Immediately she got home, she let her legs sprawl over the bed. Tonight, she felt carefree. She felt like a teen all over again. Not a mother nor a wife to an ungrateful husband, but a teen.

It was not her intention to make a fool of people at the party but Marcus wouldn't stop. Just to prove a point, he had poured hot cheese on some guy just to prove that the whole event was infact filled with snobs.

She remembered how the guy had called Marcus dumb telling him that in no way could he afford to pay for his five hundred dollar suit. The rest of the night went on with her listening to Marcus' stories of how he had encountered a bunch of snobs in the station. The night had surely brought life to her forlorn heart and from Marcus she had learnt that her life wasn't as bad as she claimed.

"So you are telling me you left your son just to attend what? Some man baby's party. Damn and I thought you were ruthless. Not to be confused I think you are way worse, Mikaella Cervantes. A ruthless snobby bad mother not to forget bad dancer,"he had joked.

It had been so for the rest of the night he throwing nasty comments and Mikaella retaliating. They were in their own little world dancing alone on the huge ballroom floor.

"Right...says the guy who has no family. Stays in the station all day and what? Sings kumbaya with the delinquents?"

She joked only this time instead of him talking back. He merely stared at her. Something about that look frightened her. His grip on her waist tightened before he sighed,

"I had one. A family. I had a family"

Had? Mikaella repeated the simple words in her mind. She didn't want to pry but would it hurt to know some more? After all he had tortured her with his company all night so she atleast deserved something to entertain her.

"Had?I...I didn't know. Did she leave...you?"

"I wish she did. I'm the kind of man that a woman would divorce, isn't it?"

She bit her lip awkwardly. I mean he did look like the kind of man who would scare a woman off but with the way things were going she refrained from speaking.

"For your information, milady, she died. Yeah, eight years back some drunk moron tries to run her off the road and as she tries her best to avoid him, she...she hit a freaking pole. Funny thing is the moron escaped unharmed but my ruby...she suffered asking for help. Asking people to save our baby. To save our child. Our miracle"

"Marcus...I...I didn't. I didn't know"

She stopped for a minute looking at the man in her arms a little bit differently than she had earlier. He...he didn't look like the type of man who had anyone by his side. Much less have feelings.

"But it's life. Things like these happen everyday"

But did things like these happen everyday? She could feel the emotion in his voice, a very familiar emotion that she once experienced. It was guilt. She could sense it. It was at Charles' party that she had made a friend, one that had been misunderstood. Marcus Pierce was not a bad guy, he too was struggling with a lot.

Her phone buzzed against her head on the bed pulling her out of her thoughts and she picked it up seeing the caller ID as Roman. Meaning that Seth was calling, which he had been doing for the past few days.

"Mommy!" The kid shouted.

"How's my baby doing? Have you eaten? Did you go to school?"

"Didn't you miss me, mommy? Daddy kept calling you but you wouldn't pick up"

She smiled. If only he knew how much she had missed him. She hadn't bothered to check her phone since she got to the party, looking back now, there were indeed four missed calls from Roman.

"Mommy was busy and ofcourse I missed you, honey. Do you think mommy would forget about you?"

"No and yes I've eaten. I ate with daddy because he seemed sad. When are you coming back home mommy? Did I do something wrong? Did daddy do something wrong?"

She refused to feel a thing when her son revealed that Roman was sad. Things must have not worked out with Jo, hence his distraught behavior.

"No baby you did not do anything wrong"

"So daddy did something wrong?"

"Tell you what, why don't you video call me so I can pinch those cheeks and smell your breath"

"You are funny mommy"

And he hung up and within minutes, Mikaella had already taken out her old laptop already logging in to Skype.

When Seth's face popped up in her screen she hadn't expected that he would be on Roman's bed with Roman sleeping right behind him.

"Hey mommy," he waved, "Dad and I went skateboarding and look I got a scrape but Aunt Marga cleaned the wound"

"You went skateboarding? Why?"

"Well, Tessa likes skateboards. And I thought since she likes skateboards, I could learn to skateboard and teach her. I know you think I'm fragile but I'm a big boy, mommy"

Fragile? New word play? She thought as she sat on her bed her back leaning on the headrest.

"And who's Tessa?"

"Umm...a girl in my class. She's pretty mom not as pretty as you but she looks like a ninja, a badass ninja. Do you know she kicked Simon for pulling her ponytails?"

She covered her mouth out of amusement. Her son had a crush on someone and she had missed that. And that kid, Simon. Mikaella recalled the numerous times she had to call his mother just to warn him to stay away from Seth. Bullying was unacceptable and when it came to her son, heck she'd claw anyone's hands if need be.

"Did she now? So you've got a little crush on her? You are a big boy know?"

"Yeah. Daddy agrees with me. He said I'm ready to court any girl I want. Mommy, what's courting?"

Seriously? She thought. That was the best advice he could have told their son? That he was ready to court any girl he wanted? The kid was barely nine.

Mikaella shot glares at Roman, who for the last couple of minutes had said nothing but watched them.

"Courting is when a boy tries to win the heart of the girl he likes by doing something special for her"

"So is that why you and dad are together? Did daddy court you too?"

The question had Mick opening her eyes wide and is if on cue, Roman spoke out,

"Ok kiddo, time for bed"

"But...dad it's not even eleven"

"Exactly! Go"

She watched as Seth moved away from the screen stomping out of what used to be their bedroom. Roman took the laptop looking at Mikaella and as fast as he went to speak, Mikaella had already closed the laptop.