Sexting My Ex’s Dad (Forbidden Silver Foxes)

5. Stella

5

STELLA

H ome.

The familiar scent of lilacs fills my nostrils as I step out of the car and take in the sight of my childhood home. It looks the same as it always has, but something feels drastically different about it…

Or maybe it’s me who’s changed.

It’s been a long time since I’ve been back to this small town, but I have plenty of time on my hands now without a job…which is the reason I’d decided to stop by.

My brother doesn’t live here anymore, but it’s been a long time since I’ve seen Mom.

The second that I make it to the front door, the memories start flooding in…unfortunately, most of which are bad.

The door creaks open at my touch and I step inside, noting how little has changed.

“Mom?” I call out tentatively, but all I’m greeted with is silence. The house feels cold, empty, as if it’s become a shell of what it used to be. I move further inside, and my eyes fall upon the living room.

There she lies, sprawled across the couch with an empty bottle of vodka on the floor beside her.

People say my mom used to be gorgeous, and from some of the old pictures I’ve seen, I agree, but that woman that she used to be is long gone now. Her once vibrant brown eyes are glazed over, unfocused, a clear indication that she’s mixed alcohol with pills again.

“Mom!” My voice rises, disappointment and anger coursing through me like wildfire. She stirs slightly but doesn’t wake up.

None of this is new, but for some stupid reason, I’d hoped that me moving out would be a realization for her…a revelation that she needed to change.

Of course, I was wrong.

“Seriously? How many times do we have to go through this? You promised you would change, Mom.” My words come out as a choked sob, my frustration evident in every syllable.

I shouldn’t cry over her – she’s the one doing this to herself, but it doesn’t change the fact that it hurts. She’ll always be my mom.

Her eyelids flutter open, and she squints up at me, attempting to focus. “Stella... Is that you?”

“Yes, it’s me,” I snap, tears streaming down my face. “Your daughter who’s had to pick up the pieces of your life over and over again, all while trying to keep my own from falling apart. What is wrong with you?!”

She struggles to sit up, her gaze shifting uneasily around the room before landing on me again. “I... I don’t know,” she slurs, her eyes filling with tears. “I just... couldn’t do it anymore.”

What is she talking about?

“Couldn’t do what? Be a responsible parent?” My voice trembles with anger and pain as I confront her. “Where were you when I needed you?” I demand, my voice trembling with both fury and sadness. “When Leo needed you? Did you know I had to drop out of school?”

She frowns. “I thought that boyfriend of yours was taking care of you?”

“He left me, mom,” I snap. “You would know about that. Every man who’s ever come into your life has left you.”

She narrows her eyes at me. “Respect your mother.”

I scoff. She can’t be serious. “I’ll respect you when you show me something that’s respectable, but this…?” I gesture around the dirty house before meeting her gaze. “You’re a joke, and you had no right to become a parent.”

“Stella, I tried,” she insists, her words slurred but still laced with desperation. “But every time I thought I had things under control, they’d just... fall apart again.”

“Because you refused to ask for help, Mom!” I counter, frustration boiling inside me. “You kept everything bottled up until it consumed you, and now look where we are!”

“Is that what you think?” she snaps, defiance flashing in her eyes. “That I didn’t care enough to fight for my family? You have no idea what I’ve been through, Stella!”

“Then tell me!” I shout, tears streaming down my face.

All my life, I’ve cleaned up her messes. Even in her fifties, she hasn’t learned how to clean them up herself…and maybe, she never will. Maybe, she’ll die like this.

Her expression falters, her anger giving way to desolation. “I can’t,” she whispers, her voice barely audible. “It’s too late now.”

My heart aches at her words, but I refuse to let them sway me. I’ve fought too hard to let her drag me back into this cycle of pain and disappointment. I take a deep breath, steeling myself for what comes next.

“Maybe it is too late,” I say, my voice resolute. “But I won’t let you ruin Leo’s life too. He deserves better than this.”

“Stella, please,” she pleads, reaching out for me with a trembling hand. “I know I’ve messed up, but I can change.”

“Change isn’t something you can just promise, Mom,” I reply, stepping back from her grasp. “It’s something you have to work towards every single day and until I see that from you…I’m not coming back.”

With that, I turn my back on her and walk out the door, determined to forge a better path for my brother and myself. As I leave our broken home behind, I can’t help but hope that one day, my mother will find the strength to change – not for me, but for herself.

The sun sinks low in the sky, casting a golden glow over the care facility as I pull into the parking lot. Though I try to visit Leo as often as I can, life has a way of getting in the way – and it’s been far too long since I’ve seen my little brother.

Steeling myself for the conversation ahead, I push open the facility’s front doors and head straight for the financial manager’s office. The sterile smell of cleaning products fills my nose, reminding me that this place is supposed to be a haven for people like Leo.

“Miss March,” the financial manager greets me with a tight smile, her eyes flicking briefly to the paperwork on her desk. “I was just about to call you.”

“Is there a problem?” I ask, my stomach tightening in dread. My mind always jumps to the worst…not that I could be blamed. My life is an example of worst case scenario.

“Actually, yes,” she admits, her expression somber. “We haven’t been able to charge the card on file for his care, and the situation is becoming quite urgent. If we don’t receive payment soon, I’m afraid we’ll have no choice but to send Leo to government care.”

My heart hammers in my chest, panic clawing at my throat. Government care is not an option; I know firsthand how terrible those facilities can be. But how am I supposed to come up with the money? My own finances are already stretched thin, and Mom clearly can’t be counted on for help.

The sterile smell of the care facility seems to wrap around me, tightening like a vice as my thoughts race. I can’t let Leo go back to government care. He barely survived that hellhole the first time, and its lasting effects still haunt him.

I have that twenty thousand dollars from Elio? I was supposed to use it on a new car and a new place to live, but if I had to, I’d use it on my brother in a heartbeat.

“I’ll pay for Leo’s care.”

“And when will that be?” she asks. “Because if it’s not soon, I won’t be able to…”

“Give me two weeks,” I plead. That’ll give me enough time to see what’s up with my new job too. What good would it do me to pay now and still not have stable income? “I promise I’ll figure something out.”

“Alright, two weeks. But that’s all I can give you.” She nods, her expression softening ever so slightly.

“Thank you,” I say, forcing a smile onto my face as I walk away from the financial manager’s office. My heart races with the weight of the responsibility now placed on my shoulders. “Can I see him now?”

She nods and points in the direction of his room.