After a while, cars began to leave out the parking lot as people left the building and drove away home to their families. She envied them.
Slowly getting up, she walked over to the back of the building and lit up a cigarette. She must’ve stayed back there for at least forty-five minutes. When she walked back to the front of the building, her son’s car was gone, too.
She went back inside, all the way to Aiden’s work area, not surprised to see just about everyone was gone. For some reason that she couldn’t fathom, she remembered one little thing that her son had told her a couple of years ago. His boss always stayed until 6:00 P.M. She made her way past the empty cubicles, some with computers left on and desktop savers scrolling on by, then turned towards the office doors all lined up on one wall, reading the names on each as she walked by. What was his boss’ name? She couldn’t remember that…
One office had a man sitting inside, at his desk. She looked at the name plaque on the wall, which read, “William Jones.”
It sounded rather familiar, but it was such a common name. Perhaps she was mistaken.
The man suddenly looked up at her, seemingly startled. “Uh… hello. How can I help you?”
“I didn’t mean to scare you,” she said nervously as she ran her hands together. “I’m Aiden Summer’s mother… my name is Barbara. Are you his boss?”
“Yes, I’m Aiden’s supervisor.”
“Is it okay if I borrow a little of your time?” She offered the best smile she could muster.
“Oh, uh, yes, sure, no problem.” The man pointed to a chair in front of him and began to scoot papers around on his desk. “Is Aiden okay?”
“Yeah, well, not really.” She took a seat and gathered her thoughts before continuing. “You see, Mr. Jones, hmmm, I don’t even know how to say this. Well, I’ll just go with the flow I guess. Aiden has been working for you for a long time from my understanding.”
“Yes, he has and he’s a great employee, too.” The man smiled, though he appeared a little unnerved.
“I believe that to be true. Did my son ever tell you anything about me? You know… any problems that I may have?”
“Um.” He shook his head. “Not that I recall.”
“I didn’t think so. He’s always been kinda private, ’specially about family matters. Anyway, you see… what you don’t know, Mr. Jones, is that Aiden has been living a double life. He works here, then he works for me, too.” The man looked downright confused. “What I’m saying is that he takes care of me. I am an alcoholic, Mr. Jones.” The guy’s face grew tight, then relaxed as if filled with sympathy. “No, that’s too nice of a word. I’m a drunk.” She laughed miserably as she waved her finger in the air.
“Oh, I see.” The fellow clasped his hands on his desk and looked at her the way her doctor did. She hated that expression of pity.
“I guess I have taken him to the point of no return now.” She couldn’t stop the tears from falling now. How she detested that she couldn’t control herself. The man snatched a tissue from his desk and handed it to her. “He gave me a good cursing out… but it’s because I broke his heart.” Blowing her nose, she soon regained her composure. “I mean, I knew it all along that he’d make good on his threats, but I just couldn’t help myself, you know? I’m a boozer; I’m not stupid. There’s a difference. I’ve seen him look at me with disgust. I’ve seen him look at me with hope. I’ve seen him look at me with love. Today, I saw him look at me with nothing… and that scared me most of all. He’s given up on me. He’s gone. It’s over.”
“I… I am sorry to hear all of this, Barbara. Maybe Aiden just needs a little time. I hope that, uh, you two can mend your relationship. Is there something that you wish for me to do?” He clasped his hands together.
“Well, I’m not sitting here to complain or tell you my problems. Honestly, it’s nobody’s business but mine and his, but I just feel like I would be a good reference for his character as a man. I’m sitting here because I haven’t done one damn thing for either of my sons in a very long time but cause them grief. I didn’t mean to, but that’s just the nature of the beast I guess. See, from my previous stints in rehab, albeit short,” she said with a chuckle, though she was far from amused at her own confessions, “it usually takes a long time for a drunk to admit these sorts of things, you know, come clean. But this is an old hat for me.” She waved her hand lazily in the air.
“I didn’t take rehabilitation seriously, didn’t think I really needed it. In fact, I figured I could just stop on my own. I was selfish, just like he said I was, and so now, I want to not be so self-centered. At least, for this one situation. To think of someone other than myself for a change, you know?” The man nodded in understanding, glanced at his watch, then tossed on an awkward smile. “Let me get right down to it and stop foolin’ around. Aiden is either gonna love me or kill me for this… but you’ve got something going on here under your nose that you’re probably not aware of.”
“And what would that be?”
“Aiden is seeing someone. He’s in a relationship with a young lady.”
“Well, that’s nothing strange. Aiden is a great man. It actually surprises me that he isn’t already settled down, considering that amazing personality of his and easygoing persona. Not only is he smart, he’s a really nice guy.”
“Yeah? Well that easygoing stuff you see is all an act. He’s actually sensitive but hides it well. I know my son inside and out, contrary to what he thinks, but that’s neither here nor there. I bring up this lady because she came here for help. She’s a client of his.” The man’s face suddenly grew serious. “He was really concerned about it, but they love one another, and they kept it to themselves. Now, from my understanding, according to my youngest son, that girl is already squared away. She doesn’t come here anymore and got a damn good job and is doing just fine. But here is where the problem comes in.” She pointed to herself. “At least from my vantage point anyway. Look, you’ve got some guy here that has been trying to strong arm my son and I just won’t have it!”
“Strong arm Aiden?”
“Yeah. I understand that there is a big promotion on the table and my son is one of the contenders. The other candidate… I don’t know his damn name, but he’s been a pain in the ass for my child since day one, according to Perry. That’s my other son.”
Mr. Jones fell back into his seat and rolled his eyes.