“Yeah, well he had a funny way of showing it,” I snapped.
Suddenly, it didn’t matter how much better off I was in Annandale. It didn’t matter how much Blake showed his love every single fucking day. Michael…had a kid…and no one thought that was pertinent information to fucking tell me until I saw it with my own motherfucking eyes.
I felt Michael's gaze on me before he announced his presence. I pursed my lips closed to keep from saying anything to upset him. No, that wasn't right. The only person I was worried about upsetting at this point, was the baby he cradled in his arms as if they were precious cargo. Whatever had happened to lead to this utterly fucked up moment, his kid didn't deserve my anger.
Billy and Carson both widened their eyes, jerking their heads in the general direction where I knew Michael stood.
“I have nothing to say to him,” I insisted. “He's the one who left me, not the other way around. I don't have anything to apologize for.”
“No, but I do.” A lump formed in my throat at the dejected tone of Michael's voice.
He quickly handed the baby off to Billy. Something about the easy acceptance in their exchange pissed me off even more. The baby didn't react like my brother was a stranger, and Michael didn't seem concerned about Billy's ability to care for the kid.
“I was hoping to talk to you while you were in town,” Michael admitted. “Do you think we can take a walk?”
“I have too much to deal with. My mom needs help with the finishing touches.” It was a flimsy excuse, but I'd have given anything to be my mom's gopher for the entire day after this revelation. After the party, I could think about whether or not I wanted to hear what Michael had to say.
“Please, Danny,” Michael begged. “I owe you an explanation.”
“Yeah, among other things,” I scoffed. Billy and Carson disappeared into the Community Center with the baby, leaving Michael and I on our own.
Might as well get this over with. “Fine, you have five minutes. Then, I need to get back inside to help Mom finish setting up.” As far as I was concerned, that was more than I owed my ex after the way he’d dropped an atomic bomb on what I’d once considered my future.
“Thank you.” Michael's shoulders sagged in relief. He started walking and I followed as if this was no big deal. It was the same path we’d followed countless times in the past when we were here for events we were obligated to attend. We walked to the edge of the property and then took a right, just as we had every other time. It felt familiar and foreign all at once.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up, and I didn't think it was because of the ghost stories we’d been told about this industrial area when we were kids. I glanced over at Michael, waiting to process what I felt seeing him after all the time that had passed.
Surprisingly, I didn't feel a damn thing. It was no different than if I'd run into any of my old classmates. In my mind, Michael was solidly in the past and, even if I was single, I wouldn't have fallen to my knees asking him to give us another chance.
“What the fuck is going on, Michael?” I folded my hands into fists and pressed them into the corners of my eyes. I was not going to cry. It didn't matter if he told me this kid was only one of a dozen that had come from his infidelity, I refused to shed a tear over him. He wasn't worth it.
“I know what it looks like, and you need to know before anything else that I never cheated on you.”
“Yeah, you could’ve fooled me,” I scoffed. “That's why you just happen to have a baby with you? How stupid do you think I am?”
“I don't think you're stupid at all,” he corrected me. “If anything, I'm the idiot.”
“Yeah, I'm pretty sure we can both agree on that at this point.” Even if he was telling the truth, I’d have a hard time believing him. At no point during our breakup had he mentioned a surprise baby.
“I deserve that,” he conceded. “I should have told you sooner. If there was a way for me to go back in time and do things the right way, I swear I would have told you the truth.”
“So, let's say for a minute I'm willing to hear you out. If that's not your baby, who's is it?”
“He's mine, now,” Michael told me.
“Now? What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“Biologically, he's my sister’s,” Michael explained.
“Too bad you don't have a sister. What is the point lying to me now? What's done is done and we've both moved on with our lives.” The fact he was still lying pissed me off even more. I wanted to say it didn’t hurt, but that would be a lie.
“I'm not lying to you,” Michael insisted. “You never met her because she took off before we got together. She’s older than me and left town as soon as she turned eighteen. Over the years, she's been in and out of trouble with the law and, eventually, my parents told her they didn't want to hear from her again until she cleaned up her act.”
For the second time in less than five minutes, my knees buckled. I leaned against the brick wall, trying to process everything Michael had said. I'd known him since before puberty, and I'd always assumed he was an only child. I’d been in his parents’ house and there were no signs of another kid. No school pictures lining the wall, no empty bedroom waiting for someone to come home.
I wasn’t aware it was even possible to keep a secret like that in a town this size. “But that still doesn't explain why you have her kid.”
Michael leaned against the wall next to me. At some point, both of us slid down the rough brick until we were sitting on the sidewalk. Michael placed a hand on my knee and I covered his hand with mine. I surprised myself when I didn’t jerk away from him. I was still pissed as hell for the way he left me, but I was starting to see there was more to it than I understood at the time.
