I always felt I had established a firm, separate life for myself and my daughter Megan. I had struggled to build a good job, home by the sea and bring her up alone for years. When I was in reflective mode, I realized that there was no one to share the load of life with and someone to talk to.
That night, I had organised a special supper just for us two, Megan and me. I made up the table, I lit candles, and waited with hope in my heart. I never anticipated the next thing.
— “Mom, this is Grayson,” Megan said, and she appeared with a man who looked even more of an old man than I am.
— “Nice to meet you, Erica,” he said confidently and showed me his hand.
— “Similarly”, I replied, to conceal my awkwardness. Megan hadn’t made mention of bringing a guest — not even that old.
We sat down but the air became heavy.
As I asked Grayson what he did, he said with a cool “Finance. Investments.” And when I inquired about college from Megan, she dropped a bomb:
— Maybe not everyone is college material.
I attempted to keep cool and try to remind her of how much we worked to get her there. But this man had cast some spell on her. She said she was free with him, she could breathe.
I told her in case she left her school, she could not expect my monetary help. She didn’t hesitate:
— “That’s fine. I have Grayson’s money now.”
And that’s when the whole thing really came apart.
That same night we were all sitting uncomfortably in silence; a loud knock filled the house. Megan opened the door… and there was a young woman, all red-eyed, clearly upset.
— “YOU!” she yelled at Grayson. You told me that I was the only one!”
Grayson froze.
Rachel admitted of putting a in his car after he kept avoiding her. Megan was stunned. She didn’t require any other evidence. She dragged him to the door and yelled:
— “Get out.” Right now. I do not want to see you anymore.
Grayson stumbled out. When he went onto the road a car came around the corner and ran into him. The terrible sound of the hit stopped everything.
At the hospital, they told us he could not travel for a while.
The town’s only hotel was closed because of renovations. And however hard I wanted to turn him away, I could not leave him on the street. I grudgingly let him remain.
In the days afterwards, a strange thing happened. I started to see the other side of him. We spent the evenings playing chess and kept each other company in endless talk. He told him that he had lost his wife in their youth, and never recovered. According to him younger women were just distractions; he felt lonely and lost.
I progressively fell in love.
When Grayson came to, he suggested softly that we go see to Megan together and speak to her. We found her at a small cafe. She was cold at first but she listened.
— “I’m not here to play father,” Grayson told her. I am here because I care. You are entitled to make your own decisions about your future without me, or your mother pressuring you to do so.
Megan rolled her eyes but something moved. She ultimately stated:
— “Fine. “I will think about it.”
A few days after I received a call from her.
Mom… perhaps you were right after all. I don’t have access to Grayson’s card anymore. The males I’ve come across don’t respect me. I have dreamt of my old life, of my friends… the university”.
She paused, then added:
— “I’m sorry. I want to return to school. This time, I mean it.”
Those words, hearing them, I felt that I got my daughter back. Grayson gave my hand a squeeze and in a soft voice said:
— “I love you. We’ll face whatever comes—together.”
And there went calm upon me like that. For the first time in a long time, I was ready to take my hands off the wheel and believe in what lay in front. We kept on perching there together watching the waves hit the coast. We knew life would entail storms but we were not rootless.
