Sins of the Mother
Episode 25: Father and son
"Hey son." Geoff stares coldly at his son. "Sit down. We need to talk."
"Did you just…who are you?" Jefferson asks, dumbfounded.
"I'm the man who got your mom pregnant with you." Geoff takes a sip from his drink. He puts his glass down, and signals to the waitress, ordering another drink.
"Geoff?" Jefferson is astonished. Geoff nods his head, and grabs his new glass. Jefferson's eyes narrow, he turns around, and heads for the exit. "Nothing to talk about."
"Stay." Geoff nearly barks that order. "We got a lot to talk about."
"Really?" Jefferson stops in his tracks, but does not face Geoff. "Well then, do enlighten me. Because unless I'm mistaken, this is the first time we ever met."
"Yet you act like you known me all your life." Geoff slams his glass unto the table, his drink splashing unto his hands. He raises his hand, ordering another drink.
"Well shit. I don't know what you're talking about." Jefferson starts walking away again. Owen tries to stop him.
"Jefferson, please." Owen pleads on his knees. "Let him talk, ok? He has a lot to say."
"Like I care." Jefferson brushes him off. He walks towards the door. Geoff observes this, drinking his gin.
"So, this is how the little boy acts." Geoff speaks loudly enough for Jefferson to hear. Jefferson tightens his fists, and stops dead in his tracks.
"Don't call me a little boy." Jefferson's voice reflects the anger he feels. It reflects such a level of hate, it is impossible to measure.
"Well, what do I call you? A man?" Geoff chuckles. "I don't see a man here. Except Owen."
"Open your eyes, you…" Jefferson stops himself. "You got a man standing in front of you."
"Let me try, then." Geoff puts his drink down, and looks at Jefferson directly. "Nope, don't see any men here. Just a little boy."
"You're looking to get a fist in the mouth, old man!" Jefferson slams his hands on the table, looking dangerously at Geoff.
"See what I mean? A little kid." Geoff orders another drink. "This is the guy who thought he could take care of his mother?"
"Don't you talk about my mom!" Jefferson knocks the table over. He picks Geoff by the collar, ready to punch him. "I treat her better than you ever did!"
"Ok, let's see how you treat her." Geoff takes a sip of his drink, unflinching. "Ever make her cry?"
"Never." Jefferson answers with firmness.
"Wrong. I've been watching you, kid. I've seen you make your mother cry, dozens of times." Geoff speaks calmly. Jefferson's eyes widen. Geoff begins narrating an example of how Jefferson made Bridgette cry…
"Ms. Willow? I'm afraid you need to come to school. It's your son. Again." Principal Chandler sighs heavily. He was getting sick of this routine.
Bridgette hung up the phone. She slumps on her desk, burying her face in her hands. She sighs again, fighting the tears. Her boss, Kimiko Takanawa, looms over her.
"Your kid again?" Kimiko's eyes are like ice. "Third time this month. I told you what would happen."
"I'm sorry. My son just…doesn't get along with the other kids" Bridgette tried her best to maintain her composure. She can faintly hear her co-workers snicker at her.
"Ms. Willow. No more excuses. Clean up your desk." Kimiko turns around, and walks away.
In her car, Bridgette, looks at her clock. She turns on the radio, as tears stream down her face. Quietly, without anyone looking, she allows herself a moment to cry.
"That don't prove shit, old man." Jefferson takes Geoff's glass, and throws it to the wall. "She could have cried because everyone there was a jackass, and she felt embarrassed!"
"Kid, are you really that dense? Did you forget how often your mother had to leave work, to attend to your problems?" Geoff orders another glass. "How many fights did you get into as a kid?"
"So? I… I had to defend myself, ok?" Jefferson is taken aback slightly, but he then holds his ground again.
"You never liked playing with the other kids. Always brushed them off, told them to leave you alone. Your teachers started getting worried about you." Geoff takes a sip of his drink. "And fix this table."
Upon seeing that Jefferson wasn't moving, Owen nervously approached the table. However, Geoff stops him from doing anything further.
"I remember my teachers. And the other kid's parents." Jefferson tightens his fists. "They always called me names. Called me things like 'loner freak'. I once heard one of them call me 'bastard child'. I just didn't like playing with the other kids, ok?"
"Bridgette, she got a lot of flak because of that." Geoff begins narrating a new tale…
"Ms Willow, I am sorry to say this, but your son, Jefferson, exhibits far too many antisocial behavioral patterns. He sits by himself all the time, even at lunch. He rarely converses with anyone, and the few times he does are hardly pleasant." The school psychiatrist hands Bridgette Jefferson's record. "This behavior is often exhibited in children who are documented as having grown to become criminals."
"Are you saying my son will grow up to be a criminal?" Bridgette stands up, indignant. "I will have you know, you don't know the first thing about my son!"
"Miss, please sit down, I am a professional." The psychiatrist glares at Bridgette. "Listen, I have spent months studying behavioral patterns such as these. And I'm telling you, your son needs to learn to be more social."
"There is nothing wrong with my son." Bridgette is in tears now. "He's special. He prefers some quiet time by himself, than playing with kids who don't like him. Why is that so bad?"
"Children shouldn't be by themselves all the time. They need to build social skills." The psychiatrist hands Bridgette a book titled Great Parenting: How to raise the Perfect Child. "That book ought to tell you all you need to know about-"
Bridgette throws the book to the floor, and storms out, before the psychiatrist has a chance to finish that sentence.
"My mom got a lot of shit from those jackasses." Jefferson punches the wall. Owen flinches, scared of the violent scene he was sure would occur.
"Many people were scared of you. They were so sure, you were gonna be the kid who would grow up to be the guy who brought a gun to school and shot everyone dead. You spent so much time alone, that soon everyone gave up on you." Geoff stirs the ice in his drink.
"Everyone was a jerk." Jefferson faces his father again, his eyes giving an evil glare. "They always gave mom a hard time.
"I don't know if you remember, but there was this one time, when she finally had enough." Geoff stares sadly at his glass, as he narrates…
"Well now, Miss Willow. I believe you know why we called you here." Mrs. Blaine glared darkly at Bridgette. She was flanked by the other school faculty members. "Now, shall we discuss Mister Jefferson Willow's academic future in this school?"
"You… why are you trying to expel him?" Bridgette has her fists clenched, angry tears streaming down her eyes. "What has he done?"
"Well, this school is a bastion of teamwork, citizenship and academic achievement. Achieving just one out of three is not something we accept." The principal rubs his forehead.
"Hah, I for one can serve as a witness to Mister Willow's failure at teamwork." Ms Franklin interjects, smiling at the idea of expelling Jefferson. Yes, she secretly hates him.
"Look, my son just likes being alone. There's nothing wrong with preferring to be by oneself." Bridgette slams her fists onto the desk.
"That boy is quite troublesome. I am surprised you didn't abort him." Every member of the faculty stands in shock of Ms Franklin's horrible statement. Unbeknownst to everyone else, Jefferson had been listening in…
"I know! Ok? I know!" Jefferson starts punching the wall repeatedly. Owen is rather scared now, but Geoff continues with his drink. "Mom… I…"
"She had to put up with a lot, while raising you. She suffered inwardly, but she kept going forward for your sake." Geoff puts his drink down. He had allowed Owen to fix the table.
"I know…It's because of me…" Jefferson begins to cry. "If mom never had me-"
"Then her life would have been easier? Better?" Geoff looks at his son. "Is that what you think?"
"If it wasn't for me, she could have married DJ, lived a happy life, not have to deal with any of that shit!" Jefferson slumps to the ground. "If it wasn't for me… Why didn't she abort me?"
"Why do you ask that?" Owen is stunned. "Aren't you happy with how your life is? Aren't you glad she chose to have you?"
"What for?" Jefferson is in tears. "All I am is a burden to my mother…"
"No, you aren't." Owen tries to console him.
"You! Why did you do this to her?" Jefferson picks his father by the collar again. "Why did you…"
"I know, kid. I'm guilty too." Geoff gets up. "I messed up, big time. I only had her best interests in mind. But if I had any sense, I could have avoided a whole lot of shit."
"Justin…told me that story." Jefferson tries to dry up his tears.
"When I'm here, not a day goes by when I wish, I could have done differently. I always swear to myself, if I had known about you sooner, I could have quit sooner." Geoff's eyes are starting to water. "I know, we all make mistakes…but sometimes, mistakes can be fatal."
"I… I said things to her…" Jefferson is crying again. "I called her trip 'stupid'…"
"Son… The one thing I always wanted to say to you, is that I'm proud of you." Geoff places his hand on Jefferson's shoulder. "You were never a burden to your mom. Don't ever think that. Everything she did, she did because she loved you. She always did. All she ever wanted was for you to be happy. That's why she fought tooth and nail for you."
"Mom…" Jefferson gets up. "I…"
"She loves you, son." Geoff smiles at Jefferson. "Megan loves you too. Yeah, I know about that. Son… you made a mistake, ok? We all make mistakes. But we all got to deal with those mistakes. We all got to owe up, you know? That was my big mistake, not owing up. But your mom did. She decided to we up and have you. And I am so thankful to her for having you. I always look down, looking at you, watching you grow up. I always say 'that's my boy!' Even when you said you hated me, I never denied you. And I am proud to say, my son is a man who cherishes his mother, attempts to fix his mistakes, and knows what's important to him."
"I'm sorry…dad. For saying that I hate you." Jefferson hugs his father. Owen wipes a tear from his eye.
"Hey…save that title for someone who earned it. Like DJ." Geoff smiles at his son, though his eyes reflect much regret. "He was there for you, when you needed a father."
"He has… but… I'd like to call you dad, too…" Jefferson hugs Geoff again.
"This is my boy!" Geoff proclaims proudly to everyone within ear shot. "This is my boy!"