Page 7 of Falling for the Unexpected

After drying off, I decided to choose an outfit that would help elevate my mood. I settled on a black maxi skirt with a white chevron pattern. I selected my favorite pair of black strappy sandals and a white cardigan over my black tank top to complete the outfit.

Since my long, thick hair took too long to dry, I decided to pull it up into a bun on the top of my head. I added a little mascara and lip-gloss to complete my ensemble, and was out the door.

I pulled up to the coffee shop right at ten and saw my friend sitting at a table inside by the window. Kayla and I met a couple years ago when she started waitressing at the Ocean View. We were the two youngest servers, about the same age, and had hit it off right away. She was tall and thin with typical California looks of lightly tanned skin, blonde hair, and blue eyes. She was the perfect contrast to my darker features. Her shoulder-length hair was half up and made her heart-shaped face look even younger. In addition to working at the restaurant, she was also going to school to get her nursing degree.

When I’d needed a girls' night out, she’d been there for me and, in a pinch, she had babysat for me as well. Stella absolutely loved her, and for someone like me who didn’t have very many friends, she had been a godsend.

“Hi, girlie! I already ordered you a chai tea latte so come sit your butt down,” Kayla said as soon as I walked through the door. Her friendly face made me feel so much better, like someone actually cared about me.

“Thank you for the drink and for asking me to come out this morning,” I said, sitting down and then wincing a little. I’d have to be a little more careful until I didn’t feel so achy.

“Well,” she drawled out, wrapping her hands around her cup, “we haven’t hung out for a few weeks—and being at work together does not count—so I thought it was time for a catch-up session.”

I smiled a little, taking a long sip of my latte. I instantly felt less stressed, and more like a normal twenty-one-year-old. Kayla was my closest friend and she knew many details of my marriage that I didn’t share with others. Like the fact that Brad had been engaged to another woman when I found out I was pregnant with Stella. More importantly, she always listened without judgment and would offer advice if I asked.

“Looks like date night went well,” she remarked, grinning. She leaned forward, eyeing the dark mark on my neck that I’d completely forgotten to cover up. “I want all the details!” Since she was at work last night, Kayla knew of my plans for my ‘date’ with Brad.

Five little words and last night flashed in my mind. At how horrible it’d been. Every feeling flooded my senses. And that simple request had me bursting into tears.

“Oh, my God,” Kayla said lowly. She moved closer and rubbed my back gently. I tensed a little then relaxed. When I got emotional and someone touched me, I would sometimes flinch. It was a subconscious reflex left over from my childhood, but right now I felt comforted since I trusted Kayla. “Simone… are you okay?”

The concern in her voice was reassuring and I didn’t feel as alone in this. It hit me that I’d held back what I’d felt last night and this morning from Brad, but I couldn’t now, not with Kayla. I was shaking, my hands trembling, and I felt so cold inside. It took me a full ten seconds to stop crying and take a few calming breaths. A couple people nearby gave us funny looks, but I didn’t care. I looked down into my latte, trying to find the words. “Date night didn’t go exactly how I planned,” I finally answered in a hushed whisper. I sounded nasally, but at least I’d stopped sobbing. I sniffed, wiping my nose on a napkin and dabbing at my eyes.

“What does that mean, exactly?” Kayla asked, giving me an encouraging smile to continue.

I was too ashamed to tell her much else.

“What happened?” she asked again, not letting it go, not because she was nosy, but because she was actually concerned about me.

“When I got home, Brad seemed a bit out of sorts. He blamed it on the energy drink he had before I got there. We ate dinner and he barely said two words to me…” I continued to tell her how the rest of the night went, I just couldn’t look her in the eyes until I was done speaking.

When I glanced up, the look of horror on Kayla’s face confirmed that my anger was justified. While I knew in my heart what Brad had done was not okay, knowing my best friend was just as upset by it comforted me a bit.

Kayla grabbed my hand, and squeezed it briefly. “Simone, you can’t stay with him if he is going to act like that.” She paused until I numbly nodded in agreement. “You don’t deserve that kind of treatment.”

I knew she was right, and I had thought the same thing all morning. But things weren’t so simple. First off, I wasn’t sure I was ready to break up Stella’s family. When I found out I was pregnant with Stella, I’d promised her and myself that I would give her the family I never had, making sure she felt that she had a stable family life. My in-laws were wonderful people and I knew they’d be there for her, but that wasn’t the same as Stella having her own immediate family. Second, I didn’t have anywhere else to go. I had no family and my only friend still lived at home. My income from waitressing wasn’t enough to pay for my own place, even with any child support I would be entitled to. Third, while Brad’s parents adored Stella, I was just the woman who had gotten pregnant by their son. What if they decided they didn’t want anything to do with me if Brad and I divorced? I didn’t want to force them to take sides, mostly because I was afraid they would automatically take the side of their son and I would lose them as well. I’d seen that happen while growing up. It’s why I kept defending Brad even when I knew it was useless.

“He apologized this morning. I don’t think he’ll try that again,” I said, though not really sure if I was trying to reassure Kayla or myself. I knew I didn’t sound confident, and when I picked up my cup, my hands shook. Kayla’s lips thinned into a straight line. Yeah, neither one of us was reassured. I set the cup back down without taking a sip and sat there, not sure what to do but knowing I might have to figure it out soon.

We didn’t speak for a long minute and I could tell Kayla was trying to figure out what to say to me about my situation. She’d never had anything nice to say about Brad, but she also kept her negative comments to herself because she knew that I’d just sweep her observations aside. It was so automatic for me to do that after all this time.

“Look, I understand you needing to do what you feel is best. I just don’t want you to get hurt, likereallyhurt,” she finally said, genuine worry on her face. “Just promise me you will leave if he tries that again…”

I nodded firmly. “I promise.” I added nothing further, but gave her my best easygoing smile. Truthfully, I rarely smiled unless I was with my daughter. She was the only thing that made me happy these days.

After that, Kayla decided to lighten the mood and we spent the rest of the morning sharing the latest gossip from work. I knew she didn’t want to ignore what was going on, but she respected me enough to know I didn’t want to talk about it anymore. We said goodbye when it was time for me to head over to my in-laws to pick up Stella. I left feeling a little lighter and ready to face the day. Since Stella was going to be home, I hoped that would keep Brad calm enough so we could have a mature conversation about what happened. I wasn’t ready to let it go. I wanted to address him in a civil manner, and not cause a huge blowout.

Unfortunately, we didn’t get to have a conversation that night since Brad didn’t come home until early the next morning. For the next few weeks, he did his best to avoid me.