Fortuity (Transcend 3)

“Because she doesn’t want to get in trouble.”

I chuckle. “I’m not following. It seemed like you did something to upset her, but she’s the one worried about getting in trouble?”

He nods.

“Did you threaten to tell on her? Is that why she’s upset?”

Gabe shakes his head.

I don’t speak pre-teen. It’s a complicated language that’s a mix of vague words, crooked facial expressions, shrugs, nods, and head shakes. A translator would come in handy right now.

“What if I keep it a secret?”

Another head shake. “You won’t.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because grown-ups share everything.”

“Is she taking drugs, drinking, or smoking something she shouldn’t be?”

“No.”

“Did she steal something or kill someone?”

He smirks and shares an eye roll. “No.”

“Then you can safely tell me, and I won’t tell Nate.”

He blows out a long breath. “She has a phone.”

“A cellphone?”

Gabe shoots me a look. I’d say a “duh” look. “Is there any other kind?”

“Actually, yes, but we can go over that later. How did she get a cellphone?”

“When we went to Disneyland with Hunter, she got a new phone, but they didn’t have to give back her old phone because of how old it was. So she gave her old phone to Morgan so they could message and do stuff on social media. She can only use it with Wi-Fi. She can’t actually call anyone. Hunter set up an email account for her too.”

“Wow … okay. Sounds like a real coup.”

“What’s a coup?”

“Sorry … it’s … I just meant it was quite the plan to get her a phone without her dad knowing.”

“You can’t tell him.”

“I’m not, but now can you explain why she hates you?”

He picks at a string hanging from the towel. “I won’t follow her on TikTok.”

“Oh … well, I’m not that familiar with TikTok. That’s why she hates you?”

His nose wrinkles.

“Gabe …”

He frowns. “I don’t follow any girls on there because they do the most annoying stuff. My friends don’t follow girls either. And she just kept bugging me to follow her and asking why I wouldn’t. So I told her.”

I wait.

Nothing.

“I’m going to need to know exactly what you told her.”

“You said you wouldn’t say anything.”

“I’m not, but I still need to know what I’m working with here so I can find some way to deal with the damage.”

Rolling his eyes to the sky, he shakes his head. “I said I don’t follow girls because they are annoying. She asked if I thought she was annoying.”

“Annnd?”

“I said sometimes. And she just lost it.”

“Wow … okay. Well, I think she likes you … a lot. So I’m sure when you said that, it hurt her more than it would if she didn’t like you so much.”

“I know … it’s just that she’s always talking, always asking me things that I don’t know, saying weird stuff, bragging about places she’s been. And she’s leaving next month, so I don’t know why she thinks we need to be best friends. I have other friends. It’s not my fault that she doesn’t.”

Ouch …

How do you teach a child to reason when they are not mentally capable of doing it very well?

It sucks to like someone when they don’t like you back the same way. I was Gabe. I was the one who just couldn’t reciprocate equally. Maybe the heart is like a child—impulsive and unable to reason.

I tried to love Andy and Michael the way I loved Brandon. My brain pushed my heart to feel something it didn’t—it tried to make it see reason and reality. We can’t turn off the sun, run from the wind, or push back the tide. Some forces are just too strong.

Love isn’t an emotion. It’s a force.

“Well…” I wrap my arm around him, hugging him to me while kissing his wet head “…I won’t make you apologize for your feelings, but when things cool down, you should consider apologizing for hurting hers.”

We glance left at Nate walking our way.

“I’m out of here.” Gabe stands and runs inside.

Nate’s gaze narrows as it follows Gabe’s retreat. “Where’s he going?” He stops at the bottom of the steps, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Inside to change his clothes.”

“Well, we need to talk. Morgan refuses to let me into her room. She won’t talk to my mom either. I need to know what happened.”

My nose wrinkles. “I think you need to wait for Morgan to tell you.”

“Do you know?”

Biting my lips shut, I nod.

“Then tell me.”

“I can’t. I promised Gabe I wouldn’t.”

Nate’s eyebrows slide into peaks. “Are you serious? That’s not how this works. We’re the parents. We stick together to get these issues solved. You can’t not tell me because you pinky swore.”

“It wasn’t a pinky swear. Just a regular promise.” I smirk.

Nate doesn’t show signs of finding this humorous at all.

“Look …” I stand, brushing off the back of my shorts, my one step putting me closer to eye level with him. “I don’t know how to navigate all the drama that comes with raising a child, but I do know I want Gabe to feel comfortable confiding in me. We need that kind of trust. So while I won’t tell you details, I can say it’s nothing awful, just something that ended up being a little hurtful on his part. I fully expect him to eventually apologize to Morgan.”