Father Figure
Twenty
"Hello?"
"Hey, mom..." I began slowly.
"Hey, sweetie! How are you doing?" my mother asked happily.
I sank further back into the couch. "Things are so hectic..." I told her.
"What's been going on?" she asked curiously. "Did that place you find not work out?"
I rubbed my temples. "No, it's wonderful. We're all moved in and settled. The boys love the people we're renting it from. I'm close to work and the boys are still at the same school and loving it," I began.
"So, what's wrong?" she asked slowly.
"Well, Vero and I were checking out this place and talking to the guy that owns the property and everything when someone showed up at the door to talk to him..."
"Okay..." she replied slowly.
I inhaled deeply. "Do you know who Mario Lemieux is?" I questioned.
She laughed. "Of course! Who doesn't? Troy told me that he was like... Well, you know who's mentor," she stated. "Wait, why? What does this have to do with what's going on?"
I looked up at the ceiling above me. "I'm renting this place from him. And Sidney showed up while I was here with Vero," I blurted out.
She was quiet. "And how did he react to seeing the boys?" she asked hesitantly.
"They weren't with me at that time. Vero's fiancé was watching them. But when I huried away from Mario's house and everything, we kind of yelled at each other. He wanted to catch up and I told him no. Then the day after the boys' birthday, he showed up out of nowhere and asked when I was planning on telling him about his sons..."
I swallowed hard. "We talked about it and what not and decided to tell the boys who their father was. They all nearly lost it, of course. Introduce Mario Lemieux into their lives and they freak out. Introduce Sidney Crosby and they lose their shit," I told her. I laughed softly, but stopped when I didn't hear anything on her end.
"We're working on getting things together so the boys can spend more time with him... He spent some time with them yesterday and took them to practice. You should have seen him with them, mom... He loves them so much and he's only just met them..." I mumbled softly. I closed my eyes and sighed. "It makes me question my decision some, about never telling him."
My mom stayed quiet for a long time. "Well, how serious do you think he's going to be about taking this on? You know how much it would kill the boys if he decides he doesn't want to have to be a parent."
I chewed on my lip. "As far as I can tell, he's invested in this just as much as I am. He wants to be involved. He's been trying to catch up on everything he's missed..."
She sighed heavily. "Do you trust him with this? I'm not there, I don't see how he interacts with the boys."
I studied the ceiling. "Yeah," I whispered. "I do trust him."
"Well then, I will, too. Do you two know how you're going to handle everything when the press finds out?" she questioned.
"Kind of. He's going to talk to his coach and to Mario about it. He doesn't want to hide them. He wants to take responsibility.."
She laughed softly. "I wouldn't expect anything less from him, either. He's always been a good boy."
I pulled the phone away from my ear for a second as I heard a door click open. Beau emerged from his room looking ready to cry. His eyes spotted me on the couch and he waddled across the room to me.
"Hey, bud. What's wrong?" I asked softly as he stopped next to me on the couch.
He rubbed his eyes. "I had a bad dream..." he mumbled.
"Come lay with mommy. You want to talk to Grandma?" I asked as I helped him get up onto the couch. He snuggled in between me and the back of the couch.
"No, I want to talk to Daddy," he whined sadly.
I let out a sigh and put the phone back to my ear. "I have to go. I have a son that can't sleep again," I told her.
"Alright. Tell him I love him," she told me before we hung up.
I gently stroked the brown curls on his head. "What was your dream about?" I asked him softly.
He sniffed. "That daddy left us like Joe did," he mumbled miserably.
My heart ached for him. "Want me to call him for you?" I asked.
"Dad, not Joe," he agreed.
I quickly dialed Sidney's number and held the phone to my ear. After a few rings, a groggy Sidney answered. "Hello?"
"Your son had a bad dream and wanted me to call you," I told him.
I chewed on my lip, waiting to hear how he handled this. "Put him on the phone. I'll talk to him," he quickly told me.
I held the phone out for Beau. He quickly took it and pressed it to his ear. "Daddy?" he asked.
There was a silence. "I dreamed you didn't love us or Mommy anymore so you left us and you didn't talk to us anymore and that you made Mommy cry," he quickly explained as the tears in his eyes started to spill over onto his cheeks.
I wiped them away as Beau listened carefully. His crying held up for a few minutes before it began to drizzle down. "Okay," he mumbled. A few seconds later he continued with a "Yeah."
"I love you, Daddy," Beau mumbled tiredly.
Another silence filled the air. "Bye," he said before holding the phone out to me.
I set it down on the table before looking back at him. His eyes were closed and his tears were gone now. His breathing leveled out as he laid there. Whatever Sidney had said had calmed him down better than I'd ever been able to.
"Hey, mom..." I began slowly.
"Hey, sweetie! How are you doing?" my mother asked happily.
I sank further back into the couch. "Things are so hectic..." I told her.
"What's been going on?" she asked curiously. "Did that place you find not work out?"
I rubbed my temples. "No, it's wonderful. We're all moved in and settled. The boys love the people we're renting it from. I'm close to work and the boys are still at the same school and loving it," I began.
"So, what's wrong?" she asked slowly.
"Well, Vero and I were checking out this place and talking to the guy that owns the property and everything when someone showed up at the door to talk to him..."
"Okay..." she replied slowly.
I inhaled deeply. "Do you know who Mario Lemieux is?" I questioned.
She laughed. "Of course! Who doesn't? Troy told me that he was like... Well, you know who's mentor," she stated. "Wait, why? What does this have to do with what's going on?"
I looked up at the ceiling above me. "I'm renting this place from him. And Sidney showed up while I was here with Vero," I blurted out.
She was quiet. "And how did he react to seeing the boys?" she asked hesitantly.
"They weren't with me at that time. Vero's fiancé was watching them. But when I huried away from Mario's house and everything, we kind of yelled at each other. He wanted to catch up and I told him no. Then the day after the boys' birthday, he showed up out of nowhere and asked when I was planning on telling him about his sons..."
I swallowed hard. "We talked about it and what not and decided to tell the boys who their father was. They all nearly lost it, of course. Introduce Mario Lemieux into their lives and they freak out. Introduce Sidney Crosby and they lose their shit," I told her. I laughed softly, but stopped when I didn't hear anything on her end.
"We're working on getting things together so the boys can spend more time with him... He spent some time with them yesterday and took them to practice. You should have seen him with them, mom... He loves them so much and he's only just met them..." I mumbled softly. I closed my eyes and sighed. "It makes me question my decision some, about never telling him."
My mom stayed quiet for a long time. "Well, how serious do you think he's going to be about taking this on? You know how much it would kill the boys if he decides he doesn't want to have to be a parent."
I chewed on my lip. "As far as I can tell, he's invested in this just as much as I am. He wants to be involved. He's been trying to catch up on everything he's missed..."
She sighed heavily. "Do you trust him with this? I'm not there, I don't see how he interacts with the boys."
I studied the ceiling. "Yeah," I whispered. "I do trust him."
"Well then, I will, too. Do you two know how you're going to handle everything when the press finds out?" she questioned.
"Kind of. He's going to talk to his coach and to Mario about it. He doesn't want to hide them. He wants to take responsibility.."
She laughed softly. "I wouldn't expect anything less from him, either. He's always been a good boy."
I pulled the phone away from my ear for a second as I heard a door click open. Beau emerged from his room looking ready to cry. His eyes spotted me on the couch and he waddled across the room to me.
"Hey, bud. What's wrong?" I asked softly as he stopped next to me on the couch.
He rubbed his eyes. "I had a bad dream..." he mumbled.
"Come lay with mommy. You want to talk to Grandma?" I asked as I helped him get up onto the couch. He snuggled in between me and the back of the couch.
"No, I want to talk to Daddy," he whined sadly.
I let out a sigh and put the phone back to my ear. "I have to go. I have a son that can't sleep again," I told her.
"Alright. Tell him I love him," she told me before we hung up.
I gently stroked the brown curls on his head. "What was your dream about?" I asked him softly.
He sniffed. "That daddy left us like Joe did," he mumbled miserably.
My heart ached for him. "Want me to call him for you?" I asked.
"Dad, not Joe," he agreed.
I quickly dialed Sidney's number and held the phone to my ear. After a few rings, a groggy Sidney answered. "Hello?"
"Your son had a bad dream and wanted me to call you," I told him.
I chewed on my lip, waiting to hear how he handled this. "Put him on the phone. I'll talk to him," he quickly told me.
I held the phone out for Beau. He quickly took it and pressed it to his ear. "Daddy?" he asked.
There was a silence. "I dreamed you didn't love us or Mommy anymore so you left us and you didn't talk to us anymore and that you made Mommy cry," he quickly explained as the tears in his eyes started to spill over onto his cheeks.
I wiped them away as Beau listened carefully. His crying held up for a few minutes before it began to drizzle down. "Okay," he mumbled. A few seconds later he continued with a "Yeah."
"I love you, Daddy," Beau mumbled tiredly.
Another silence filled the air. "Bye," he said before holding the phone out to me.
I set it down on the table before looking back at him. His eyes were closed and his tears were gone now. His breathing leveled out as he laid there. Whatever Sidney had said had calmed him down better than I'd ever been able to.