Starring:
Summary: After returning from seeing D.L. in prison, Niki tells Micah that he won't be visiting his father again.
Date It Happened: December 18th, 2007
Me 'n' You
Sanders-Dawson Residence
Queens
Niki didn't say where she was going, when she left earlier today — only when she'd be back. That time is now, a few hours before it'll be time for Micah to go to bed… even on winter break. It was light out, if dismal, when she left the house and now it's completely dark. She looks like she's been hit by a truck when she comes through the door, although it's not a physical impression. She goes through the motions of taking off her coat and boots with a deadened expression.
Micah wasn't too concerned when his mom left earlier that day. He had better things to do than worry. Like filling out and printing those applications and scholarship forms. Which he did a couple of hours ago. Currently he's camped out on the couch, watching Star Trek reruns on a local TV channel. Oddly, the laptop isn't nearby. "Mom!" he exclaims, hearing the door and popping up his head over the back of the couch.
Niki wastes no time in making a beeline for Micah, but her actual steps in getting there… they're slow, as if she could delay the process. She doesn't smile when she sees her son's head pop up from behind the back of the couch, which should be the first sign that something's wrong. He always makes her smile when no one else can. "Hey, baby." On reaching the couch, she touches her hands to either side of Micah's head and kisses the top of it. "I have to talk to you about something important."
Ok, so Micah does pick up on the slowness in his mother's steps. Which causes him to raise a brow in question. Sure, it's cold outside and not exactly the best weather, but… "Everything ok, mom?" he asks, his gaze following her steps right up until she reaches the couch. The kiss is reassuring somewhat, but the statement that follows is not. "What is it? Did something happen to dad? Nana? Monica?"
"No," Niki answers, but she's holding something back. "No one's hurt." Physically, anyway. "It's nothing like that." But everything is not okay. She trails away only to reappear at Micah's left-hand side, curling in cozy quarters onto the couch to face him. "This is gonna be tough to hear." A preface. Never a good sign, either. With a quickly furrowing brow, and one of her little smiles that tries to be reassuring to her son, she says, "But you're just going to have to hear me out. It's for the best."
Micah allows his dark eyes to traverse the same route his mom takes as she comes to rest on the couch beside him. When it's mentioned that everyone is ok, he lets out a small sigh of relief. Of course, it's never a good sign at what came next. "What is it?" he asks, his own face scrunching up in concern. The smile isn't working to reassure him.
Niki turns a sympathetic look on Micah already, the glimmer of emotion in her eyes undeniable. A tense pursing of her lips turns into a fond smile. "I saw your dad today." She glances down, and the smile is gone. She's getting there. It's like ripping off a band-aid, deciding to do this as soon as she got home, but now that she's sitting here with Micah, the longer he doesn't know, the longer he can stay optimistic.
"And you didn't TAKE ME?!?!" Micah blurts out, quickly looking sorry as he realizes how that must have sounded. Dark eyes glance down and away briefly, before returning to his mom. And when they do, they contain a look of curiousness. Despite it clearly sounding bad, he has to know.
Niki was expecting that. Her face is grim; her eyes, though, are imploring. For Micah to understand. She gives it a few seconds, and then… "We can't visit him anymore, Micah." That's it. That's what she was trying to tell her son. It obviously pains the mother to say it, but she's adamant on the point all the same. Her not-quite-psychic mom sense has her reaching out for one of Micah's hands.
Micah's face falls. If this were a fancy CGI-based movie, one might be witness to the ground falling out from underneath him. "Wh……why not?" he asks, his voice quivering with uncertainty. "What did he say?" Gone is almost the childish appearance that was there a short time ago. Replaced with a crestfallen appearance. He allows his mom to take his hand, but when she does it causes a tear to form in the corner of his eyes.
"He wants us … to move on." Niki holds tight onto Micah's hand. "Seeing him in there, it's…" She starts to shake her head, just barely. "It's too hard, Micah. For all of us. I don't expect you to understand right away— "
Given the grip she has on his hand, it'd be clear that Micah tries to pull his hand back. "Wha….no." he starts, the tears starting to flow now. This…is not…happening. "He can walk out of there any time he wants! Why won't he?" The boy knows why. It was explained before. But memory is fuzzy where emotions are concerned. Again his hand tugs. "Maybe there is something I can do. If I got on the internet….maybe I could fix it so he can come home." His voice is cracking, almost frantic.
"No, Micah." His mother reaches out to lay her other hand over his, too. "He's made his choice. Laws exist for a reason. He's going to follow them and he's going to stay behind bars. He's doing this for us," Niki says, and it hurts, but she seems to have conviction behind her words. She leans down closer. "He wants us to have a better life— and I'm sorry it has to be this way, Micah, but it has to be without him."
Micah isn't buying any of it. No. His father's always come back. And it's hard for Micah to accept that won't be the case this time. "He doesn't have to do this for us." Micah cries, not even fighting to hold the tears back which leave dark trails on his cheeks as they roll down. "I can fix it." Deep down he knows he can't, but logic has been overruled by irrationality. As the last is said, he can't hold it anymore and just breaks down into full sobbing, leaning towards his mom.
"He wants to," Niki says more quietly, less firmly. "He loves us so much, that he'd do this for us — he loves you more than everything else in the world. And that's all you need to remember." She gathers up Micah so that he can lean against her and folds her arms around him. She has a moment of trying to keep her own tears in check, Micah's anguish hurting more than anything. And it's her fault that he's in pain, not D.L.'s. "I'm sorry, hon," she whispers, stroking the boy's hair. "I'm so sorry. I know you just got him back."
"I…..it's…." Micah's speech is broken by the sobs. His tear likely staining the shirt his mom is wearing. "….it's not fair." he finally finishes. "Isn't there anything we can do?" It's said quickly, to avoid interruptions as he tries to compose himself.
"I know it's not fair," Niki tries to tell Micah, apologetic. "But I hope that … one day you'll look back and know that… we did what was right." She shuts her eyes and lays her cheek down on the boy's head, pale blonde hair falling on his dark curls. "Hey," she says through a breath, hugging tight. "Me 'n' you. We just need each other, okay, baby?"
FADE