LEGO

I couldn't take it any longer.

Once it was lunch time, I snuck out of school through the toilet windows near the teacher's lounge. I had to wait for the right moment before sneaking in and jumping out the door.

I grips my bag tightly and walked away, still crouched low until I got to a safe spot and then I ran. I'm going down the road and waits for the bus, feet tapping the ground.

I remembered the last time I had left school to go and meet my dad. I remembered how it ends. I just has a couple of things to say to Lisa and to make sure her words sunk in.

I gets into the bus, sits at the back and slips on my AirPods, scrolling through my songs and taps on Losing My Religion by R. E. M. I has an hour and half to do what I had to do and get back to school. Thankfully I had a free period after lunch.

A couple songs later and a five minutes walk, I'm standing in front of Lisa's office building. I walks in, ignoring Sheldon who was staring at me with a raised brow. I hit the button and the elevator closes. When I finally gets to the right floor and walks toward a woman who was talking on the phone.

When she sees me, she just ends the call and gets up, a big smile on her face. Her dark hair was styled in a tight ponytail and she had on a black and white pencil gown with sneakers. This must be Eugene, the woman Kuma tells me was Lisa's new secretary.

"Hi. I'm looking for Lisa Manoban?"

"Ohh." The woman claps her hand over her mouth as she stared at me. "This is like a dream come true for me. You're here to see your dada."

Kuma hadn't been kidding when he said she was weird. She looked like she wanted to hug me, so I takes a step back. No. I wasn't going to hug the crazy lady. I raised a brow and gestures at the door to Lisa's office.

"Normally I'd tell her she has a visitor but I think she's love this surprise. Go in, Legoshie"

"Don't call me that."

"Aren't you just a ray of sunshine." She says and then adds. "Legoshie."

I resists the sweet urge to roll my eyes at the woman as I made my way into Lisa's office. She was facing the windows, phone pressed to her ear as she talked to someone about a her works or something.

"Hi."

She spun around so fast, I bites my bottom lip to keep myself from laughing.

"Lego..."

I walks over to the chair facing the large mahogany table and takes a seat. She immediately ends the call and takes a seat too, the two of us waiting in silence for a bit.

"You're meant to be at school." She says, not knowing how to break the silence any other way.

"I took the lunch off and I have a free period after." It's what happens when all your classes are AP classes.

"Good. Do you want anything to eat?"

"Pizza would be nice."

She nods. She picks up her landline and pressed a button. "Hey, Eugene. Would you mind getting one medium half meatzza, half chicken supreme pizza with a small pint of Ben and Jerry's Phish food?" She asks. "Right. Thank you."

It's silent again between us again.

This time I breaks the silence.

"Did you know Kuma thought you were going to hit Miemie?"

She chokes. She blinks repeatedly and then just she starts shaking her head. "No no no no no no no no no no no never." She said. "I would never! Why would he think that?"

"You are never home and your mood kept fluctuating, so he just wasn't sure." I said. "I didn't know about this until recently. So you know just how bad things were." I watched as her expression falls. I had to keep going though.

"You were never home, you were never there."

"I am sorry."

"I know you are. But you're not going to fix everything with the words I'm sorry. You're going to have to work for it."

"I understand that and I'm already working on it, I promise."

"I don't want Mom to get hurt again. I don't want to trust you and get hurt again." I reveals, looking away from her unless I'm start crying. "We all grew up watching you and Mom act so gross and loving and happy, so that year, watching your marriage fall apart was the scariest. We didn't know how to deal with it. You're going to have to prove to us that you're in this."

"I will and I will continue to do so until I rake my last breath." She promises, her voice strong with conviction. It was enough to compel me to take a look at her. Thigh we all go to her every last weekend of the month, I has never spent more than ten minutes some with her.

I remembered how it used to be. How I get tucked in by her, how I'd talk with her in the living room when everyone had fallen asleep. Mom had told me and Kuma that her wasn't the only one at fault. And that had made me think.

There was a short period when Luca was home that mom had seemed it of it. She was she same as always but there was a little Chang. She had looked sad during that time and that's when she spent extra time with us.

I remembered that period but it had been short. Maybe two weeks or more. I looks back at her who was staring at me with this soft smile on her face. I looks around the office. It was different. She had redecorated, there was even a new frame on the table.

I picks it up and looks at it. My smile bloomed on my face, despite the resistance. They both looked happy.

"You don't have a picture of us."

"I do." She pulls out her wallet and hands it to me. There was a picture of all of us in a puppy pile with a laughing Luca on top of Kuma, Lily cuddles up close to me. We looked like we were having fun.

Besides this, I knows she has pictures of us at home. I sees them whenever we go over for the weekends. There was a warm feeling flowing within me. I had always thought she put up the pictures of them as a faux but seeing this tiny picture, seeing these pictures of my parents made me think. Made me wonder. Made me hope.

We sit in silence and were saved by Eugene knocking a couple seconds later.

"I've got pizza." She sings as she walks into the office. She's holding the pizza with the paper bag holding the ice cream resting on it. She placed the pizza on the table and smiles at the two of time.

"Thank you, Eugene" she says and Eugene give her a two fingered salute before walking away.

"Anything for you. We still on for Mani- Pedis tonight? JungJae already booked us a room at The Pink Pinkie."

I furrows my brow in confusion and asks her. "Jungjae?"

"Oh the hunky piece of ass that is my husband and your dada's new best friend. We make a lovely group. Your dada is the Ross to our Phoebe and Joey."

I chuckles as I watched her facepalm. Eugene just looked really proud of herself as she walked away, humming something that sounded that sounded familiar.

"You have a best friend?" I asked as I flipped open the box of pizza and takes a slice of the chicken supreme. I has always mixed the two ever since I was little. I was too indecisive when it came to the two that Mom had just ordered a half and half to help. To give me options.

"I do. Eugene and her husband are my friends. Your Mom would always be my best friend."

"Oh. So to them they are your best friends but to you they are just really close friends." I says before taking a bite. She nods and then takes a piece of the meatzza.

"Do they know this?"

"They do. They just like calling me their best friends."

"I've not Met Jungjae but Eugene is.."

"Peculiar?" She asks.

"I was going to say weird but that too..." I chuckled as I takes another piece of pizza. I stuffs it in my mouth and pulled open the tub of ice cream.

After eating, I decides it's time to get back to school. The last thing I needed was for someone to notice I was gone and for the school to call my mom. I already knew dada was going to tell mom about my visit but at least I'd be at home and with no absences. So it's going to be a win win... in a way.

The car ride back to school was quiet for a bit but then I changed the channel and the familiar sound of Make A Man Out of You from Mulan. I fights the urge to sing along but Dada doesn't.

"We must be swift as a pouring river." Dada sing, fingers drumming on the wheel, bobbing her head a bit.

"With all the force of a great typhoon." She keeps singing and I joins in with the verse...

"With all the strength of a raging fire."

And then we chorus. "Mysterious as the dark side of the mooooon!" We chorus, with my air drumming. Hey continue singing until the song ends and then we just laugh.

The laughter dissolves into silence but it was not as uncomfortable as it was before. Not, it was mellow. Dada parks a good distance away from school.

"You shouldn't do this next time." She said. "If you want to talk to me, call me and I'll come to you."

"I'll consider it."

"You have to tell your Mom you snuck out to see me."

"But why?" I asked. "You're going to tell her anyway."

"I want her to hear it from you first. You know she worries."

I sighs but I was agree. I gets down from the car. Sneaking back into school was easier than sneaking out. I was looking for Kuma, pulling out my phone to text my brother. I knew Kuma also had a free period he uses to tutor.

Kuma texts back his location and once I sees my brother amongst the row of library book shelves. I heads right for him, breaking into a run, my hands wrapping around my brother as I hugs him tight, my head resting on my brother's collar. I just wanted my brother to hold him a bit.

"Buddy..."

"Can we stay like this for a while?" I asked. "Of course. Can you tell me what happened though?"

"Another time."

"Okay. It do you want to sit with me and Nicole?" Kuma asked and I peeked over his shoulder. I sees a pink head girl staring at us discreetly with a smile on her face. I pulls pack and smirks at my brother.

"Does mom know you have a girlfriend?" I smirks and Kuma rolls his eyes at me.

"You either stay or fuck off."

"Oooh, you didn't deny Nicole being your girlfriend." I teased and Kuma just walked away. I follows him, taking a seat beside him, my teasing smirk still there. I knows I'm being a little shit but watching my brother act all gooey with the pinkhead was the best thing I has seen today, and also counting seeing my dada.

I can't wait to get home and tell Mom about Nicole and the heart eyes that Kuma was making. Hold up, why wait when I can text. I get away from the table and walks towards the shelves, once I peels through the books I see Kuma reach it and place his hand on Nicole's hand.

I sneaks a picture and sends it to Mom.

To[Miemie]

Guess who has a girlfriend.

~~~~~~~~~~