I was stunned to discover nappies in my teenage son’s rucksack. What I found out when I followed him after school made me shudder. It also made me confront a self-defeating truth that I had been ignoring for years.
Like every other weekday for the last ten years, my alarm went off at 5:30 a.m. Before the sun rose, I was getting dressed, taking a shower, and responding to emails.
I was in the kitchen by 7:00 a.m., brewing coffee and looking through the meetings for the day.
Liam muttered, “Morning, Mom,” as he shuffled into the kitchen wearing his school sweater.
I said, “Morning, honey,” and slid a plate of bread in his direction. “Don’t forget you have that history test today.”
His eyes were fixed on his phone, and he nodded.
We did that every day.
After a few quick goodbyes and morning chats, I would go operate MBK Construction. It was the business my father had started from scratch.
I made a self-promise to make dad proud when he passed away three years ago. I made the decision that, at all costs, the business would prosper under my direction.
Honestly, my marriage was what was required.
Being married to someone who put in fourteen-hour days was too much for Tom to bear.
“You’re married to that company, not me,” he had stated the evening before his departure.
Perhaps he was correct. However, he would have acknowledged that urge as a natural part of me if he truly loved me.
He discovered someone who prioritised him instead. Well done. I needed to preserve my legacy.
And I had Liam, too. My intelligent, kind son, who managed to get through the divorce without being resentful.
With his father’s effortless smile and my will, he was already taller than me at the age of 15. All of the sacrifices were worthwhile as I saw him mature into a young man.
But something had been strange lately. He had become more preoccupied and quieter. He was staring at nothing when I caught him at supper last week.
I waved my palm in front of Liam’s face and yelled, “Earth to Liam,” “Where’d you go?”
He shook his head and blinked. “I apologise. Just pondering several things.
“What sort of material? School? “A girl?”
“Mom, it’s nothing. Simply exhausted.
I gave it up. Teens require space, don’t they? All the parenting books say that.
Then I began to notice other things, though.
He was constantly messaging someone on his phone, then immediately putting the screen away when I passed. Instead of letting me drive him to school, he began to ask to walk.
Then he began to keep the door to his bedroom closed. Always.
It seemed like typical teenage privacy to me. That is, until Rebecca called.
“Kate? This is Liam’s English instructor, Rebecca.
“Is everything okay?” I signed a contract while holding the phone between my shoulder and ear.
“I worry about Liam.” Over the past month, his grades have plummeted. Despite being listed as present for the day by the attendance office, he missed two quizzes and was not in class yesterday.
My pen went cold. “What?”
“I just wanted to see how things are doing at home. This isn’t at all like Liam.
“He’s He has been attending classes every day. He hasn’t revealed anything that has been hurting him recently, and everything is fine at home.”
“Well, he will most certainly not attend my class. And I’m not the only one who has noticed his absences, based on what I’ve heard from his other teachers.”
I hung up and sat motionless at my desk.
Was my ideal son missing school? Why? Due to a girl? Trouble of some sort?
I made an effort to mention it in passing that evening.
“How was school today?” Over supper, I enquired.
He pushed the noodles around his plate and muttered, “Fine,”
“How are classes going? Is English still your preferred language?
He gave a shrug. “It’s alright.”
“Liam,” I replied as I set my fork down. “Is there anything you’d like to discuss? Anything at all?
I hoped he might open up for a second. He seemed to be thinking about it as his eyes locked with mine. The wall then rose again.
“I’m doing fine, Mom. Actually. simply worn out from practice.
I dropped it after nodding. However, I was convinced of one thing.
I had to discover what my son was concealing.
He was playing video games in the living room the following day when I entered his room.
I had never before violated his privacy, but this was not an ordinary situation. I had to know if he was in jeopardy.
For a teenage boy, his room was unusually tidy—the bed was made, the clothing were stored, and everything was meticulously arranged.
Then I noticed that he was sitting on his desk chair with his backpack.
I reasoned that I would discover all the answers there. I swiftly unzipped it after picking it up.
Books and notebooks. calculator. Nothing out of the ordinary.
I then reached into a tiny side pocket and unzipped it. Nothing I took out made any sense.
A package made of plastic nappies.
Nappies for newborns, not just any nappies.
My hands began to shake. Why would my son, who is fifteen, be wearing nappies? Was he spending time with a new parent? Or, heaven forbid, was he a father?
I sat on his bed and tried to figure out what was in the package, but it didn’t make sense.
Liam was cautious and responsible, and he had never even mentioned dating. However, these nappies weren’t magically placed in his backpack.
I strolled back to the living room and put everything back exactly as I had found it.
Liam was totally relaxed as he played computer games on the couch. When his character died, he chuckled and killed zombies as if nothing had happened.
How could he maintain such a great secret and sit there so carelessly?
He went to bed, and I decided what to do. I wouldn’t be going to work tomorrow. I would follow my son tomorrow.
When morning finally arrived, I continued our daily schedule as if nothing had happened.
I called, “Have a good day, honey,” as he was leaving.
“You too, Mom.”
I got my sunglasses and keys after waiting until he was halfway down the block. Feeling foolish, I drove a distance behind that.
However, Liam’s subsequent actions demonstrated that my suspicions were not unfounded. He turned right instead of left towards school.
Out of school.
Out of our neighborhood.
He strode into increasingly unknown streets with confidence, and I followed him for twenty minutes.
Our neighborhood’s tidy homes and well-kept lawns gave way to smaller, older homes with chain-link fences and peeling paint. The upscale neighborhood where we resided was completely different from this one.
At last, Liam came to a halt before a little, dilapidated cottage. As I parked across the street and saw him approach the front door, my heart was racing.
He didn’t knock. He took out a key instead.
I saw him open the door and enter as if he were a native.
Someone else’s house key was in my son’s possession.
I exited my car and approached the front door, my heart thumping against my chest. Unaware that everything would alter in a matter of minutes, I inhaled deeply before knocking.
Liam was standing there, his eyes wide with surprise, when the door opened. It wasn’t my son’s reaction, though, that left me stunned.
He was holding a small infant in his arms.
“Mom?” His voice broke. “What are you doing here?”
A familiar figure emerged behind him before I could respond. An elderly man with salt-and-pepper hair and hunched shoulders.
I recognised him right away. Our previous office cleaner, Peter, was there. Three months ago, I fired the individual because of his persistent tardiness.
“Ma’am,” he murmured softly. “Please, come in.”
As I entered, my mind was having trouble making the connections. Baby supplies were strewn all over the simply furnished living room.
“Liam,” I said. “What’s happening? Why have you brought a baby with you?
My son glanced back at me after glancing down at the baby in his arms. “This is Noah. He is the grandson of Peter.
Peter pointed to a shabby couch. “Please have a seat. I’ll go over everything.
Liam bounced the infant, who couldn’t have been older than a few months, gently while I sat down, still in shock.
“Remember how I used to hang out with Peter when Dad would drop me off at your office after school?” Liam started. “He taught me how to play chess.”
Slowly, I nodded. Peter has been employed for almost ten years at MBK Construction. He had always shown Liam kindness.
“When I heard you fired him, I wanted to check on him,” Liam added. “So, I found his address and came by after school one day.”
Peter stated, “And I welcomed the visit,” “But I wasn’t alone.”
“Where did the baby come from?” Still trying to take it all in, I asked.
Peter’s eyes became dejected. “Lisa, my daughter. She’s had a difficult existence. He paused, then let out a sigh. She arrived with Noah around a month ago. claimed she was unable to cope. She had vanished before daybreak. abandoned the infant and never returned.
“Why didn’t you call social services?” I enquired.
Simply put, “They’d take him away,” Peter remarked. Introduce him to the system. When Lisa is ready, she will return. She always does.
“But in the meantime, Peter needed help,” Liam continued. “He was attending interviews in an attempt to locate a new career, but he was unable to bring a baby. In order to watch Noah, I began to visit during my leisure time.
I gazed incredulously at my son. “You’ve been skipping school to babysit?”
“Only my study hall and lunch,” Liam blurted out. “But after Noah developed colic, Peter was completely worn out. Thus, I I began skipping certain lessons. What was I meant to do, Mom? I know it was wrong. They required assistance.
At that moment, I came to a realisation that chilled me to the bone.
Even I was unaware that my 15-year-old kid was taking on an adult duty while I was preoccupied with board meetings and profit margins.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I enquired.
Peter and Liam looked at each other.
“You fired him for being late,” Liam said. “You didn’t even ask why.”
It was accurate. I was unable to deny it.
Peter had begun arriving late to work, but I never questioned him why. Whether he was having issues at home didn’t matter to me.
I saw Peter for the first time at that point.
The man had black circles under his eyes and appeared tired. When he worked for me, did he always appear this worn out? Why hadn’t I noticed? Had I never even considered asking him whether he was okay since I was so preoccupied with my own life?
“I’m sorry,” I told Peter. “I had no idea what you were going through.”
“It’s not your fault,” he answered. “I should have explained.”
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “I should have asked.”
The infant had fallen asleep against Liam’s shoulder, and I watched as he rocked him gently. For the first time in years, my son had showed me compassion.
I got to my feet and decided. “Peter, I want you to come back to work at MBK Construction.”
His gaze expanded. “Ma’am, I—”
Also, “With flexible hours,” I added. “And we’ll arrange for Noah to have a suitable childcare arrangement. Perhaps even a creche for staff members on the premises. We ought to have taken this action years ago.
“You’d do that?” Peter enquired.
I said, “It’s the least I can do,”
I then looked at my son. “I apologise for not being more present, Liam. I assure you that will change.
“Thanks, Mom,” he said with a smile.
Liam and I sat at our kitchen table that evening with pizza and honesty after we had arranged for Peter and Noah.
Telling him, “I’m proud of you,” “But please, don’t miss any more classes. Together, we’ll solve this.”
He gave a nod. “Deal.”
I became aware that I had nearly overlooked the most significant legacy of all when I saw him go upstairs to sleep in an attempt to protect my father’s legacy: my son.
I had to discover nappies in a rucksack before I realised what was truly important.
Have you ever neglected something or someone that needed you more because you were too preoccupied with one aspect of your life? What caused you to recognise that you were headed in the wrong direction?
