My Boyfriend’s Girl-Son
I spent the whole night rebooking our hotel and remapping our itinerary.
It wasn't until we got to our destination that I found out the "friend" was his 21-year-old childhood friend, Cassie.
Liam claimed she had nowhere to go for the holiday. He said we could help her out, you know, "like parents taking their son on a trip."
That night, while Liam was debating whether to stay in his "wife's" room or his "son's" room, I told him we were done.
He flew into a rage, chose my room, and pinned me to the bed. "Don't even think about running away. I'm sick and tired of you giving me the silent treatment and disappearing whenever you're mad. I'm not accepting this breakup. I've got you tonight."
In the middle of the night, while he was asleep, I took my still-unpacked suitcase and went home.
Don't play me for a fool, Liam. Not anymore.
1
I stood in the packed airport terminal in the dead of night, suitcase in hand. Trying to get a flight home immediately during a peak holiday weekend was impossible. My only option was to pay an exorbitant fee for a long-haul taxi.
The three days of vacation I'd earned by working a full year without a break were being spent on the road.
Despite his words about not letting me run, Liam only called once, the morning after I left.
"Penny, why are you so stubborn? It must be a rough ride back. I left some dumplings I made in your freezer. You can cook some when you get home. Take care of yourself."
I mumbled a quiet agreement. The car's navigation system was speaking clearly in the background, but Liam prattled on, telling me what to do when I got home.
After hanging up, I leaned back in my seat, exhausted from a sleepless night.
The driver’s voice broke the silence. "Hey, kiddo, we're not gonna make it home today. This GPS says we won't get there 'til morning."
A moment later, he spoke again. "Kiddo, I gotta ask, what's the point of all this?" Thump. He slammed his fist on the steering wheel, and I felt the whole car shake.
He’d been on a righteous tirade ever since last night when I insisted on hiring him for an interstate trip. After all, who arrives in Vermont for the first day of a holiday weekend only to leave before the night is even over?
Seeing he was about to drag me to his sister’s place for the night if I didn’t explain, I finally gave in and told him I’d had a fight with my boyfriend and just wanted to go home.
That morning's phone call, which I was too groggy to fully process, had been the last straw for him.
"Does he think you can fly? That you can just get home in a day? Buying a ticket during the holidays isn't that easy! Honey, you're being a fool. You're the one suffering on this long ride home, and I bet you anything he's back there having the time of his life!"
I just smiled without saying a word.
This wasn't the first time Liam had pulled something like this. He always had an excuse to bring his "little sister from next door" along.
We'd had a huge fight about it just before the trip. I told him I was sick of Cassie tagging along on every single one of our dates. She was twenty-one, not eleven. Just because she went to college in our city didn't mean she had to be our permanent third wheel.
2
Last month, when Liam proposed, I finally put my foot down. I told him I needed Cassie to be less a part of our lives.
He promised. He swore she was just immature, like a little kid. He claimed he had no idea it bothered me so much. If I had just said something sooner, he would have been more careful!
And yet, a month later, here we were again, same old story.
I had worked for a year without a single day off just to make sure the hospital wouldn't schedule me for this holiday weekend. I’d come straight from a night shift to spend hours booking hotels and planning our itinerary.
When I showed up at the airport, dark circles under my eyes, the first thing I saw was Liam and Cassie, who had already been there for a while.
"Penny!" Cassie waved at me from a distance, a sugary-sweet smile on her face.
My own face went cold. "Liam, I thought you said 'never again.'"
He looked embarrassed and quickly wrapped an arm around me. "Penny, this was a special case, a real emergency! Her hometown is so far away, she couldn't go back for the holiday, and she was all alone in her dorm. We couldn't just leave her, right? It's more fun with more people anyway."
He squeezed my shoulder. "We'll just play Mom and Dad taking our kid on a trip. Come on, be good."
I didn't say anything, just let him knead my hand in his. He probably took my silence as acceptance.
He called out to Cassie, who was fiddling with a keychain. "Isn't that right, son? Get over here and help your Mom and Dad with the luggage!"
Cassie wasn't stupid. Seeing my sour expression, her initial enthusiasm vanished. She listlessly dragged our three suitcases behind her. "Yeah, yeah, okay, Dad. Let's go, let's go!"
I expected it to be like all the other times, with Cassie being everywhere, needing Liam's help for everything. But this time, she was quiet the whole way.
It wasn't until we got to the hotel that I figured it out.
Not only had Cassie booked her flight well in advance, she'd already booked her hotel room, too.
Right next door to ours.
It made the family suite I'd paid extra for at the last minute feel like a complete joke.
3
I sat alone in our hotel room, waiting for Liam to get Cassie settled in her room next door. My fingers scrolled endlessly through return flights and train tickets. I even checked the bus schedule.
I was done being patient.
I stood up, grabbed my suitcase, and headed for the door.
"Penny, you won't believe what Cassie just said." Liam walked in the exact moment I stood up. "She's hilarious. After I got her checked in, she asked me if I wanted to sleep with my wife or my son tonight. Can you believe that? Of course my wife comes first. A son is always just a son!"
He pulled me into his arms. I remained silent.
Liam finally seemed to notice something was wrong. He tilted his head, studying my face. "What's the matter, Penny? Cassie was just kidding. It's not like I'd actually sleep with her. We're all adults here."
"Liam, let's break up."
My own voice sounded terrifyingly calm. I was done fighting.
"Penny, what are you talking about..." Liam froze. When it finally registered, his voice got louder and louder. "I don't agree! You accepted my proposal. What is this about? Tell me! You do this every time, you just shut down and don't say anything, and I'm supposed to guess what's going on in your head? How am I supposed to know what you're thinking?"
I pushed him out of my way and started walking out with my suitcase. Liam's strength was surprising. He snatched the suitcase and threw it aside, grabbing my arm and forcing me down onto the bed.
"Penny Miller, I'm the only one who can put up with this temper of yours. You just shut down and disappear whenever you're mad. Well, today I'm holding on to you. Let's see you run now!"
As he spat out the vicious words, he took a moment to send a voice message to Cassie.
"Son, you're on your own tonight. Don't bother your Mom and Dad!"
4
I waited until he was sound asleep. At one in the morning, I took my things and went to the airport. I asked driver after driver, but most weren't willing to make the long trip. This one, however, seemed to think I was a lost soul with nowhere to go. He insisted on knowing my story, then practically forced me into his car.
Vermont was a long way from home. It was a place I'd never been, a place whose crisp winds and heavy snows I'd always dreamed of seeing. In college, I imagined I would one day visit with the love of my life. I never thought it would take me this many years to get here, only to leave like this.
The driver spent half the trip cursing out scumbags. As I was getting out, he even tried to set me up with his younger brother. A solid, family-oriented guy, he promised, who would never pull any of this nonsense.
I just smiled and didn't respond. After getting my luggage, I told him to drive safe on his way back.
"Alright, kiddo. But my brother's a real catch, and a fantastic cook! There are plenty of good guys like us out there!"
"I know, I know. Drive safe!"
I watched the out-of-state license plate disappear down the street. Dragging my travel-weary body, I finally made it home and had a chance to check my phone.
My family knew I was with Liam, so no messages. My colleagues at the hospital, whom I'd repeatedly begged for an uninterrupted vacation, also hadn't reached out. Liam, probably figuring I was in a foul mood and not wanting to poke the bear, hadn't sent a single text since that one phone call.
But there was one message from Cassie. An explanation that she didn't mean for this to happen, and that she'd told Liam to call me to make sure I was safe.
I was silent for a moment. Then I tapped on her cartoon profile picture.
Her latest social media post was right at the top.
"Exploring Vermont with Dad! Eat, eat, eat, haha."
The picture was of her holding a Ben & Jerry's ice cream bar with a bite taken out of it. Behind her, Liam, who has a sensitive stomach, was frowning, chewing on that exact bite of ice cream.
I put my phone down and looked at the dumplings Liam had left for me in the freezer. He didn't know how to cook much, but dumplings were the one thing his mother had made him practice since he was a kid. Ever since we met, he'd make a batch for me whenever he had time, worried I'd get home late from a shift with nothing to eat.
But Liam himself couldn't eat frozen, greasy, or fried foods. He never got used to the local cuisine here. So, on my rare days off, I would cook light, simple meals and bring them to him. I even put together a whole collection of healthy recipes so he wouldn't get bored.
But none of that mattered now.
I took all the dumplings out of the freezer and boiled them. I ate most of them, tears streaming down my face.
5
In the adult world, you go to work even when your heart is broken. The three-day weekend flew by, especially since I'd spent it all in a car. The driver's non-stop pep talks had barely left me a moment to feel sad. It wasn't until I was back home that it hit me.
It was really over.
When I got to work that morning, a colleague teased me, "So, Penny, how was it? Vermont is totally different from here, right? Did you take pictures?"
"Could you see any snow yet?"
"Yeah, Dr. Miller! I've never been that far. I wonder if I can get a shift change during the winter season."
"God, the holiday crowds! I just want a break!"
More and more people gathered around, and I felt a wave of embarrassment. We'd all worked together for so long, and I didn't know how to just blurt out that Liam and I had broken up and I'd stormed home.
"Alright, alright, leave our Penny alone! Everyone, back off—"
Liam strode over from the OB/GYN department, his white coat still unbuttoned. He walked into the center of the group, a huge smile on his face. "I'll show you the pictures. Please, I'm begging you, give my Penny a break."
The crowd laughed. The colleagues who'd been stuck on duty over the holiday were exhausted and eager for a distraction. They clamored to see the photos on his phone.
Liam was tall, and he smiled and winked at me over their heads. My earlier awkwardness was gone, replaced by a pure, simmering annoyance.
I turned and walked away. I could still hear their voices behind me.
"Wow, the autumn colors are gorgeous."
"I want to quit my job and go right now!"
"Hey, Dr. Adams, Dr. Miller is a pretty good photographer! You look so handsome in this picture!"
"Where's Dr. Miller? Let's see if you made our hospital's prettiest doctor look bad!"
"Ooh, who's this? She's really pretty too. They really do have beautiful women up north..."
6
The voices faded. It took everything in me not to expose Liam's whole charade right then and there. I quickened my pace. I'd just stepped into my office and was about to close the door when a hand shot out, blocking it.
It was Liam, a look of exasperation on his face. "Penny, you got home and didn't even let me know. I was worried about you. And you wouldn't talk to me just now. Please, don't be angry."
His voice was low and placating. "Let me show you the pictures I took in Vermont. You always wanted to go. The whole time I was taking them, I just kept thinking how much I wished you were there."
He held out his phone, scrolling through the photos. They were all solo shots of him, with a few landscape pictures mixed in. He kept flicking through them, one after another. Maybe he was going too fast, or maybe he just didn't think it was a big deal, because suddenly he swiped right past the picture from Cassie's social media post.
"That's enough!" I yanked the door open. Liam, caught off balance, stumbled.
Though I was furious, I kept my voice as low as I could. "Liam, have you been playing me for a fool this whole time?! Why is Cassie always between us? And stop with the 'son' crap. She's a woman, and her last name isn't yours!"
My words were rushed, forced through a tight throat. Liam stared at me, his smile vanishing, his face hardening.
"Penny, I honestly don't understand why you always have such a problem with Cassie. What has she ever done to you? This time, if she hadn't convinced me, I wouldn't have even bothered trying to win you back. It's the same thing every time. The second something isn't perfect, you give me the cold shoulder. Can't we just talk things out? This constant silent treatment is just going to destroy what we have."
7
No matter how quiet we were, our argument was overheard. A colleague, who had been on his way to joke about our trip, walked right into our tense standoff. His mouth was faster than his eyes, and though he saw the awkward atmosphere, the words still tumbled out. "Dr. Adams, hey, the guys were saying you two met a young lady on your trip. She got a boyfriend? Heh, I was hoping to get her num—"
He trailed off, silenced by the heavy air between us. "Right, uh, I'm gonna go do my rounds!"
Our fight was interrupted. Liam gave me a disappointed look. "Penny, if you have something to say, just say it. I don't accept this breakup. You need to calm down, too."
He shut the door with a sharp click.
I walked back to my desk and collapsed into my chair. How did it all come to this?
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