Precious Secret

32. Boys Night

Stephen

Today is the day.

The long awaited, dreadful day.

Not on my part of course, but I'm almost positive Krystina is dreading this.

Today is the day my son becomes a man.

Today marks my first unsupervised weekend with Bryan, and we are going to go wild.

I'm talking cheese pizza and chicken nuggets for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and getting chocolate wasted on both nights.

And bedtimes? We don't believe in such things around these parts.

I went all out at the store this morning. Now I'm not trying to spoil him, or buy his favor. But this is a party!
Ok. It's not really a party. But we're gonna act like it is because this is still a moment to be celebrated. A year a go I didn't have a son,and tonight he's spending the weekend with me. Unsupervised.

It should come as a shock to no one that we're about to get buck wild.

I told Krystina that I'd spent the last few days stockpiling toys, a bed, and just anything that Bryan might need while here.

That, however, obviously didn't deter Bryan who has an entire additional suitcase stuffed full of his toys.

Do I mind the extra luggage?

Hell no.

This is a party remember? The more the merrier.

I even got myself a large onesie to match the ones that I know Bry wears to bed and on the weekends.

Now I know that you're thinking.

You're thinking "parenting is about more than the fun sleepovers, and doing things that your sons mother wouldn't allow".

Normally, I would agree.

But as this is again, my first unsupervised long term visit with Bry, I figure now is the time to go all out before we eventually reign it in.

I help Bry out of the car and into my apartment. I've since upgraded to a two bedroom situation, to make sure that I have ample room for all future nights that Bryan will spend at mine.

The room is barely furnished, a nice bed and a few toys that I've been collecting for him over the past few weeks.

I had his bulging toy suitcase to the mix as Bryan surveys the room.
"What do you think, buddy?" I ask him after a minute.
"Can we paint the walls?" He asks me, gesturing towards the plain white walls.

I wince. "Unfortunately we can't. This isn't like the house that your mom and Sav live in. This is an apartment that I do not own, and as such, can't really make any permanent changes to. But, if the white walls bother you, we can see about getting some of that peels and stick stuff that you can put on the walls. How does that sound?" I ask.

He smiles up at me, giving me two thumbs up. "Sound s good."

Bryan and I spend the rest of the evening doing exactly what we said we would. Thought I thought we'd stay up a bit later, we both seemed to crash from exhaustion at around 10:30pm.

I helped Bryan clean himself up a bit, before tucking him into bed.

I stared down at him silently for several minutes as he slept.

Even though the circumstances surrounding my discovery of him were less than ideal, I still felt blessed.

Blessed to have the opportunity, short a few years, to raise I son that I created.

Blessed to get to make memories with him and such a young age.

And blessed to know that we had so many more years of memories to make.

——

The next morning, Bryan and I went over our story several times.

Now, I wouldn't ordinarily condone my son lying to his mother about what he's been up to all night, nor did I think this one little white lie would somehow translate into Bryan making a habit out of lying to his parents.

But you've met Krys........in a way.

I'm sure you'd do the same in my shoes.

And if not, congratulations. No one cares.

I told Bryan that it would be best that, if asked, he added a few veggie toppings to the triple meat pizza we'd had the night before, while also removing some of the desert items while he told his mother of our shenanigans.

"Isn't this fibbing?" He asked me at one point.

"I mean, technically it is. But this time, and this time only, it's for a good cause." I told him sheepishly.

He pondered that for a moment. "Am I still gonna get presents for Christmas if I tell this fib to mommy?" He asked, looking mildly concerned.

"Yes" I laughed. "I'll make sure your gifts are still perfectly wrapped under the tree come Christmas."

He though it over for a moment more, before finally agreeing, and going back to the cartoon that he was half watching on the television.

After breakfast, we cleaned up the kitchen, before heading to Bryan's room and making a mess out of it with our playing.

We stayed like that for another hour or so, before packing up most of his things that he brought over and settling back into the car.

We grabbed a happy meal full of chicken nuggets and fries, that we devoured in the parking lot, before making it way back to Bryan's house.

As a complete and utter shock to literally no one. Krys was sitting in the porch when we arrived, and I didn't miss the way she scanned Bryan from head to toe as I helped him out of the car.

"He's still got all ten fingers, ten toes, both ears and eyes that I have to assume he was born with." I told he sarcastically and we walked up the front stairs.

"Har har." She said in response, shooting me a look that told me she meant no harm in her thorough once over of our son.

"So," she began. "How was it?" She asked excitedly looking between the both of us.

Bryan glanced at me before taking a deep breath and opening his mouth to speak.

"We had pizza with lots of vegetables for dinner, and one chocolate chip cookie and a small cup of soda for desert. Then we stayed up until only a little bit past my bed time playing with all the toys that daddy got for me in my new room. Then we got up and we had breakfast, and played some more, then we had chicken nuggets and apples or lunch, and then daddy brought us home." He told her in a rush, causing me to wince at the absolute lack of subtlety.

Krys narrowed her eyes, looking between me and Bryan several times before he eyes traveled back to mine where they stayed.

"Really Steph," she drawled dryly.

I shrugged my shoulders in response, as she laughed before escorting Bryan and I into the the house.

_________________________________

Im not sure what possessed me to bring write this chapter at nearly two in the morning, but I'm glad I did. As we are one chapter closer to the end (thank God).

Vote and comment if you'd like, and hopefully the notifications will remind me to update and finish this story before 2022 graced us with her presence.

Stay safe. Wear a mask.