BOMAW Vol. 10-12 (184 page)

"Better off so you can have him, Ben?"

"Stop blaming Ben for what's wrong with us Victor, we were broken long before he came along."

Victor took a deep breath, his son was staring up at him with heated eyes. He realized he had to stop causing an argument with her in front of him. "I'm sorry," He said first, looking down at Isaac and then up at Crystal, "Really, I'm sorry. Let's go somewhere, I don't wanna stand here."

"We can walk to the park if you want?" She offered.

"Yes, please, let's." They turned and started making their way down the road, heading towards town, where a large park existed next to the library. When they arrived, Crystal put the kids down to play in the sand, and on the monkey bars, she and Victor followed them around, staying with them as they spoke soft and low.

"The lawyer I spoke to this afternoon, says there is a good chance the judge will reverse the divorce because I hadn't signed the papers." He informed her.

She stopped and looked at him, "Leave it alone Victor." She pleaded with him.

"No, I'm not gonna leave it alone. I want you back. I want you home. I want my boys back home, so I can go back to being their father again. Crystal, I promise, I'll be much better this time. While you were away, I did a lot of thinking too, and - I realized how much you mean to me. How much all of you mean to me. Why do you think I got the house back, took on the extra work? Regardless of what you say, I really did do it all for you. Look at our boys Crystal, how can we be so bad together, when something so incredible as them comes from it? Don't we owe it to them, to at least try? I'm their father, no one else. I'm right here, where I plan to stay, with my wife, with my sons." He declared.

"And Jeanine? What was that Victor?"

"Nothing, I told you, nothing at all! That was just stupid, me being weak. I'm done with being that way, this is a new me now."

"I don't know Victor, I just don't."

"Well I tell you what, if I have to camp out in front of your mom's house at night, sleep in my car to prove to you I'm not going anywhere, I will."

"Don't be ridiculous! That's not necessary! And - why are you pressuring me? When you took off, saying you needed time, I gave it to you. Now, I need it, why can't you give it to me?"

"We've both had plenty of time, enough now, I want you back home. You don't come home, then, expect to see my car parked out front, every night, until you do."

Crystal couldn't believe what she was hearing, he was starting to piss her off, "You know what, fine! You do that, hope it's going to be comfortable for you, because you're gonna be there a long time." She started heading back to the house.

"Hey! Where you going?"

"Home! Take care of your boys! Spend some time with them! Remind them that you're their father and you love them, if you can!"

Darren and Isaac stopped playing, looking at her walk away, "Mama, where you goin'?" Isaac asked.

"Stay here with your father baby, spend some time with him. When you get tired, he'll bring you home." She answered walking off.

Victor stood steaming, watching her leave, and then looking down at his boys. They turned and looked at him. All three stared at each other, and not one of them knew what to do with each other, other than the two brothers who stood side by side.

By the time Crystal made it back to the house, she stormed into the basement, steaming. Ben was there, in the basement, Mundo, Shawn and her mother cooking. The three men were putting the bedroom together for Mundo to move into. Sylvia looked up from the stove, "You okay?"

Crystal stopped, wilted, "He says, he's going to park outside, and not leave until I come back home to him. He also saw a lawyer, who said, he could probably get the divorce reversed since he didn't sign it." Everyone stood still, staring.

It was Ben's turn to get mad, it had been bad enough to see them walking into town together, he'd just turned the corner to see the back of them walking opposite of him. It had taken everything he had, to drive on to the house and leave them be, when it was the last thing he wanted to do.

"I don't know what to do now." She admitted.

Shawn threw down the Phillips head screw driver they were using to put the waterbed back together again. He leaned back against the door, pinching the bridge of his nose. It was either beat the daylights out of him, or ignore him. He looked up at Crystal, "You're gonna have to ignore him. Don't let him pressure you into anything. As for the divorce part, you may have to bring up his infidelity, his cheating on you to keep the judge from reversing it."

"You mean, I have to go back to court again?" She asked tired of it all already.

"If he takes it before the judge, yes, you're going to have to show up there and fight it if you want the divorce to stick." Shawn informed her.

She looked at her mother, "God mama, there are days when I wish you had aborted me!"

All those standing in attendance, couldn't believe the words that came out of Crystal's mouth. Ben stared at her, wishing he could make it all better. Wishing he could take her, the boys and the four of them, just leave, go somewhere, start anew. He knew her. Knew the person she was inside as well all the hell she must have suffered at her father's hands. Now, here she was, forced to deal with someone he saw as a jerk who didn't know when to let go. He turned away, because his hands were tied. She'd tied them. He had to leave and help Jake on the house. They'd gotten a lot done the previous night with his cousins present and their grandfather directing everyone. He'd gotten on Jake's nerves, even though he didn't say it out loud. But Bart had been forever correcting them, saying how it should be done, checking Jake when he said something, or looking over his shoulder. Even so, they'd got a great deal accomplished because he was really pushing to get as much done as possible to move in with Vivian.

He listened as Sylvia advised that they all calm down. She also reminded Crystal and Shawn about the counselling sessions they were supposed to be attending.

"Crystal, get on the phone right now, call that counsellor, what's his name?" She asked between Crystal and Shawn.

"Chad Withering." Shawn answered immediately.

"Yes, call him, find out when is the next meeting, you both need to get to it. No more putting things off, go on Crystal. And uh, no more thinking that way, okay? Abortion was not an option, I'm very proud of the fact that you stand before me now, troubled or not - you can get through this, and you will. Now on the phone."

Crystal did as she was told, found out the next meeting was Thursday night, tomorrow. She informed her mother and Shawn of that.

"I want you two at that meeting, and - no missing anymore, please?" She asked.

Shawn was quiet, he nodded and turned to Crystal, who also nodded, they would be there.

After helping put the bed together, and moving the dresser and chest of drawers back in place, Ben said his goodbyes. As luck would have it, crossing the front yard heading for his car, Victor and the boys were walking up. The moment they spotted him, Isaac took off from Victor to Ben.

"Isaac! Get back here!" Victor yelled at him. He ignored him running up to Ben.

"Where you goin' Ben, can I go?"

Before Ben could answer, Victor charged forward, grabbing Isaac's shoulder by his shirt. "Don't be running off like that!" He snatched him around, pissed that he took off from him to Ben.

"Don't snatch on him like that, he's fine, he's in the front garden." Ben protested.

"Fuck out'ah my face, prick!" Victor grumbled low.

"Leave Ben alone!" Isaac yelled, shrugging his father's grip off of his shirt. Darren started getting upset, and reached out for Ben.

Victor turned them away, shoving Isaac towards the house, up the stairs and to the front door, as Ben stood burning hot. He wanted to take them from him but had to smile as Isaac gave him a hard time, trying to run from him, back his way, ditching and dodging him, twisting and turning around his hand, to keep him from gripping him, even falling to the porch and crawling away. Because Victor was holding Darren, or trying to, he couldn't get a good hold on Isaac. "Isaac, get over here now!" He ground out, growing angry. Isaac shot up and was out of his reach in record time, down the steps darting for Ben, who picked him up.

"Little man, that's not nice putting your dad through that."

"I wanna go wit'you Ben." He mumbled with a sad face, looking about to cry.

"Tomorrow, okay?" Ben whispered low as Victor stood glaring at them, growing more angry by the moment from the front stairs, a distance away, "Keep that our little secret okay? I promise you, you can help me some more, like you did today. But you gotta be a good boy, okay?"

"ISAAC!" Victor yelled, sharp.

"Hang on dude, can you wait a minute?" Ben pleaded, trying to keep things calm with them present. "Go t'ya' dad now." Ben kissed his forehead, put him down and gave a gentle push in the right direction. Isaac took two steps and turned back watching Ben leave for his car and started crying, making Ben turn back. Victor rushed over, scooped him up from around the waist and turned back to the house, ignoring both boys crying for the other man.

Ben stood watching Victor hold them in place before him as he knocked on the door. A moment later, Mundo opened it, bringing the boys in, speaking with Victor. "Ah'ight man, I got'em, thanks." They calmed down once they were with Mundo. With Shawn feeling what he did about Victor, Mundo wouldn't stand talking to him, he brought the boys in and tried to close the door.

"Wait, can you tell Crystal I'm out here?"

"Man, give her some space, chill for a bit - you need to back off a bit."

"Tell her Mundo, tell her I'm out here, and I'm not going!"

Mundo shook his head closing the door, replying, "Ah'ight man, ah'ight."

Victor turned heading down the stairs to see Ben still standing in place, "Is there something I can do for you?"

"Yeah, why don't you leave man? Give her some room to breathe." He returned.

"So you can move in on'her? I don't think so! She's my fuckin' wife!"

"Not anymore, shit for brains!"

"Get the fuck out'ah my face before I finish where I left off!"

"Here I am - come and get some - bitch!"

"You'd love that wouldn't you! So Crystal can get mad at me, thinking I started it!"

"Put up or shet up! Talkin' shit! You just threatened to finish it, well do it! No kids, no women, no other men, just you and I! Better yet, let's hit the woods pussy! Nobody will know; either I'll fuck you up, or you'll fuck me up! Come on!" Ben invited throwing his head in direction of the woods that lay a few steps from Sylvia's property. "Let's move our cars, they'll think we're both gone, come on." Ben walked to his.

"Yeah, you think I'm stupid enough to fall for that? Got somebody waiting there for me?"

Ben shook his head smiling, "Hey, I don't need any help, I fight my own battles! But you know what, I got your number, got you all figured out, you only fight when there's a crowd around to break it up. I bet you've never gone the distance in a fight, huh, pussy? That right, need an audience? Somebody to break it up?"

"Look loser-..."

"Loser? You're the loser, dickhead! Had a damn good woman an' lost her! Know what else? I'll be around, like bees on honey, because if I get'er - you better believe, I'm keepin' her!"

"Victor, Ben - that's enough!" Sylvia called out. She was on her way back to Shanna's and came out of the garage to see them face to face.

Victor turned to her, "It's not me, it's him! Inviting me for a little time in the woods, what's that all about?" Victor tipped his chin and hands up, clearly indicating Ben shouldn't be trusted.

She walked to them, addressing them both. "I am not gonna have any more fighting out here, do I make myself clear? Ben, you going to help Jake, right?"

"Yes ma'am." He answered, eyeing Victor wishing he'd taken him up on the trip to the woods.

"Please, go on then."

He reluctantly backed off, went to his car and climbed in, starting it, he drove off.

She turned to Victor, "All that needed to be said, has been said - you need to leave Victor, this is Crystal's home-..."

"No! Her home is with me, the house that we had, I got it back for us. That's her home. Sylvia, I've done everything I can while she's been gone to show her I want my family back. I can't believe you're letting him interfere in our business - this is not right."

"Victor, listen to me. He - as you call him, is now my husband. He loves Crystal-..."

"He's not her father, doesn't even know her - he's got nothing to do with us!" He cut her off to argue.

"You have a lot of nerve saying that, when you let your mother do that very same thing!-..."

"But she won't be anymore, I can tell you that now!" He was almost bragging about his actions, proud before Sylvia for them.

"Yes, so I've heard. And it's your actions of doing that right there, that is making me do some serious thinking of my own. As far as this mess is concerned, everyone needs to calm down, take a breather, and consider what's happening here. Crystal doesn't need this pressure Victor, you need to go home-..."

"While that Ben is all over her?! No, no way, not while he's here all in my wife's face, turning my sons against me."

"Victor, I'm asking you to leave, and give her time to figure out what she wants to do."

"No, I'm staying right here. I want my wife home. Did Mundo tell her I was out here when I brought the boys back? Or did she send you out to get rid of me?"

"Victor, has it occurred to you, that you are now divorced?"

"Not by my hand! I didn't sign it, we're not divorced."

"Look, I didn't come out here for this. As I said, I think you should go home-..."

"I don't care what you say, I'm not leaving!"

"You are really pushing it. I am really trying to be patient with you, you know this can be construed as stalking? Harrassment?"

"I don't care! Why am I wrong for wanting my wife back? Huh? Why is that wrong? She doesn't belong here! My sons don't belong here! They should be with me."