“You will?” I asked, peering up at her.
“Yes,” she replied.
“Please,” I begged softly, “I don’t want anyone to know where you got it.”
“I won’t tell anyone,” Aimee said.
I let out a long breath.
“But my silence is conditional,” Aimee added.
Mayra stiffened and sat up in her seat, and I echoed her posture.
“What condition?” she asked.
“If you are giving this to me, I get to spend it the way I want without any argument from either of you,” Aimee said.
My eyes narrowed. There was something about the way she was presenting her conditions that made me feel wary.
“It’s for the baby,” Mayra reminded her friend.
“Yes, it is,” Aimee said. “And as the baby’s mother, I get to decide what’s good for the baby, right?”
“I suppose so,” Mayra said.
“Matthew?” Aimee turned to me, and I quickly looked away from her eyes. “Would you agree I get to choose what is right for my child?”
“Yes,” I said. I couldn’t argue with that.
“And if I want my child to learn about generosity, I expect the two of you to support that.”
“I guess so,” I responded. I had no idea where she was going with this, and I was still on edge.
“Good,” she said, “because I’m going to make some arrangements. For starters, I’m setting up a scholarship at OSU for a student with autism—in the baby’s name, of course. I expect you to apply for it.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, so I sat there with my mouth wide open.
Did I just win or lose?
Epilogue—The Biggest Win of All
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Mayra squealed, and I had to smile.
“I take it you got the A?” I said with a smile.
“One-hundred-fucking-percent!” Mayra screeched and danced around the apartment we shared just outside of the university grounds.
“Can we go home now?” I asked. As happy as I was for her, I really just wanted to get back home and relax for the holidays, and we still had to pick up Megan along the way.
The first semester of college at Ohio State University had been extremely trying. I was starting to get used to everything, but the students and teachers weren’t exactly understanding when it came to me. It actually made me miss high school. If it hadn’t been for Mayra and our little sanctuary off campus, I probably wouldn’t have made it.
“Yes, we can go,” Mayra said. She came over and planted a quick kiss on my lips. “Let’s go pick up your sister and get back to Oxford.”
The donation for Megan’s care hadn’t exactly changed her life or anything, but it certain did make a lot of things better. Her medication was the best she could get, and there was, apparently, a stipulation in the donation for my treatment as well. I didn’t have any major breakthroughs, but the panic attacks were less severe and a lot less frequent. Megan was also able to have more specialized care, and it allowed us to bring her home for the holidays, provided Mayra was also there.
Megan really liked Mayra.
She was also still mad at me for not buying a ring to replace the watch. She didn’t exactly say it, but I could tell.