“But I was having fun with my friends.”
“And I’m glad you had fun with your friends, but it’s time to go home.”
“I don’t want to,” Kai said softly, and there was sadness in his voice.
Honey withheld her sigh, feeling guilty and frustrated at the same time. Andre did this on purpose, trying to make her seem like the bad guy, and she wanted Kai to have fun, but not like this. There were so many things happening at once, so many emotions brewing inside of her, and she was still reeling from Andre’s threat. She hated that she had to be the bad guy in this moment and ruin her son’s fun, but she didn’t know what else to do.
“You can still have fun,” Nikos said, and Honey and Kai both whipped their heads to look at him. “How about we go to an amusement park? You like amusement parks, right, Kai?”
“Yay!” Kai cheered while Honey stared at Nikos, baffled.
“What about the club?” Honey asked.
“It’s fine,” Nikos assured her before he picked up his phone and called someone. He mouthed to her to put in the address before he started speaking on the phone.
“Yeah. Yeah. Cancel Honey’s performance, and switch it out with someone else… pick anyone and give them extra pay…”
Honey wanted to continue to eavesdrop, but Kai started tapping her shoulder for her attention.
“Yes, honey.”
“Let’s go to Legoland,” Kai cheered. “I’ve always wanted to go.”
“Shh,” Honey slightly admonished. “Nikos’s on the phone, so you have to be quiet.”
“Sorry,” Kai whispered, and Honey smiled, happy to see her son was in good spirits again.
“Is there any other amusement park you want to go to? Legoland is too far,” Honey said, but to be honest, she was just as worried about the cost. It definitely was not the cheapest amusement park.
“How far is it?” Nikos asked as he got off the phone.
“It’s almost two hours away,” Honey said, and Kai pouted.
“That’s fine,” Nikos said as if a two-hour drive were nothing.
“Yay!”
“We should hurry up and get a move on then,” Nikos said, and Honey felt like she could barely keep up with the excited energy that was coming from both of them.
“But—”
“It’s on me,” Nikos said as if he had read her mind, and Honey was at a loss for words as Kai cheered while Nikos pulled off.
“Make sure you’re strapped in, kid,” Nikos told Kai, and Kai did as told.
Honey sat dumbfounded, not having really expected something like this from Nikos. He never really seemed much like the thoughtful type to her, and he had helped her out before, but this was him really going out of his way. But instead of questioning it, she was happy because her son was happy, and that was all that really mattered.
The car ride was long, and Kai chattered the whole way through, but Nikos actually listened and engaged with him before they finally made it to Legoland an hour and forty-five minutes later. True to his word, Nikos paid for everything, even stopping her from paying for her own ticket. Kai and Nikos played on every ride at the park, and Honey joined them on some before Kai played by himself on a carousel ride while they sat on the bench, watching him.
As Kai looped back around to them, Honey waved while Nikos gave him a thumbs up. Kai smiled and continued on the carousel ride.
“Thanks for helping out today,” Honey said gratefully. She hadn’t gotten the chance to tell him earlier because everything had been going at light speed that she hadn’t had much time to catch her breath, let alone think. But now that they were sitting down together without Kai in earshot, she felt that now was the best time to say it.
“I nearly lost my mind back there, but…”
You helped keep me grounded.
She wanted to say that, but she couldn’t. She didn’t like what the words implied, and she also didn’t want to interpret what they meant either. A thank you should suffice in this situation, not all of her feelings.
