Parker leaned back and studied her daughter.“I thought you said they called you a tomboy?”As far as insults went, it was pretty mild, but hearing it over and over again could do a good amount of damage, especially to someone as sensitive as Kit.
Kit shook her head, her eyes glued to her hands.“They didn’t call me that.”She looked around the room before staring at Parker again, her eyes wary.“They made fun of me because we’re poor.”
“How so?”A knot formed in Parker’s gut, twisting tighter and tighter the longer Kit stayed silent.If she was hesitating this long, the words must have cut deep.
Kit ran her fingers along the hem of one of her new shirts.It wasn’t her usual style, far more girly than anything she’d had in the past.Parker thought she was just trying something new, but now she wondered if that had been her style all along and Kit had understood that it was previously out of their price range.
“They said I dressed in rags and that my pants looked like they belonged to a little kid.They said I smelled like I didn’t wash my clothes.”She ran her hands over her hair and shrugged.“That my hair looked stupid.”
Parker brushed a few soft, brown strands away from Kit’s eyes.“I know I don’t cut it very well, but I thought you liked it short.”Kit hadn’t ever complained or asked to grow it out, so Parker had made that assumption a long time ago and never thought much about it.
Kit bit her lip and shook her head.“I overheard a mom talking about how short hair was easier to deal with if you got lice and that only dirty kids got lice.”She sniffled and wiped her nose on the back of her hand.“I don’t really know what lice is but she said that it was a big hassle and I didn’t want to make more work for you.”
Falling back on her heels, Parker stared at her daughter, seeing her in a new light that both made her incredibly proud of the person Kit was becoming and horrified that the little girl had dealt with all of that on her own.Pulling her into a hug again, Parker squeezed her as tightly as she could without breaking her.“I am so sorry, sweetheart.”Parker blinked away tears, not wanting to make her daughter worry.She thought she hid most of their money troubles from Kit, but apparently she’d done a poorer job than she thought.“I am so, so sorry.”
Kit’s small arms wrapped around her back as she sniffled again.“You didn’t do anything,” she mumbled against her shoulder.
Parker pulled back, cupping Kit’s face.“Thank you for finally telling me.I’m sorry you felt like you had to hide it from me, but no more of that okay.We’re both strong and can handle the hard stuff, right?”
Kit nodded.“Right.”
Parker pulled her daughter into another hug and kissed her on the cheek.They were both strong, but Parker was going to make sure she did everything in her power from now on to make sure Kit had more opportunities to just be a kid and not deal with the problems of adulthood.“Let’s finish dinner and then we can set out your outfit for tomorrow.”
With suddenly tired eyes, Parker watched as Kit sped through the rest of her dinner, already making plans for a hair appointment for Kit and using the remainder of the gift cards on some more clothes for her.Kit had been eyeing a dress in the kid’s section when they’d gone shopping with Cora, but Parker didn’t think it was practical and said as much.She still thought that, but after listening to Kit, she decided that maybe giving into the impractical every now and then wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
While they were washing up after dinner, a knock came from the front door.Kit peeled over to it, whipping it open to reveal Travis holding a small brown box.“Evening.”The word came out as gruffly as it always did, but neither Parker nor Kit were fazed by it anymore.In fact, the low tenor of his voice perked her up a bit.Before she’d been ready to go to sleep, but now Parker was wide awake, not wanting to miss a moment with him.“Brought you something.”
Travis passed the box over to Kit who immediately carried it into the kitchen.Parker was drying her hands on a tea towel, smiling when she noticed that Travis lingered awkwardly in the doorway.“You can come in,” she chuckled.Travis nodded and stepped inside before joining the two of them as they stood around the table.“What’s in the box?”
Travis pushed it toward Kit.“Open it, find out.”
Kit ripped off the string that had been tied around the box and lifted the lid, squeaking happily as she looked up at Travis.“Did you make this?”Parker leaned over to get a better look, smiling at the sight of a small chocolate cake with the words “Have a great first day of school” piped over the top in white icing.It was a beautiful cake, one she couldn’t imagine the large man next to her making, but people had hidden depths.Maybe this was one of his.
“Hell no.”He huffed a laugh and shook his head, rubbing his newly trimmed beard.Had he done that for her?Parker shook her head, trying not to get caught up in him too much.Of course he wouldn’t have done anything like that for her.They were coworkers at best, nothing more.“Can cook fine, baking is tougher.Got this from my brother, Aiden.”
Parker smiled at Travis.Even if he didn’t bake it himself, getting it for Kit was still a sweet gesture she would remember for the rest of her life.“Thank you.”
Her eyes moved down to Kit who was practically drooling over the dessert and nudged her with her elbow.Kit looked up at Travis.“Oh, yeah.Thank you.”She walked up to the big man and hugged him.Travis looked surprised at first, but a small smile played on his lips as he lightly hugged her back.“Can we eat it now, Mom?”
Pretending to think about it for a moment, Parker finally relented when her daughter pointed big puppy eyes up at her.She had no intention of making her wait any longer, but it was nice to have an excuse to be playful for once.
“I think we can have a small slice.”She turned to Travis who was watching the two of them with a soft smile.“As long as you’ll join us.”
Travis opened his mouth, probably to decline, but Kit was already pushing him down at the table before taking the seat next to him.“You have to stay.This cake looks so good, and I have so many questions about the school.You grew up here, right?”Travis started to nod, but Kit was already barreling forward again.“What was third grade like?Did you have Mrs.Linklighter?She seems nice like your mom, but she also seems like the type of teacher who could mean business, not that I plan on giving her a hard time or anything.”
Travis looked up at Parker who simply shrugged and went about grabbing plates and forks for the cake, listening to Kit talk Travis’s ear off and smiling when he gave her a bit more than his usual curt responses.The rapid fire questioning could have easily been annoying to him, especially given his sensory issues, but as they sat and shared the most delicious chocolate truffle cake Parker had ever eaten, Travis didn’t seem to mind one bit.In fact, he lingered at the table long after they’d finished their dessert, sharing stories from his school years.The whole time he was there it had felt like the beginning of something.What that something was, Parker wasn’t quite sure, only knowing that whatever it turned out to be felt more special than anything she’d had in a long time.
