"Because he told me that if I cried he would hit me, but I was very afraid, so he hit me. Mom says that you should not hit anyone, ever."
“Your mom is right; he shouldn’t have hit you.”
“But you hit a lot of men, Sarah too.”
Shit.
Well, yeah, it’s true, but we were saving everybody's damn life, Ben.
“Sometimes, in situations like the one we're in, it's necessary, but only people like me or Sarah can do that.”
“Why?”
“Well, because we were trained to protect people.”
“What's training?”
This is worse than an FBI interrogation.
“Training means you work too hard to learn something.”
“Is there a school where you learn how to hit?”
Wow...just...wow...
“You learn a lot of things, not just hitting, when you grow up you'll understand.” Why did I say that phrase?! I hated it when my father said it to me!
“When I grow up, I want to hit like you and Sarah, but don't tell my mom, she'll get mad.”
“I won’t, I promise.” I answer with a smile. “Ben, do you remember where you lived with your mom?”
He gets up from the bucket and solemnly says, “211 Tree Lane, Sacramento, California.”
“Wow, that was impressive!” I applaud.
“My teacher, Miss Steckel, said it's important to know my home address by heart, so I can tell an adult where I live, in case I get lost.”
“And she was right.”
“Yeah...” Ben is about to add words when something on the floor distracts him, it's a kind of worn rope, but he looks at it like it's the most precious thing in the world.
“Don't expect a child to go more than five minutes without being distracted.” says Sarah behind me.
As soon as I see her, I remember the talk from a while ago; I want to get angry, to shout at her face, but I can't, I don’t have the right to say anything.
I need to swallow my jealousy before it consumes me alive.
“You heard that, right? He' s got an address.” I say, as I lean my hip against the machine, my arms cross over my chest.
She’s standing in front of me now, “Yeah, that's good news.”
Is it?
“I guess...” I whisper under my breath hoping she doesn't hear, but like every woman on earth, she hears everything and walks towards me, stopping inches away.
I want to take her, touch her, but I resist.
“What do you mean?”
