I watched as the man walked back to his son with their order, feeling traces of guilt.

You didn’t have to be so rude, I thought to myself. He probably didn’t mean anything by it.

But I was feeling on edge. I wasn’t sure how long I’d stood outside crying before deciding to get something to eat. I hadn't had anything since that morning, and even though I knew there were more important things to do, like looking for a place to spend the night, getting food into my stomach was the priority.

So, I’d walked around. I’d passed a few restaurants, but I was very conscious of my lack of money. I could probably get a motel to stay at for a few nights, cheap. It would give me the time to think, not that I hadn't been when I happened upon the MacDonald’s and walked inside, because it was probably the cheapest place I’d come across so far.

I still didn’t know what I was going to do.

Just kill your pride already and call someone!

I rolled my eyes at myself. No way would I do that. Not if it meant having to explain to my friends what was going on. I wasn’t quite that desperate yet. I had relatives other than my mother, but none of them lived in the city. Besides, they’d try to encourage me to go back home, and I was already sick of my mother.

There was no way I was going back there ever again.

“Ma’am? Your order is ready.”

I looked up at the employee behind the counter. She was probably a few years older than me and calling me ma’am. I tried not to show how awkward I felt as I smiled at her and picked up the tray.

“Thank you,” I said quietly, then turned away.

For a Friday night, the place wasn’t all that crowded. Still, most of the tables had at least one person seated. I took a few steps away from the counter, looking for the best place to sit where I would be away from people. I’d already had a table in mind, but it was the one where that man had sat down with his son, so I needed to look for a new table.

As my eyes passed over them, my gaze stopped.

I wonder where the kid’s mother is, I mused to myself. That guy’s wife?

It made me a little sad, thinking about my mom. They were clearly on a family outing, and I wondered if his mom was like mine and wasn’t in their life, or maybe she was busy. Or he didn’t have a mom? Like how I didn’t have a mom.

Poor kid.

I winced, remembering how angry I’d been when he’d knocked into me and made me drop my food. Because I didn’t have that much money, and this kid’s dad looked pretty well off. I’d felt guilty the moment I looked down at him to see him standing there, all silent and trembling. I hadn't said anything, but he was probably scared. I’d felt bad, then I’d felt like crying again.

Then his dad had come up.

I could tell he was a few years older, though I couldn’t guess his age. He was at least younger than thirty, probably. I’d been too out of it to notice much, besides that he was tall and good-looking. He’d been acting like a gentleman, offering to pay for more food. Then he did it.

And I’d treated him so rudely. The guilt doubled.

After a short hesitation, I sighed quietly and walked slowly over to their table. I stopped some feet away, but neither of them looked up to notice I was there.

“Hello?” I called out tentatively.

They both turned their eyes to me, and I was hit with how much they resembled each other. Both with dark hair and green eyes, the little boy’s face still chubby with baby fat. He couldn’t have been older than three years old.

Shit, Lexi, I chided myself. You could have at least asked if the kid you knocked into was okay or not.

“Um, I’m sorry about back there,” I said. “I just realized I didn’t ask if your son was all right. I didn’t hurt him when I knocked into him, did I?”

His eyes widened a little before his expression twisted into one of guilt. He’d probably remembered he hadn't done the same. I wanted to reassure him, but the man turned to the little boy, and their eyes met.

“Eddie? Did you get hurt before?”

Eddie… so maybe Edward? He shook his head, and I could tell both of us let out sighs of relief at that.

“I was also rude,” I said, making the man turn back to me. “I apologize for that. I’m… going through some stuff and it made me overreact, I guess…”

I let my voice trail off, feeling awkward, shifting on my feet and feeling the weight of the tray I held in my hands. This guy probably didn’t want to know my life’s story. I’d given the apology, so I might as well leave. I glanced around, only to wince when I realized more people had come in, a big party that took up at least two tables.

Well, damn. Now, where am I supposed to sit?

“It’s fine.” I looked back at the man to find him looking at me, eyes curious. “It was probably rude of me to pry in the first place. Would you like to sit with us?” he offered.

I stood by for a minute, indecisive. I didn’t want to intrude on them. But, there wasn’t any other free table now. I smiled at him awkwardly as I walked around the table. It had four seats on all four sides, and with the two of them sitting across from each other, I got a seat that let me see both of them at once.

“So,” he started. “Would you mind telling me what you’re doing out here on your own? You look… a little young.”

“I’m eighteen,” I said before he got the wrong idea. I wasn’t running away from home—I was leaving. There was a big difference.

He nodded, and for a second, I thought he looked… relieved?

“All right,” he said. “But still. What are you doing out this late alone? Wouldn’t you rather go home? Maybe be with your family?”

I grimaced when he said, family. Could I even claim to have one, with the way my mom had been acting? And I’d left home anyway. I didn’t plan to visit any of my relatives since for most of them that meant going back to my hometown… and there was no way I was doing that just yet.

“I, uh, actually had to leave home,” I explained.

He frowned. “Did you fight with your parents?”

I pursed my lips, considering. After a minute, I gave a slow nod. “I guess you could say it like that.”

He looked confused. I opened my mouth to explain further, but then I paused. This man was a stranger. I glanced at the little boy, who wasn’t paying any attention to either of us, swinging his legs as he ate happily. They were both strangers I’d given trouble to already. Did they need to hear all my bullshit just because I didn’t have someone else to vent to?

“You can tell me,” he said, encouragingly.

“It’s just,” I started hesitantly. I bit on my lip.

But suddenly, my hesitation went out the window. Why not? I had no one else at the moment, and I wouldn’t until I called one of my friends, but it would be a while before I would do that willingly. This guy was a stranger, yeah, so what if I vented to him? I’d probably never get to see him again anyway.

“It’s my mom,” I admitted. “Or I guess you could say it’s me wanting to go to college. I thought it would be something possible for me after I finished high school. I mean, mom never really made me any promises, but I was willing to work for the money. Only, now that I’m out of school, I guess she expects me to feed us both, but I want to save my money up for college, not so that she can keep up with her alcohol problem.”

I stopped myself there. Not because I was rambling, I’d realized it and gone ahead anyway, because I didn’t want to stop just for that. But, talking about alcohol addictions around a child was probably not a good thing. And what else was there to say? That was my big problem. My wanting to go to college and mom not at least supporting me if she wasn’t going to give me the money for it. Well, that, and how I was too fucking proud to call my friends for a helping hand.

“Would you like a job?”

I looked up at the man, blinking at him for a moment, not sure I’d heard him right.

“What?”

He smiled, looking amused. “I asked if you wanted a job. You’re looking for one now, right?”

“Well… I was going to start looking for one soon, I guess,” I murmured meekly.

He grinned. “That’s great then. Because I have a job opening if you’re interested.”

I glanced at his son, curious. “Do you need a nanny?”

Was I right, and the boy’s mother wasn’t in the picture anymore?

He chuckled. “Not quite,” he said. He held his hand out to me, and I stared at it for a second,p before realizing he probably wanted me to shake it. So I did. “My name is Ryan. And this little guy here is Edward.”

“I’m Lexi,” I offered.

He reached a hand inside his jacket and pulled out a pen. He looked around before picking up one of the napkins.

“I don’t have anything else with me,” he said sheepishly, bending over the napkin and writing something down. “If you have your phone on you, maybe just copy it down, so you don’t lose it.” He gave me the napkin and put his pen away. “You can come to this address the day after tomorrow, and I’ll explain everything about the job.”

I nodded, taking the napkin. I stared down at the address written down. Then, I decided I’d do what he said and typed the address into my phone. I still kept the napkin. Then we ate until they were both finished, and they waved at me as they left. I waved back. Then I looked down and realized I hadn't eaten all of my food yet.

Not that I still felt so hungry. I felt so damn giddy. But my stomach growled, and I winced, looking around, hoping no one heard that.

Maybe just a little bit, I thought, digging in. It’s paid for after all. It would be a waste.

I couldn’t stop smiling the entire time.