Chapter 7: Chapter 7

“Come on, Larky.” I held my hand out, looking back at him. He jumped in the puddle once more before rushing over to come and hold my hand again. “We can’t stop and jump in every puddle on the way to the park, or else we’ll never get there.”

 

“But I like the puddles.” He jumped in another puddle, splashing me with the water. 

 

I laughed. “They are fun, but you said you wanted to play.”

 

“Yeah! I wanna play at the park.”

 

“Then, no more puddles. We can play in them once we’re done, okay?”

 

“Okay.”

 

We walked the rest of the way through the park to the playground. I asked Lark if he wanted to play together or by himself. He told me he wanted to play with the other kids for a while, and then we could play. I took a seat on one of the benches, being sure to keep an eye on him.

 

“Haven't seen you here before.” The woman next to me smiled. “I’m Ava.”

 

“Lili.” I smiled back at her. “I am new. Just moved to the area.”

 

“That would make sense. Which one is yours?” She turned her attention back to the playground.

 

“That one. Well, I’m his nanny, at least.” I pointed Lark out, who was playing with a boy around his age.

 

“Oh, that’s my son he’s playing with.” She clasped her hands together. “They seem to be getting along well. I assume you live nearby.” 

 

“On the other side of the park.”

 

“I’d love to do a playdate sometime. My son needs more play friends. It’s been hard since he’s basically a quarantine baby.”

 

“I’m sure my boss would be okay with that. I’ll have to ask him first, though.”

 

“Of course. He’s a cute little one.”

 

I smiled. “All kids are pretty cute, admittedly.”

 

“True, true.” She laughed.

 

We sat and chatted while watching the boys play, talking about raising kids and the struggles during quarantine. Though I wasn’t a mother, I understood it nonetheless. We talked until it was time for her to go. It was nice getting the chance to talk to someone, as it had been a little since I had the chance to just casually chat.

---

Marco had called and told me not to make dinner as he was going to pick something up on his way home. I appreciated the break from cooking and was excited to see what he was going to get. Eventually, he got home with the food, a feast of meats and sides that would feed a family as large as mine. I helped him set everything on the counter, where we each went through and picked out what we wanted to eat. Lark, surprisingly was willing to try almost everything. All of my younger siblings were too picky to ever be like him. Each of us took our plates and sat down at the table. I opened my mouth to ask Marco about his day at work, but he beat me to it. 

 

“What do you do for fun, Lili?” He looked over at me with a curious expression. We hadn’t really talked casually too often, so it was nice to get a chance to hopefully get to know him a bit better.

 

“Oh, uh…” I looked back down at my plate with a small smile. “Back at home, I used to play a lot of video games. My siblings loved watching me play or playing with me.” I looked back up at him. “But I haven’t done much of it since moving in with Alder. My, uh, my ex.” I clarified. “I don’t really have time for it now anyways, though, between my responsibilities with Lark and my homework.”

 

He smiled. “So, like Donkey Kong?” 

 

“Not exactly.” I laughed. 

 

“How are your classes going?” He asked before taking a bite.

 

“They’re…going.” I sighed. “It’s hard trying to keep up with everything. My ex helped me stay on course a lot, mostly cause…he was one of my teachers.” I guilty admitted.

 

“Oh, scandalous.” He laughed.

 

“My mom nearly disowned me when she found out. Thankfully the school never did, or else he would’ve lost his job.” I smiled slightly. “Though now I think it would’ve been kinda funny.”

 

“How did that get started?” He asked, sitting up and leaning in attentively.

 

“Well, at first, because I was failing his class. He pulled me aside and said he knew I was better than that, asking why I wasn’t turning anything in. I told him I was just busy with family stuff, and he asked me to put aside some time to meet with him and work on it. I agreed, and one thing led to another…”

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“Damn. I should’ve gone to Ms. Smith’s office hours more often.” 

 

I cracked a smile. “I doubt you needed the grade boost that I did. You seem smarter than me.”

 

“I just didn’t really care enough to get the help. Passing was enough for me.”

 

“That kinda surprises me. You seem somewhat of a perfectionist. Did you not have family pushing you?”

 

“Not really.” He shook his head, growing a bit sadder at the mention. “My parents weren’t exactly supportive of me. And now I have no contact with them.”

 

“I’m sorry, Mr-Marco.” I looked over at him. “I--I know what that’s like. I’m not really close to either of my parents, my dad especially.” 

 

“Yeah.” He shrugged. “It is what it is. How much longer do you have in school?”

 

“Year and a half, since I failed some classes my first semester. I--I,” I smiled at the thought, “if I had the money, I would love to study in Europe for a semester. To just travel around to all the museums and soak in the culture and the art and everything.” 

 

“Anywhere in particular?” 

 

“Anywhere my feet can take me.” I laughed quietly. “Everywhere. I’d love to see the world someday.”

 

“I think you seem like a Spain kind of girl.”

 

“Spain is romantic.” I nodded, still smiling.

 

“I would think France is the romantic one, you know, with the city of love and all.”

 

“Maybe I’m just a romantic.” I shrugged. 

 

“So, Miss Romantic, what are your plans after school? Or are you planning on continuing to be a nanny?”

 

“I’m not sure I could make it as a full-time artist.” I admitted. “And I enjoy working with Lark, so as long as you’ll have me, I’ll stay. I just wish I had the space to paint.”

 

“You think you could teach Lark?” He asked, staring off.

 

“I kind of already have.” I shrugged.

 

“Not the nude painting, though, right?” He laughed, looking back up at me.

 

“Of course not.”

 

Marco helped me put Lark to bed after we finished eating. We moved back into the living room while I started working on the dishes. He sat at the island, seemingly still interested in talking.

 

“You know, Lili,” he started, “I never wanted children, but Lark is the best thing that happened to me.” He spoke frankly, no doubt because Lark was out of earshot. “I don’t like to speak ill of Margaret, but she’s not a good mother to Lark.”

 

“Every child, especially Lark, deserves parents that love them endlessly. He deserves better than her.” I paused, looking back down at the dishes. “How…did it happen?”

 

He took a deep breath. “We were together for around a year. Things were fine until she became pregnant. Things shifted, and she started to use it against me. We broke up shortly afterward, and she started to use my unborn son as leverage against me, draining my funds. When he was finally born, she would rarely let me visit my son, and when she did, she’d hover the whole time. So, I took her to court for custody. I won majority custody, and she seems to neglect Lark, not having the leverage over him anymore. She is a beautiful and smart, vindictive woman.”

 

“I’m sorry, Marco.” I spoke softly.

 

“I wish I had more time to spend with Lark, but I’m just so often busy.”

 

“I’m sure he understands, but I’d also say kids are only young once, and having their parents around can make such a difference. I don’t want to push you or shame you, but you should try to find more time to spend with him.”

 

“I know...” He trailed off. 

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