Chapter 10 - The Clearance Item's Revenge
The following week, Leo and I flew to Hawaii for his tenth birthday. We were sitting on a balcony overlooking the Pacific Ocean, the warm breeze ruffling our hair.
Mark had sent a beautiful fruit basket to our room. My phone was silent, entirely free of toxic text messages.
I looked at my son, who was busy taking pictures of the sunset with his new camera. He was growing up so fast, strong, empathetic, and fearless.
"Hey, Mom?" he called out, lowering the camera.
"Yes, baby?"
"This is the best trip ever. I'm glad it's just us."
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I smiled, feeling a profound, unshakeable peace settle over my heart. My mother had been wrong about almost everything in her life, but she was right about one thing: I was like an item on a shelf. But not a clearance item. I was a rare find. It had just taken me stepping out of the wrong store to realize my true worth.
"Me too, Leo," I said, pulling him into a hug as the sun dipped below the horizon. "Me too."
