“I’m not giving you a checklist.”
“Then how do we fix this?”
“You don’t fix years in an afternoon.”
“What do you want?”
“Respect.”
“You have it.”
“No.”
He stopped.
“I want respect that exists when you think I have nothing.”
I looked at Carla.
“Respect for Mauricio when he has grease on his hands.”
At Hugo.
“Respect for Olivia when her life doesn’t match yours.”
Then Carla again.
“Respect for the older woman in a clearance dress because she is a human being, not because she could buy your house.”
Silence.
“How can I prove it?”
“Time.”
He nodded.
“And choices nobody forces you to make.”
“Gabriel wants to see you.”
“He is always welcome.”
Relief crossed Hugo’s face.
“But you will not use him to pressure me.”
“I won’t.”
“You will not tell him I abandoned him.”
“I already corrected that.”
“Good.”
“I can bring him tomorrow.”
“Yes.”
Carla looked up.
“Can I come?”
“No.”
Her face tightened.
“Hear me before you react. Gabriel deserves to visit his grandmother without being put between adults.”
After a moment, she nodded.
“I understand.”
I stood.
“One more thing.”
Hugo looked at me.
“I am not financing your lifestyle.”
“I didn’t ask.”
“I know. I’m telling you before the question ever exists.”
“It won’t.”
“Good.”
“Gabriel?”
My voice softened.
“My grandson’s education is already provided for.”
“He has a trust?”
“He has a plan. He will receive support for education. When he is older, anything else will come gradually, with financial education and safeguards.”
Hugo nodded.
“Thank you for not making him pay for us.”
“He is eight.”
At the door, Hugo stopped.
“Mom.”
“Yes?”
“Can I hug you?”
For a second, I saw the little boy who once came home terrified after breaking a neighbor’s window.
Love had never been the problem.
I shook my head.
