hadn't spoken to either of them in over a week.Not Brandon.Not Victor.Not after finding out about the anonymous messages.Not after realizing they had both known things about my life that they had decided I wasn't entitled to know.A week ago, I would've sworn I never wanted to see either of them again.Yet standing there in that courtroom, terrified out of my mind and feeling more alone than I ever had in my entire life, the sight of them hit me with a wave of relief so strong it almost made my knees buckle.Kai reacted before I could."Grandpa Victor!"His face lit up instantly.The court official looked between us all before nodding."If Mr. Madden is willing to supervise the child during

I didn't remember the drive home.Later, when I tried to think back on it, all I could recall was the feeling of Kai's hand slipping from mine inside that courtroom.Everything after that blurred together.The lawyer talking.People moving around me.The courthouse doors.The parking lot.The drive.None of it felt real.Like I was watching someone else's life happen from very far away.When I finally unlocked the front door to the apartment and stepped inside, the silence hit me so hard I almost staggered.I stood there for several seconds.Just staring.Waiting.For what, I didn't know.Maybe for Kai to come running around the corner.Maybe for him to ask if we could stop for ice cream on the way home.Maybe for him to tell me another completely inaccurate dinosaur fact with the confidence of a seasoned scientist.Anything.Instead, there was nothing.The apartment was quiet.Painfully quiet.My throat tightened.I slowly shut the door behind me.Then locked it.The click echoed thr

By the time I got home from the mall, it was beginning to get dark outside.The apartment greeted me with the same silence it always did.The same emptiness.The same absence.I locked the door behind me and leaned against it for a moment, closing my eyes.A week ago, I would’ve heard Kai’s footsteps by now.He would’ve come barreling toward me the second he heard the lock turn.Mama!The memory hurt enough that I immediately pushed it away.I dropped my purse onto the kitchen counter and pulled out my phone.The recording was still there.Waiting.My thumb hovered over it.Then pressed play.Madeline’s voice filled the room.Followed by the man’s.I listened from beginning to end.Then I listened again.And again.By the fourth time, I wasn’t even sure what I was listening for anymore.A weakness.A loophole.Proof.Hope.Anything.The recording ended.The apartment fell silent once more.I stared blankly at the phone screen.My reflection stared back at me.I looked awful.My eyes w

The first thing I noticed after Kai moved in wasn’t that Dean seemed happier.It was that Kai seemed miserable.I tried not to think it.Tried not to acknowledge it.Tried not to compare the little boy sitting quietly at our dining table to the one I’d occasionally seen around Joan.But the difference was impossible to ignore.He barely spoke.Barely smiled.Barely looked either of us in the eye.Most of the time he sat wherever he was placed and occupied himself with one of his dinosaur toys. If Dean asked him a question, he’d answer politely. If I asked him something, he’d do the same. But every response felt careful. Measured. Like he was speaking to strangers he didn’t particularly trust.The realization made my chest ache.Because that was exactly what we were.Strangers.At least to him.Maybe worse than strangers.I stood in the kitchen one afternoon watching him through the doorway as he sat cross-legged on the living room rug. The transparent dinosaur globe Joan had bought hi

A week after the hearing, I still woke up every morning expecting to hear Kai.It happened before I was fully conscious.Before reality had the chance to catch up with me.I’d open my eyes and listen for the familiar sounds of him shuffling around his room, talking to his dinosaurs, or yelling from the kitchen because he’d somehow convinced himself cereal tasted better if I poured the milk.For a few blissful seconds, everything would feel normal.Then I’d remember.The silence that followed was always the worst part.The apartment wasn’t loud to begin with, but without Kai, it felt hollow. Empty. Like someone had removed the most important piece and expected the rest of it to continue functioning normally.Most days, I managed.Somehow.I got out of bed.I showered.I ate when I remembered.I spoke when necessary.I existed.That was about the best I could do.The knock on my door came shortly after noon.I almost didn’t answer it.Almost.Instead, I dragged myself from the couch and