Page 2 of The Destruction You Desire

She hesitates for a beat, but clearly realizes that it's too late to try to hide him because I've already seen him.

She stands aside allowing me to once again stare at the little boy whose eyes are as green as mine and who looks exactly like the photos of me as a kid that hang on Mom's walls.

"P-Peyton. Is he… is he mine?" The words fall from my lips without me realizing but it's what makes the most sense to me right now.

My eyes are still locked on him when movement to his side catches my attention but I'm not quick enough because as Peyton drops to the floor, the guy who was sitting beside her jumps up and manages to catch her before she hits the deck.

"It's okay, Peyton," the guy says, gently lowering her to the ground.

The lady at the table rushes around to her side as the little boy wheels closer.

Everything happens around me but it's like I'm not really seeing it, really experiencing it.

It's like I'm dreaming and I'm not really here.

I will myself to wake up but I know it's pointless because this is way too fucked up to be a dream. This kind of shit can only be real.

"I-I'm okay," she whispers after a couple of seconds.

"Peyton, thank goodness," the lady says, her voice full of relief.

"Seriously, I'm okay." She pushes away from the guy—her boyfriend, I assume, and sits up, resting her elbows on her knees and drops her head into her hands.

It's like it takes her a second to remember what she's in the middle of. I know the exact moment it slams into her because her body tenses and her eyes fly up to mine.

Her lips part as if she's about to say something but she decides against it.

The tension in the air is so thick I can barely breathe, but I'm not leaving from the spot until I've been given an explanation and heard everything. I don't care how painful it is, I don't care how much devastation it's going to cause on top of everything that's already threatening to break me. I need it all.

"C-can you all go inside, please?" Peyton asks, her eyes still on mine.

"Are you sure, Peyton?" the lady asks as the guy stands from where he was on his haunches beside her.

"I'm fine. I just haven't eaten anything and—"

"I'll get you a glass of water. Come on." She gestures for the guy to go inside and after wrapping his hands around the boy's wheelchair the three of them disappear.

The air crackles between us once we're alone. My chest heaves as I fight to get a grip on myself and what all of this means.

"Here you go, sweetie," the lady says, passing a bottle over to where Peyton is still sitting on the edge of the deck with her feet on the grass.

"Thank you," she whispers, still not taking her eyes off mine. It's as if she can't believe this is happening as much as I can't either. The lady whispers something to her that I can't quite hear before Peyton assures her that she's okay. Accepting Peyton’s answer, she squeezes her shoulder in support while shooting me one hell of a death glare, as she disappears once more.

The sound of the back door closing is like a gunshot echoing around us.

I wait two seconds before my need for an answer to my previous question gets the better of me.

"Is. He. Mine?"

She shakes her head, a sad smile curling at her lips.

"No, Luc. He's not."

I stare at her, my blood boiling as another possibility hits me.

"No," I bark, my hands coming up to my hair, the flowers and card that I was holding long forgotten as they tumble to the ground. "He can't be Leon's. Please, please don't tell me that you and—"

"What?" she screeches, jumping from the deck. "No, he's not Leon's. Jesus, Luc. Why would you…" She trails off as she begins pacing back and forth in front of me.