Alice:
"How dare you show me the consequences of my actions! What am I, responsible for them?!"
I laugh despite myself, the absurdity of it all hitting me like a punchline to a terrible joke.
Me:
I’m kind of an asshole when people deserve it.
Oh, he’s all snuggled in his blankie now.
His parents are in their late 70s and are probably shitting themselves wondering what’s going on over here.
His dad didn’t complete an entire military career and corporate career for this bullshit.
Alice:
Deservedly shitting themselves. Kind of.
As Timmy curls up on the bed, snuggled under his blanket, I feel a pang of bitterness. His elderly parentsareprobably sitting at home, worried sick about what’s happening here. And what have they done? Enabled him.
Made excuses for him.
I glance at my phone, reading and rereading Alice’s messages. Her sarcasm and blunt truth-telling are a lifeline I didn’t know I needed at first, but am quickly coming to depend on.
Me:
He says he loves me, Alice.
But it doesn’t feel like love.
Her reply is immediate.
Alice:
Because it’s not.
I stare at those words, the truth of them sinking in.
I don’t know what tomorrow will bring, but for tonight, I have Alice.
And for tonight, that’s enough.
CHAPTER 17
OH BECKY, YOU'RE SO FAKE AKA COMPASSION IN RETROGRADE
DEX
Margaux’s phone lights up, and I’m relieved to see Alice’s name on the screen. Alice—the blunt, no-nonsense roller derby friend Margaux desperately needs right now. Someone who isn’t afraid to call things as they are.
Her messages aren’t sugar-coated; they’re real, raw, and exactly what Margaux responds to.
Alice doesn’t dance around the issue of Timmy’s abuse. She’s not pushing Margaux to leave outright—that would backfire—but she’s planting seeds, asking the tough questions, and reminding Margaux of her worth.
She’s doing something I can’t—providing honest, non-judgmental friendship without triggering Margaux’s defenses. And I’m grateful.
I see the small relief in Margaux’s body language as she types, laughing softly at Alice’s dark humor. That tiny flicker of light in her dimmed eyes makes me feel like maybe, just maybe, she’ll find her way out of this mess.