A Free Soul, Unfettered Days

Eight years of marriage, and my husband was still a stranger to our son.
He always missed Leos parent-teacher conferences.
If Leo called out Dad! in public, Arthur would never answer.
It broke my heart every time my son would look up at me, his eyes clouded with fear, and whisper, Mommy, does Daddy hate me?
Arthur was a man carved from ice, naturally cold and detached. Leo was an accident, a surprise that broke our child-free pact. I fought to keep him, but I could never make Arthur love him. I thought this was just how our lives would be, a quiet, constant ache.
Until the day a speeding car barreled toward Leo.
In that heart-stopping instant, Arthur, who had been standing right beside me, lunged forward. But he didn't throw himself in front of Leo. He dove for the boy standing next to our son.
A scream tore from my throat, ripping through the sky.
Leo lay in a growing pool of his own blood. Just before his eyes fluttered shut, he looked at me, his voice a broken whisper of disbelief, Mommy, why didnt Daddy save me?
My gaze shifted from my sons broken body to Arthur, who was now cradling the other boy, murmuring soft words of comfort.
And in that moment, something inside me shattered completely.
The truth was a cold, sharp blade in my heart. It wasn't that he didn't like children.
He just didn't like mine.
After two agonizing hours, the surgeons managed to pull Leo back from the brink. He was alive. The icy terror that had gripped me finally began to thaw, letting feeling seep back into my numb limbs.
A nurse handed me the surgical consent forms, her expression sympathetic. "A parent needs to sign."
My eyes fell on the blank line next to "Father's Signature," and a tear I hadn't known I was holding back slid down my cheek. In all his life, Arthur had never once come to the hospital with Leo. Not even now, when our son had nearly died.
I signed my name in silence, my hand shaking. Just as I finished, a familiar voice, sharp with panic, cut through the quiet hum of the waiting room.
Doctor, please, look at this child! Hes burning up!
It was Arthur. He was cradling the same boy from the accident, his face slick with sweat. And the woman clinging to his arm, her face a mask of worry, was Evelyn. His first love.
The air in my lungs froze. The blood in my veins turned to ice, inch by painful inch.
Arthur and Evelyn had been the citys golden couple. Their love was the stuff of legends, a whirlwind romance that was supposed to end at the altar. But it all imploded when Evelyn decided to move abroad. The breakup was ugly, so ugly it sent Arthur spiraling. He crashed his car, a wreck that nearly killed him.
I was the one who sat by his hospital bed for a year, pulling him back from the brink, piece by agonizing piece. I was the one he clung to in the dead of night when the nightmares came, whispering my name like a prayer. Claire, hed murmur, his voice rough with sleep and fear, I cant live without you.
The moment he was discharged, hed practically dragged me to the courthouse.
I never, ever imagined they would find their way back to each other.
And the child in his arms he looked just like Arthur. A perfect, miniature copy.
Perhaps my stare was too intense, because Arthur suddenly looked up, his eyes meeting mine. Panic flashed across his face. He saw the cold calm that had settled over me as I turned to walk away, and he took an instinctive step to follow.
But then Evelyns voice, a fragile, desperate cry, stopped him.
Arthur! Noahs not breathing right!
He froze. Without a second of hesitation, he spun around and rushed back to her side.
When I walked into Leos room, he was already awake. He was straining to lift his head, his eyes fixed on the doorway behind me, searching, hoping.
The pain in my chest was so sharp I couldn't speak.
The light in Leos eyes flickered and died. He understood. He forced a small, brittle smile. Daddys busy, he whispered, his voice getting smaller with each word until it was gone. I get it
My heart clenched. I rushed to his side, gathering his trembling, bandaged body into my arms. He was crying silently, but he still looked up at me, his face a canvas of misery, and asked the question that was destroying him.
Mommy, am I a bad kid? Is that why Daddy doesnt like me?
My poor, sweet boy. Even now, he was blaming himself.
I couldnt lie to him anymore. Tears streamed down my face. No, Leo, no. You are the best boy in the entire world. The problem isn't with you.
I held his small, battered body closer and finally said the words I had held back for so long.
If we get a divorce, would you want to come with me?
I didnt care how much money Arthur had. I couldn't leave my son with a man so utterly devoid of a heart.
Leo froze, his little mouth opening as if to say yes. But his gaze drifted back to the door, to the empty space where his father should have been, and he couldn't get the word out.
After a long moment, he buried his face in my shoulder.
Wherever you go, Mommy, Ill go, he mumbled into my shirt.
The door creaked open. It was Arthur. He looked confused. Where are you two going?
Leo and I just looked at each other. For the first time, we were united in our silence.
A flicker of surprise crossed Arthurs face before he masked it. He walked to the bedside, his gaze landing on our sons injuries. A shadow of guilt finally darkened his eyes.
Leo, Im so sorry. Is there is there any gift you want? Anything at all?
A tiny spark ignited in Leos eyes. He held his breath, his voice barely a whisper. Can you just spend one day with me, Daddy?
Arthur seemed taken aback by the simplicity of the request.
When he didn't answer right away, Leos voice grew urgent. Some of my friends are coming to visit me later, and I I just He flushed, unable to finish the sentence.
But I knew what he wanted to say. He wanted to prove that he had a father.
For the past two years, kids at school had whispered that he was the boy with no dad. Once, it got worse. Theyd taped a note to his back. By the time he found it, the whole school had seen the cruel words scrawled on it.
Bastard. Freak.
Leo had shattered that day. Hed gotten into a fight, earning a nasty scar on his face that served as a constant, haunting reminder.
Okay, Arthur finally said, his voice firm. Ill stay with you all day today.
But the promise had barely left his lips before his phone started buzzing incessantly. Arthurs jaw tightened, and he silenced it. A few minutes later, though, his attention began to drift again.
Im just going to the restroom, he announced, getting up.
My fingers went numb. Seeing the vacant look in my sons eyes, I shot up and followed him out, anger coiling in my gut.
Evelyn was waiting right outside the door, tears streaming down her face, looking artfully tragic. She clutched Noah, who looked perfectly fine.
He wont take his medicine unless he sees his daddy, she pleaded. I dont know what else to do.
Then, she dropped to her knees in front of me.
Claire, Im not trying to steal Arthur from you. But my child needs his father. Please, Im begging you. Cant you just lend him to me for a little while? Just for a moment?
Her voice was thick with manufactured sorrow. On cue, Noah began to wail.
Daddy! I want my daddy!
Arthurs eyes instantly reddened. He rushed forward and pulled Evelyn to her feet.
As he turned to leave with them, my voice came out, sharp and raw. Arthur! Have you already forgotten the promise you just made to Leo?
It was always like this. Promises made, promises broken. Gifts he swore hed buy, forgotten. Trips he planned to take Leo on, always missed. And now, he was about to crush this one, tiny, desperate wish.
I threw my pride away. I lunged forward like a madwoman and grabbed his arm. Dont you dare go. You cant leave!
A dark glint flashed in Evelyns eyes. She grabbed my wrist, her voice dripping with false sympathy. Claire, please, cant you find it in your heart to be a little kind? Youre a mother, too. How can you bear to watch a child suffer?
As she spoke, her sharp fingernails dug deep into my skin.
Ah! I cried out in pain, shaking her off.
The next second, Evelyn let out a piercing shriek and crumpled to the ground, pulling Noah down with her. The boys wails intensified.
Arthurs face contorted with rage. He spun around, and the flat, sharp crack of his hand across my face echoed in the hallway.
You venomous bitch!
The force of the blow sent me staggering backward. I tripped, and my head hit the polished floor with a sickening thud. The world spun, and I gagged, bile rising in my throat.
A crowd was already gathering, their whispers like a swarm of insects.
Is that the other woman? She has some nerve, attacking a mother and her child. Shameless.
Yeah, look at that poor little boy crying. Its just awful.
I trembled, pushing myself up from the floor, my body aching.
Arthur looked at me, a flicker of regret in his eyes, but then Evelyn let out a soft sob, and his expression hardened again. He turned back to her.
Daddy!
A broken cry came from down the hall.
Arthur slowly turned. Leo was standing there, barefoot, his small body rigid as he fought back tears.
Daddy, you promised, he choked out. You promised youd stay with me today.
A few of his classmates were standing behind him, their eyes wide with curiosity.
Leo stared at his father, his entire body trembling, a desperate plea in his eyes that was so raw it was almost unbearable to witness.
For a moment, Arthur looked torn. But then Noah whimpered Daddy again.
That was all it took. The conflict vanished from his face. He turned his back on our son, scooped Noah into his arms, and walked away without another glance.

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