My son, Elijah Rogers, died, killed in a cramped bathroom stall, his head crushed. When my husband, Daniel Rogers, the school principal, arrived at the scene, he rushed to get the attacker, his old flame’s son. Onto an ambulance and quickly left. Before my son died, he comforted me. “Mom, don’t cry. Dad doesn’t believe me, but I’m not sad at all. “As long as you believe me, Mom, that’s enough… At my son’s funeral, I called my husband, Daniel. He shouted at me furiously, “Jerome needed two stitches on his arm, all because your son scratched him! If you keep bothering me, I’ll deal with him when I get back!” I thought, “My son?” I looked at my child’s forehead, a gaping wound the size of a bowl, and closed my eyes. I thought, “Yes, he was my son… So, Daniel, my son, is dead. There’s nothing left between us.” ***** “Elijah, don’t be scared. I called an ambulance. They’ll be here soon. Just hold on, alright?” A trail of blood stretched from the bathroom stall, making my vision blur. It was the blood Elijah had shed as he tried to escape. I could only imagine how terrified and in pain he must’ve been… I pressed on his forehead wound, my hands shaking, but blood kept seeping through my fingers. It wouldn’t stop. Outside, the sound of an ambulance siren approached. “Elijah! The ambulance is here! You’ll be okay!” Then Daniel ran past the window, carrying a boy in his arms, rushing to the ambulance. “Jerome, don’t worry. I’ll make sure you’re alright!” The ambulance sped off as quickly as it came, leaving me barely able to believe my own eyes. I screamed with all my might. “Stop! That ambulance was for us! “Daniel! Elijah’s dying. Come back! “Daniel, I’m begging you…” No one noticed the real victim, barely clinging to life. I quickly dialed Daniel’s number, once, twice, but he never answered. The third time I tried, Elijah grabbed my wrist with his blood-stained hand. “Mom, stop calling… Dad’s not coming back.” My tears fell immediately. “I’m not calling him. I’m calling another ambulance. One will come soon.” “Mom, I can’t breathe…” Elijah’s hand was ice-cold, colder than the tiles he lay on. “Mom, I’m sorry… I won’t be able to protect you anymore… “In my next life, will you be my mom again? “But this time, I don’t want a dad…” Before he finished speaking, his hand went limp. My heart stopped for a moment, and then, all at once, the pain flooded in. Ignoring the blood still flowing from him, I lifted him onto my back, following the trail of blood out. His blood ran down my neck, warm yet silent. “Elijah, don’t be afraid. If the ambulance won’t wait, I’ll carry you to the hospital myself.” Luckily, a kind stranger drove us to the hospital. I knelt in front of the doctor, begging for help, but he just shook his head with a sigh. “He’s been gone for a while… I’m so sorry.” “What? He can’t be dead. He was just talking to me! “Please, doc! Save him!” My vision blurred as a searing pain tore through my heart. The sun was shining outside, but my world had gone completely dark.
At Elijah’s funeral, I finally got Daniel on the phone after three days of trying. “Daniel, Elijah is…” “Don’t say that name! That troublemaker almost broke Jerome’s arm! How’s he supposed to play piano now? Barbara Robinson cried herself unconscious over this! It’s all because of your lousy parenting…” I couldn’t hear the rest of his shouting. I hung up. I thought, “An eye for an eye, a debt paid with blood. For every ounce of pain, Elijah suffered, I would make them pay tenfold, a hundredfold! And as for you, Daniel, it’s time this ridiculous marriage came to an end.” After Elijah’s funeral, I went straight to the hospital. In a private room, Barbara’s son was waving his bandaged arm around, entertaining them with his story. When Daniel saw me, his expression darkened, and he hurried out. “Who let you in here? Jerome’s just starting to recover. Don’t make a scene!” “Daniel, your son is dead, and you still care about someone else’s son!” I shouted, my voice raw, and Barbara and Jerome Martin looked at me, shocked. Daniel’s face grew even colder, and he shoved me back, warning, “Patricia Clark, enough! Ms. Robinson raised her son alone. As a principal, what’s wrong with me helping them out? “Besides, Elijah’s been bullying Jerome for years. This time, he scratched him. You’ve got no right to make a fuss here!” I had these hurtful words memorized by heart. I thought, “Barbara’s husband left her, but Daniel has cared for her all these years. My husband didn’t leave me, but he doted on another woman. Jerome’s dad abandoned him, but he has Daniel’s love. My son’s dad is alive, but he might as well be dead to Daniel…” When the window broke in winter, the freezing wind howled into our house. Daniel was busy learning new recipes for Barbara and Jerome and told me to find a repairman myself. He wasn’t a handyman and didn’t want me relying on him for everything. I continued teaching even when sick while he took Barbara on a state-sponsored conference that doubled as a vacation. He even told me not to be jealous. Even in my career, Barbara always got the promotion first, and Daniel claimed he couldn’t show favoritism as the principal. He had to be fair. When he returned from trips, he brought toys and gifts for Jerome, who bragged in front of Elijah, driving him to break the only birthday gift Daniel had ever given him, for which he was beaten. Barbara’s son was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, always pretending to be sweet while orchestrating Elijah’s bullying from behind the scenes. But Daniel never listened, choosing instead to believe Barbara and Jerome’s twisted tales, always seeing Elijah as the bully. Every time they accused him, Elijah would end up scarred from Daniel’s whippings. There were so many stories like this… I couldn’t even count. Looking at Daniel’s face twisted in anger, I suddenly found it almost laughable. “Fine, if you don’t want me here, then sign the divorce papers.” I held out the papers. I’d already signed them before coming. Daniel didn’t take them. Instead, he slapped them out of my hand and glared at me. “Patricia! Are you done? Stop using divorce to threaten me!” He thought I was trying to win him back, but I couldn’t stand to see him for even another second. “If you don’t sign, I’ll get a lawyer and file for divorce myself…” In the ward, Jerome suddenly cried out in pain. “Danny! My arm hurts so bad…” Daniel dashed back into the room like he was on fire, his voice full of fatherly tenderness. “It’s okay, Jerome. I’m here. Don’t be afraid!” Watching the three of them in that room, more like a family than anything else, I almost burst out laughing. I thought to myself, “If Daniel could talk to Elijah with this tone, Elijah wouldn’t have been so heartbroken and helpless before he died. This is the man I chose to marry, the father of my child. Elijah, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have given you a father like this…” I picked up the divorce papers, threw them into the room, and walked out of the hospital without looking back. I headed to a well-known law firm to consult a lawyer about school bullying. I thought, “Elijah couldn’t die for nothing, and those scumbags can’t just go on hurting others.” Just as I was leaving, I heard someone call my name. “Patricia?” Michael Wright stood there, his face lighting up with the same friendly smile I remembered. He looked just like he had in college, bright, cheerful, and handsome. I smiled and felt a bit embarrassed facing this young man who once pursued me. “Mind if I ask what brings you here? Is there anything I can help you with?” Michael offered me a glass of lemon water. Seeing my hesitation, he added with a warm smile. “I’m a partner here. If you’re in trouble, you can talk to me.” I looked up, surprised, and he was looking back with the same gentle kindness as before. We ended up talking for two hours. He learned everything without offering a trace of pity, just professional respect. It put me at ease like I was talking to a trusted, reliable lawyer. Just then, my phone buzzed. Daniel had sent a message: [Why aren’t you home yet? Do you know what time it is?!] I looked at it for a few seconds, ignored it for the first time, and turned off my phone. Michael noticed but didn’t say anything.
As we left the café, rain began to pour. Michael raised an umbrella, offering to walk me home. I politely declined, but suddenly, someone came storming toward us. “Patricia! I’ve called you over ten times, and you went and turned off your phone!” Daniel looked furious, his face pale with anger. Seeing Michael by my side, he sneered. “So this is why you’ve been ignoring our kid out on a date with this pretty boy?” “Our kid? You have the nerve to talk about him?” Those words hit a nerve, and Elijah’s hopeless, desperate expression flashed in my mind again. Daniel snapped, “You’re out in the middle of the night while your son’s out there doing who knows what! Look at how Ms. Robinson raises her kids!” “Right! Barbara knows how to raise kids. Go be her husband! Go be her son’s dad! Oh, that’s right. You already are his Danny!” The last word came out as I gritted my teeth. Daniel was taken aback for a moment and then started accusing me again. “Patricia, stop being so petty! He lost his dad. What’s wrong with seeing me as a family?” I took a deep breath, pushing down the bitter ache in my chest, not wanting to waste any more words on this jerk. “Daniel, did you sign the divorce papers?” I turned to Michael. “This is Mr. Wright. He’ll handle my divorce case and Elijah’s bullying case.” Daniel’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean by that? You’re going to throw your son in jail?” Michael had heard enough. “Mr. Rogers, as I understand, it was your son who was bullied. And he… passed away three days ago.” “Shut up! Jerome’s a good kid. He wouldn’t bully anyone!” Daniel protested immediately. Daniel’s attention was still on Jerome, his precious Jerry. He refused to believe Jerome would hurt someone. He glared at me. “You told him that? How dare you slander Jerome! “Jerome was hospitalized from getting beaten up, and you still believe that worthless brat? “I spoiled your son too much. That’s why he turned out to be a bully! “Where’s he hiding? He knows he messed up and ran off, didn’t he? “I’ll beat the life out of him when I find him!” I watched him lose his mind, like a wild horse, lost to reason. I thought, “Jerome… your son. It’s clear who matters to him.” Ever since Barbara showed up at our school, I knew Daniel was gone. So was our family. Barbara and Jerome had an effortless hold on his heart, pulling his emotions like strings. And as for Elijah and me, we were just obstacles he couldn’t wait to push aside. Maybe I was too calm because, after all his shouting, Daniel finally caught on to what Michael had said. “What did you just say? My son died… three days ago?” Michael sneered. “Finally, showing some concern for your own child?” Daniel’s face twisted with rage. Daniel, furious, retorted, “No matter how bad my son is, you don’t get to curse him! You bastard!” Daniel swung his fist at Michael, but Michael caught his wrist and shoved him back. Daniel looked like he wanted to lash out again, but I’d had enough. I slapped him hard across the face. “Elijah is dead! He died three days ago in the school bathroom! “Because your Jerry cracked his skull open! “Jerry even took the ambulance. I called for him! “He bled so much that by the time he got to the hospital, he’d bled out! “You monster! You don’t deserve to be Elijah’s father!” I screamed in a fury that nearly choked me, my eyes burning with tears. Daniel stared at me, stunned, wide-eyed. “You’re… serious? Elijah is really…”
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