Like We Used To (Nick Santino)

DINNER

I was a little bit late for our gathering at Erick’s. Anna was expecting me to come with Optimus Prime but I know she will understand if I leave him behind. It's not because it was late at night, I was worried about my friends reactions once I bring him with me.

I was walking in fast pace going inside and directly went to the table we always take.

“Too late bud,” Erick points out.

“Sorry, I just drop off a friend to his house,” I pled, and sit down next to Andrew.

They look at me in bold manner. I know Anna mention to them about the kid I brought to her house. Now, I owe them an explanation. We gather here for the Taylor’s Plan B and I think we need to tackle another discussion about the kid. They will never like me letting go of a need to talk about subject.

“Stop looking at me like that,” I snapped as I was putting some foods on my plate.

“Are you completely out of your mind?” Justin asks me.

“If this is about the kid, then I’ll explain,” I answer. I drop off my spoon and drink little water.

“I know I acted so weird for the past days but this doesn’t mean I’m not thinking what I been doing. I just give a little help to the kid because I know if Taylor was here, she will do the same thing,” I utter.

I was speaking in a high pitch tone because I was a little mad. I don’t want to talk about the kid or what I did to him. I am happy of what we do a while ago, the first time I felt like that for the past six years. And I kind of think I still deserve to be happy and let others be happy with me.

“Now, tell me is there something wrong with that?” I ask them, looking at them one by one who quietly sit down on their chairs.

“Nick, it was the first time I saw you smile genuinely. I know how happy you are with that kid and its fine for me that you go out with him once in a while,” Anna speculated.

“He is still a stranger, bud. Don’t trust someone like that,” Andrew warns me.

“He’s just a kid. And I just take him to McDonalds. A kid will not harm me. He doesn’t know his dad and he haven’t seen his mom for a year,” I argue.

In another point, Andrew was right. The kid was a stranger but he was just a five year’s old little boy, he will not do something bad to me, unless if Jacksman will know he was with me.

“I think someone beat him up,” Anna asserted. “He had bruises in his ribs and his back.”

“Really?”  Andrew bellowed.

“I saw it with my two eyes,” she claimed.

I can’t tell them I got that kiddo in Jacksman place. It will make them ore get angry with me. For now, I have to keep it to myself. It was not the right time to tell them, maybe after I will get Taylor I can tell them about it.

“We can report it to-“

“No we can’t do that,” I cut Erick’s suggestion.

“But why we can’t?” Justin asks.

“His Uncle will kill his mom once he report to the police,” I said, lying to them. “That’s why I’m going to see the kid once in a while if ever his Uncle will throw him out of the house again. That cruel man does it regularly to him.”

“He is heartless,” Andrew comments.

I know I been too rude to them for hiding who the kid was. But it’s for the little guys goodness, if Detective Gabby knows he is living at Jacksman, he will be put under investigation which I don’t want to happen.

After talking to them, my friends agree to help the kid, they even suggest that I should adopt him or maybe we should find a family who’s will to adopt him. It was a little bit funny, somehow, it’s a good idea but I know it’s a long process. I think I better help him locate his dad. And his mom, we will get her together with Taylor.