Liam hesitated for a split second before instinctively scooping Mason up to comfort him.
My fists clenched. I forced myself to uncurl them and pulled Lily into my arms.
Clinging to Liam's neck, Mason tattled, "Lily tried to steal my tablet! That's why I pushed her."
"You're lying! You ruined my drawing first!" Lily cried out, her voice raw.
The two of them looked ready to start screaming at each other again.
Liam rubbed his temples. "Is there a form for the damages?" he asked the teacher. "We'll cover it."
"Yes, of course. I'll get it."
As the teacher left to get the forms, Mason started looking around anxiously.
Just then, Jessica swept into the room. Without a word, she gave Mason a gentle tap on the arm while scolding him in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear.
"How could you bully a girl? Mommy's a girl, does that mean you can bully me, too?"
"Don't you ever think about how your actions affect others?"
Jessica’s body trembled, and tears welled in her eyes, rolling gracefully down her cheeks. She was always heart-wrenchingly beautiful when she cried.
Liam pulled both mother and son into his embrace.
"I told you I'd always protect you," he murmured. "No one is going to hurt you."
I whispered an apology to the teacher, then covered Lily's eyes with my hand and carried her out of the room.
She sobbed into my shoulder, the warmth of her tears soaking my palm as she choked out, "M-Mommy, I hate... I hate Daddy."
"Mm," I murmured, my voice thick. "Me too."
...
One evening, Liam came straight home from work, holding a beautifully decorated cupcake.
"I waited in line for this for you. Go on, have it." With that, he disappeared into the bathroom for a shower.
The sweet scent of buttercream drew Lily over. Just as I opened the box, Liam's phone, left on the table, lit up with a social media notification.
It was a post from Jessica.
[Huge thanks to Liam for treating us to a big box of delicious cupcakes today!]
The accompanying photo showed her and Mason grinning, posing with a large box filled with cupcakes identical to the one in my hand.
A whole box for them. A single, leftover cupcake for us.
A hot wave of humiliation washed over me.
Without a second thought, I scraped the cupcake into the trash can.
Liam chose that exact moment to walk out of the bathroom.
"What did I do wrong this time?" he asked, his voice weary.
I said nothing, just slid his phone across the table toward him. He glanced at the screen, sighed, and rubbed his forehead.
"Lily upset Mason earlier. I was just trying to make it up to them."
"So you think it was Lily's fault?"
He didn't answer.
I pointed to the door. "Get out."
"You're being completely unreasonable," Liam said coldly, and then he was gone.
