Eve and Simone sat down on her sofa. Chad and Julian went to the dining room.

“ So, how are you? How was school?”

“ Mom, school was ok.”

” Ok? That doesn’t sound good.”

” Well, I have had things on my mind.”

” I know, Simone. I know that I didn’t handle this situation as well as I could have.”

“ No, you didn’t.”

” Are things bad?”

” Well, the teasing has almost gone away, but it was brutal for awhile.”

” Simone, I’m sorry.”

” I mean, hey, how many kids have a brother and sister who almost marry?”

” Simone…”

” Mom. It is what it is. Can’t turn it around. By the time the new school year begins, I’m sure the kids will have something else as their topic of conversation.”

” What have you been doing with your summer?”

“ I’ve been taking cooking lessons.”

” Cooking lessons?”

“ Yep. Miguel, Kay and I. We take the lessons.”

” Are you enjoying them?”

” They’re not so bad.”

” Anything else?”

Simone didn’t know if her mother was fishing for information about Hakim. He was nobody’s business but hers.

” Nothing else.”

Eve looked at her daughter. Her covering for this thug wasn’t a good sign, but she was on no footing to get into it with Simone right now.

“ How is Whitney?”

Simone didn’t know how to answer this. “ She seems to be ok.”

” Really?”

” Mom, Whitney and I don’t talk much these days. She’s wrapped up in her tennis. She’d rather talk to Daddy.”

Daddy. There it was. Eve knew that she couldn’t ignore it for long.

” How is your father?”

” Rotten. How else should he be?”

Eve looked at her daughter. Simone was more upset than she had suspected.

” Simone..”

” Mom. You lied to all of us. You broke Daddy’s heart and shattered something else in him. He’s miserable. What did you expect?”

“ Simone, I never meant to hurt him. Or you and Whitney.”

” But you did, Mom. You destroyed our family. Why? Why did you do that?”

“ It all got out of control.”

” You know, I want to understand. Why, Mom? Why?”

“ It’s a long story. One in which I’m still ashamed to tell. I wanted to be someone that my daughters could respect. I’m sorry I failed you.”

Simone was angry at her mother, yet she had never seen her this…well, weak. Fragile. Her mother radiated nothing but pain.Seeing that, Simone backed down.

” I don’t need to hear the story, now, but I want to hear your side of things, Mom. I want to…no, I need to understand.”

” I’ll tell you, Simone. I promise.”
 

Julian and Chad sat across from one another at the dining room table.

” So, is she up for this? Was she really ready to return?”, Chad asked.

” She says that she is. I can only go by what she tells me.”

” Things aren’t going to be easy for her.”

” Which is why she’s going to need your support, Son.”

” I don’t know if I know how to be a son to her.”

” Then be her friend. Lord knows the hypocrites in this town who were her so-called friends have forgotten how to be.”

“ I suppose I can be her friend.”

“ She needs you.”

” What about us?”, Chad asked, looking at Julian.

” I would welcome any kind of a relationship between us. Nothing would make me happier. I’m at your mercy, Chad.”

“ I….um….I’ve been thinking about it. You’ve been pretty standup when it came to my mother. You protected her well when she needed it. I know that she’s well because of you. You and I can start over. “

Julian looked at his son. He couldn’t believe it. He thrust out his hand. “ I would love that. I won’t let you down, Chad.”

” You don’t have to be perfect, Julian. Just be better than your usual.”, Chad replied with a wink as he took Julian’s hand and shook it.
 

“ Simone, do you want something to eat?”

” Mom, I think I should be going. You know Daddy has me on a curfew.”

” I know. I just missed you so much.”

Chad and Julian come into the living room.

” Simone has to go home.”

” Simone, may I give you a ride home?”, Julian offered.

“ Um, Mr. Crane, my father..”

” I’ll drop you off around the corner. He doesn’t need to know.”

” Um..OK. Mom, I’ll come by tomorrow. You’ll be here?”

” Honey, I’ll be here all day. I promise.” Eve kissed Simone, and she went to the door. Eve went over to Julian. “ Thank you…..for everything.” Julian nodded, and Chad looked at his parents in close proximity to one another for the first time. He ‘saw’ their bond.  Julian nodded to Chad and then left with Simone.

Chad and Eve stood there, looking at one another.

” You want to talk?”, Eve asked.

“ Sure.”

Chad and Eve sat down on the couch.

” How are you? How is your life?”, Eve asked.

” Well, I’m doing fine. I’m still living at the Lopez-Fitzgeralds. They’ve been great.”

” I will have to thank Pilar soon.”

” For what?”

” For giving you a safe haven when things went wrong.”

“ Oh. And, I’m going to begin school soon, and working at the radio station with Sheridan.”

” Are you ok with that? Working for the Cranes?”

” It’s  Sheridan. She’s not like the others, and I’m cool with it. I think I’ll learn a lot. Julian might not think it, but Sheridan and I are going to make a success of the station. We’ll have it turning a profit in no time.”

Eve smiled at Chad. “ Sounds good to me. How about….your personal life.”

“ Yeah, I thought you’d ask about it. Well, I guess you could say that I’m seeing Theresa.”

” Is it good?”

” We’re taking it slow. We both need it. We’re good friends, and we just turned the corner into realizing that we like one another romantically.”

“ Theresa’s a wonderful young woman.”

” Yes, she is.”

” Chad, I spoke with Simone. She didn’t open up to me about…”

” Hakim. That’s his name. That no-good, two-bit, punk ass nigger!”

” Chad..”

” Sorry. Can’t sugarcoat this, Doc. That mutherfucker is NO GOOD with a capital N. “

” How serious is it between him and Simone?”

” Well, I can’t be sure, but, considering that I’ve known lowlifes like him my entire life, if he’s true to form, he’s sleeping with Simone.”

Eve closed her eyes and shuddered. She, too, had known predators like this.

” She won’t talk to you about him?”

” Everytime I try and point out what a loser he is, she threatens to stop speaking to me. I felt I had to keep the lines of communication open between us. “

 “ That was smart. But, Chad, if she’s sleeping with him…”

” I know. She could get in all kinds of trouble. I have nothing but bad feelings about this guy. He’s using Simone. And, I swear, he’s going to try and get something out of it for himself.”

” What?”

” I don’t know, but it can’t be good.”

” If she’s sleeping with him, I hope she’s protecting herself. As a doctor, I know everything that’s out there. I just don’t think Simone is in the mood to hear anything from me nowadays.”

” Maybe you and the Coach..”

Eve put up her hand. “ No, Chad. TC doesn’t want to speak to me, and if Simone IS seeing this guy, TC’s not thinking clear enough to make a difference. He’ll try and order Simone around, and that’s not what she needs. She won’t obey. Things will become strained between them, and I don’t want that for her. We have to have contact with someone who has contact with Simone.”

” Well, outside of this creep, Simone is keeping to herself. I don’t get the sense that things are good at home.”

” Neither do I.”

” Wait..what about Kay? She came to me when Simone first started seeing Hakim. She knows he’s bad news. If Simone is telling anyone her business, it’s Kay.”

” Well then, I’ll try and talk to Kay. We have to keep the line of communication open with Simone. We both know what happens to girls who get cut off from their families.”

Chad nodded. “ Nothing good. Don’t worry, Doc. I’ll help my little sister.”

Eve smiled slightly. “ It sounds so good, hearing those words from you. I.. appreciated you coming to see me when I was locked up, Chad. It meant so much to me.”

” Me too. Doc….Julian did right by you, right?”

” Chad, your father was wonderful to me. I wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for him. He’s a complicated man, Chad. He’s difficult, but he’s not evil. He’s not the devil. That would be reserved for Alistair.”

” Yeah, I’m getting that he’s not simple.”

” Thank you for giving me a chance, Chad. You and Simone are all I have right now. “

” Things will get better, Doc.”

” I believe it. Sometimes. But, I have a long road ahead of me.”

” I’ll be there, every step of the way.”

Eve grabbed Chad into a long hug.