Chapter XXI | Christian's POV

''You remind me of her.. hm'' I say.

''Huh?'' Ana asks obviously confused.

''My biological mom.. You remind me of her so much, and it.. it kills me to say that.'' I tell her, avoiding her gaze.

''Christian, honey..'' I hear mommy's voice.

Opening my eyes I see her, she's smiling at me, she has the prettiest face ever. I grin.

''Wanna surprise daddy?'' She asks while pushing the hair covering half of my eye away from my face.

I nod, and hold my arms out and she picks me up and kisses my cheek.

She leads us to the kitchen and places me on the counter, she takes out the crate with the eggs, and the box with the pancakes mix in it, and bacon, my favorite.

''Okay,'' she points to me and gives me one of her serious playful faces, ''you, my little helper, are going to be making the eggs.'' I nod and giggle. ''Salute?'' She asks and smiles.

I give her a little salute, ''Ay ay, mommy''

She kisses my head and we start.

''No, Christian'' she says making me stop in my tracks. I look at her face, stopping my finger halfway into the pancake batter.

I move my finger again, ''Christian, I said no.'' She warns me.

It looks like cake batter, it looks yummy.

I move my finger again, and look at her, and she raises an eyebrow.

I dip my finger in and put my finger in my mouth. Ew is tastes funny.

She rolls her eyes, ''Oh Christian, my little rebel..''

She dips her finger in and puts it on my nose, I grin.

She gets out her phone and takes a picture of me, while laughing.

''Okay it's time to flip the last one, come on Christian.''

She lifts me up and faces me towards the stove, she gets the spatula and gives it to me, putting her hand around mine, helping me.

We place the spatula under the pancake, ''Count with me, Christian.''

''1...2...3'' We flip it and mommy jumps up and down, I laugh because I'm bouncing.

The bacon, eggs, and pancakes are done, and mommy makes mine, while I makes daddy's plate.

Mommy made my food look like a happy face. The sunny side eggs as the eyes, a small triangle she made out of the pancake as the nose, and the bacon as the mouth.

She sets the plates on the tables and pours orange juice into 3 cups.

''Go wake up your daddy for me, Christian!''

I run down the hallway sucking my thumb, I open the door and daddy is sleeping, I climb up on the bed and shake daddy, he makes a noise before opening his eyes. He smiles when he sees me, but then his face changes to sad, then to happy again, but this happy face doesn't look like daddy's regular happy face.

''It looked so, forced...'' I tell her.

''Beckfast, daddy, beckfast''

He grabs me and kisses me on my head, then picks me up and he walks out of the room with me in his arms.

When we walk into the kitchen mommy is standing by the table, waiting for us.

Daddy sets me down and I climb onto my seat.

I start eating but then I stare up, and I see mommy and daddy staring at eachother.

''We wanted to surprise you with breakfast.'' Mommy says.

''I know, Ella—''

''Ella?''

I'm looking back and forth at them when they speak.

''Yes that's your name is it not?''

''Yes, it's just, you've always called me honey or baby.. Never mind it's nothing, but since we're on a first name basis right now, are you eating the breakfast me and our son so kindly made for you, Aaron?'' She says, but you can see it in her eyes that she is mad at daddy.

They sit down and eat, and I eat too, it's quiet, no one is talking. I thought daddy would be happy?

When we finish eating daddy tells me to go in my room, I look at mommy and she nods.

I walk to my room but I listen by the door, I hear mommy and daddy fighting.

''You cheated!'' I hear her slap him.

''Keep your fucking voice down!''

Cheated?

''Oh and you're leaving us? That's rich!'' She screams.

''You're mad Ella, I understand that, but it isn't the same between us, don't you dare fucking disagree with me because you know I'm right!''

''I was trying to make up for it... I'll forgive you Aaron just please don't leave me, don't leave us, I'm in love with you, those feelings I have will never change, you're all Christian and I have..'' Mommy's crying.

''I promised Rachel, I'd be at her house when I woke up..'' He says, not paying attention to her.

''Please Aaron...'' She begs him.

''I'm gonna pack my things, and say goodbye to Christian.''

''Excuse me! If I'm the problem, take it out on me, not Christian! He's your fucking son!''

''It's my fucking choice, just leave it at that.''

It goes quiet.

I hear daddy going through his dresser drawers, opening and closing them.

''It felt like forever until he finally came in my room..''

Daddy opens my door and stoops down to my level.

''Hey kiddo.''

I don't know what to say, what happened?

''Daddy has to go somewhere. He'll come back for you.''

Where are you going daddy?

''You stay and take care of your mommy alright?''

I'll do my best.

He kisses my forehead and backs away from me, two tears fall out of his eyes.

I wipe them away with my hand. Don't cry daddy.

''I love you, Christian.''

''He stared at me for about 3 minutes before finally leaving my room... My mom changed... She was hurting so bad, that she... She met someone else like 5 days later.''

''Christian, go play in your room, mommy has to talk to a friend right now, don't make any noise baby.''

I nod and run back to my room.

I hear my mom talking to a guy, he has a deep voice.

They're walking by my room, I can hear it, but then I hear them open mommy's room door.

''That's when the screaming and moaning started..''

I hear mommy screaming, I cry and run out of my room and open her door.

The guy turns around and looks at me and starts to laugh, ''You have a fucking kid? God you're a joke.. Get the fuck out of here!'' He yells at me.

I look at mommy and she's begging me to leave with her eyes. I look down and close the door silently.

''It got much worse.''

''Fuck!'' My mom screams, and slams the fridge shut.

She takes out her phone and calls someone, ''Hey can you come over today?''

She looks sad. ''No it's just that, I need to feed my son, I'm out of food, I could really use the money.''

She listened and ended the call, throwing her phone on the floor and grabbed her hair, walking back and forth.

''We were running out of food, her pimp would come over more, he got more aggressive towards us.'' I feel Ana, squeezing my arm.

''Ella bring your kid out here, I wanna meet the little fucker properly.''

''No I'm not letting you meet my son!''

I hear him slap her, ''Bring him out here, bitch!''

Mommy opens my door and kneels down, ''Christian, honey.. My friend wants to meet you, will you come out for me?''

I can't speak... He scares me mommy.

''Just do what he says, mommy will protect you''

I nod and she holds out her hand and I grab it. She leads me out into the living room, where he's sniffing something white that's on the table.

He looks up at me and smiles, I squeeze mommy's hand tighter.

''Come over here.'' He says.

I just look at him. I don't move.

''I said come over here!'' He screams at me, and I jump and I wanna cry. I look up at her.

I'm scared, mommy.

She nods and I walk over to him, slowly.

''He got mad at how slowly I was walking..''

He looks mad now, he gets up and pulls my hair, leading me back to the couch.

''Mommy'' I cry.

''Don't touch my fucking son!'' She yells pulling him back.

He gets really mad and hits mommy. She falls to the ground. She's about to cry and her nose is bleeding.

''It just didn't end, she would do the drugs that he made her do, so he wouldn't hurt me, but then she got addicted, and the money he gave her, she would spend on drugs instead of food, and he started to call her names, he got more annoyed with her, so he took it out on me..''

He's making noises in the bedroom again.

I'm drawing a picture of me, mommy, and daddy.

Daddy. When is he coming back?

I hear mommy's door slam loudly and the knob on my door is moving. Then the banging starts.

''OPEN THE GODDAMN DOOR!''

Tears fall again, but I get up and walk to the door, unlocking it.

Once he opens it he pushes me down on the floor and searches my room.

I'm crying now, I run to mommy's room and she's sitting on her bed, with a stick between her fingers, while she blows the smoke out.

''Hey baby boy.'' She says to me.

''Her face expression was so blank, it was like she wasn't my mom anymore..''

''Come here, Christian''

I shake my head and cry.

''Mommy will protect you baby, come here.''

I shake my head again. Then he comes back..

''Listen to your fucking thief lying bitch of a mom kid, you need to be fucking disciplined.'' He says and pushes me down again. But now he's kicking me me. It hurts so much.

My mom gets up and tries to stop him but he punches her.

''He went ballistic.''

He's kicking mommy now. I have to help her. I try to get up but it hurts, I crawl over to him and I start hitting his leg as hard as I can.

''Christian, stop.'' I hear my mom whisper.

''She sounded so weak.''

He kicked me again, ''don't fucking hit me you little shit''

He stopped and looked at the floor where the stick mommy was holding with her hand was.

He grabbed it and picked me up holding me against the wall, his arm on my throat, my stomach hurts and I can't stop crying.

''He was choking me with his arm..''

He lifted up my shirt with his free arm and put the stick in his mouth and blew the smoke in my face before poking the stick on me, all over my chest.

I shut my eyes tightly and I'm trying to scream but his arm is making it hard for me to scream, ''M-mommy! Mommy p-please h-elp me'' I choke out.

''Stop fucking making noise!'' He slapped me and then turned me around on the wall, his arm now holding me up by the back of my neck.

He starts poking me with the stick again, on my back this time.

I'm trying to move away, but he's too strong.

Soon he stops and then he drops me. I land on the floor, still crying..

He leaves the room, slamming the door. I hear the front door slam. I slowly crawl over to mommy, her eyes are closed. I lift her arm up and put it around me, and cuddle into her, crying hard.

''Do you know what he was searching for in my room?'' I look to Ana and she's crying for me...

''What...'' She whispers.

''The pimps cocaine, which she overdosed on the next day.''

She shuts her eyes and shakes her head.. Letting more tears fall.

''I know I was too young, but I still remember... what she said to me before I fell asleep, because I always dream of her telling it to me.''

Mommy thinks I'm sleeping... but I'm listening to her cry on my bed, holding me, my back to her chest.

Kissing my head, she starts whispering to me.

''Things will different for you from now on Christian, I promise you. You won't be seeing mommy anymore, but I'll be watching over you, always'' She kisses my head again. ''My baby boy..'' She choked out a sob again. ''I'm so sorry... for everything... for not protecting you enough, for not taking care of you the way I should've, and for not being a good mother... When you grow up, and you have to make a choice, I hope you make the right one. I know you will make it in life, I just know you will, and I will be so proud of you honey, so proud..'' She sniffles, ''and when you fall in love and get married, and have kids of your own, I want you to treat her with respect, treat your future kids with respect love them and protect them. Be a better person than your father and I, honey. You're too young to understand this right now, but I hope you will keep it in mind until you're old enough to understand. I love you so much, Christian.''

She kisses me on my head one last time, but she lets her mouth stay there for a little.

She gets up off of the bed and opens my room door, I still see her shadow on the wall, she turns to face my room, facing me.

''Goodnight, love.''

She walks out and closes the door behind her.

''I woke up and went to her room, and she was splayed out on her bed, I tried to wake her up and she wouldn't.. I starved for about 4 days until the police came and took me away from her, they took me to the hospital, and that was where I met Grace..''

''What about your dad?''

''He never came back.''

Ana's now sitting on my lap, wrapped around me like a vine, kissing my cheek, crying.

''Don't cry for me Ana, please don't.''

''You were just a baby, Christian.''

''It's the past, Ana.''

''Why did this happen to us, we were so innocent and they destroyed us...'' She sobs.

I wrap my arms around her and hold her, I want to tell her to stop but what she just said was true, so I think better of it and I just let her cry.

A/N: So this chapter was ALSO extremely painful and heartbreaking to write. Kind of cried while writing it. Now they know each other's story, and so do you! Please review me your thoughts!