The ‘Type A’

She had barely realized it was time to take lunch. The usually busy office was silent as she walked out. The last thing she expected to see behind the door was him.

“What are you doing here?” Courtney looked around, making sure no one would witness their conversation.

“You wouldn’t answer my calls and we have to talk about this.”

“You cannot be here and you definitely cannot make a scene. Imagine what they’ll say about me…”

“I’m not here to make a scene, I just want to talk.”

“Fine, but not here.” Courtney walked off, with Duncan not far behind.

The park was within walking distance, but far enough away that she was sure no one would overhear. Aside from a few parents with their children, it was rather empty anyway. Courtney used to be sure that she knew everything, but she had no idea how to have this conversation.

“So why did you hide it?” Duncan was sick of beating around the bush. He wanted, he needed, answers.

“I was sixteen and pissed off” She sighed, “I was perfect, I made sure my life was perfect and worked very hard to keep it that way. And then came you. You were my complete opposite and I hated you. But I also was in love and I was crazy. Extremely crazy. But, hey, I had you.”

She took a deep breath and looked up before continuing.

“Until I didn’t… you cheated and left. To make it worse it was with someone who I had the audacity to consider a friend. I had no one. Then I lost the stupid show and had nothing. I went home a loser and a failure. I had to face my parents that way, face the world that way. Once settled I noticed something was different, I was… off. With the stress and the depression, I didn’t think much of it. By the time I found out it was too late. Not that I wouldn’t have kept her… I honestly don’t know what I would have done. I’m grateful I didn’t have to make that choice. The right thing was to tell you, I knew that. But I couldn’t, after all you did to me? I wanted you to hurt, to suffer like I did.”

Duncan couldn’t look at her. He knew he hurt her, but he never really considered how much.

“A few months in, I knew I had to tell you. But by then no one knew where you were. I gave up even trying. I was selfish and horrible, and I know that now… I really do wish I could change it. But I can't…”

“I know I hurt you, and god I wish I could change that. But it doesn’t matter. We had a baby and you didn’t tell me. I deserved to know. And I deserve to know her.” Duncan tried to control his temper, but who could blame him for being mad? It was his kid. And he didn’t even get to know.

“Duncan, I’m sorry…”

“I want to meet her. I want to be involved.”

“I can’t let her get hurt.”

“The only one hurting her is you. She deserves a dad, and you kept that away.”

“Duncan…” Courtney felt helpless, she knew he was right. But was she really willing to risk it? No. There had to be conditions, she had to protect Maelie. “Fine. An introduction. But there needs to be terms.”

“Are we really going to negotiate this? I have the right to meet my child.” Duncan had enough, he wasn’t going to let this stay hidden any longer. He couldn’t.

“It’s the only way we both get what we want. You meet her, I keep her safe. You agree or I can’t let it happen.”

“Fine.” He reluctantly agreed. He had to and he knew it. “So what are these terms?”

“You can meet, but only as my friend. No mention of you being her dad, not yet.”

***

Courtney’s house was exactly as Duncan expected. Clean cut neighborhood, white picket fence. His motorcycle turned more than a few heads as he rode in. She opened the door before he even had the chance to knock.

“Quite the place you got here.”

“It’s nothing much… Here come in” Courtney moved aside to let him in.

You could hardly tell someone in their twenties lived here. It was too formal, not a single thing seemed out of place. Even for Courtney, this seemed a little too adult. He questioned if it was her taste at all.

“This is a really nice place. How much did it cost ya?” He joked.

“Ha. Well as absent as they were, my parents do at least financially provide.” One of the few things the pair had in common was crappy parents. Though he really couldn’t compare his constant fighting to hers never being there. The two bonded over it early in their relationship, but Duncan figured as Courtney got older it may have got better. Looks like it didn’t.

“So they bought this?”

“Yep. Along with most everything in it.” Courtney had of course protested their decisions, but at least they were somewhat involved. They hardly came over anyway, just the occasional holiday. “Except Maelie’s room, that’s all her” She smiled. Courtney hardly changed much around the house, but once she turned six Maelie demanded a room full of pink. There was no talking her out of it.

“Where is she anyway? It’s awfully quiet for a kid.”

“Oh, she had some lessons after school. Her friend’s mom offered to drop her off, so should be here any minute now.” Courtney hated how awkward this was. Maybe she could talk about Maelie’s violin lessons? That was a skill she was more than happy to pass on. But bragging didn’t seem like the best option. So waiting was the only thing to do.

Finally a knock caught her attention. Courtney quickly answered and made some polite small talk with the mom. Given the age difference and her constant work schedule, she never found much in common with the other mothers. She tried her best for her daughter’s sake, but despised every moment of it.

Duncan was shocked at the sight of Maelie. She looked just like Courtney, the same light brown skin and scattered freckles. The only difference was her big, striking blue eyes. There was no denying that she was his daughter, and he loved her already.

She set her bag down before slightly hiding behind her mom, “Mommy, who is that?”

Courtney squatted beside her to be more eye level, “This is Mommy’s friend, Duncan. He’s going to join us for dinner, okay?”

“Okay..” She responded as she moved a bit closer to him, “It’s nice to meet you Mr. Duncan.” Maelie reached her hand out, giving Duncan’s hand a rather firm shake. “My mom says that a good handshake creates a good first impression. Otherwise they’ll walk on you” She shrugged.

“We should probably talk, otherwise I have other things to attend to..” Courtney was the one to break the silence.

“Probably..” He agreed. God, why was this more awkward than sleeping in an overcrowded cell.

“How long have you been out of jail?” Her tone sounded more lawyer than old friend. Duncan couldn’t help but laugh. He remembered many things about Courtney; the way the sunlight hit her hair, the way she scrunched up her nose when focused, how easy it was to make her laugh. But her abruptness was something he was more than happy to forget.

“It’s been years. Don’t get me wrong, I had some issues here and there but I don’t plan on going back to jail. I’m a changed man.”

“Somehow I find that hard to believe,'' Courtney teased. She really wanted to believe him, but where would she be without her doubts? Getting hurt again wasn’t something she was just going to let happen. A lot had changed since she was a 16 year old kid. “So if you're no longer a delinquent, what have you been up to?”

There was so much he wanted to tell her that he had no idea where to begin. Surely he’d stay clear of criminal offenses and failed relationships. Duncan had never been one to hide his past mistakes, but bringing those up now would definitely scare her away. He decided just to stick to the major events, short and simple.

“Well after the total drama hell and my jail sentence, I got my GED. Despite my plan to never go back to the slammer, for the first few years I got in trouble with the law.” Duncan shrugged, “What’s a man to do? That's all I knew.”

Courtney raised an eyebrow, she struggled to see the humor in a criminal record.

Duncan smirked, continuing on. How he never really thought about being an artist, the whole idea sounding lame. Then after several tattoo sessions where duncan sketched the ideas himself, the owner insisted on taking him on as an apprentice. He had even offered to pay for all the certifications. It's a great gig that he really enjoys. Plus the discounted tattoos serve some appeal. On the side he worked on fixing motorcycles. A skill he picked up in childhood, but really polished off while on parole. It came in handy when his own bike occasionally gave out on him.

“It's nothing grand, but hey I'm not complaining.”

“No, Duncan, That's great. I always knew that you could do something great, if you’d actually put your mind to it.”

“And what about you princess? You a corporate lawyer?” He joked.

“Well…yes.”

Duncan posed the question as a joke, desperately wanting some glance of her life. Though, she was rather hesitant to let him.

“After total drama made me look totally crazy, which I was completely justified for after all, I knew I was going to need to clean up my reputation. Luckily, many people liked my ambition so I was able to get recruited to this amazing academic program. I guess from there I just kept climbing. I had to.” Courtney glanced away as she continued. How she then went on to a top university, and then a top law program. She persistently assisted, and somewhat annoyed, a professor until he finally offered her an internship at his firm. After constant overstepping and taking control of her bosses' cases, they knew they had to hire her. She’d be too big of a competitor otherwise. It was clear from the beginning that she was on a fast track to making partner.

“And you have a kid?”

“Yes, I do.” Courtney coughed to clear her throat, “I’m assuming you have more tattoos then?” She looked at his tattoo covered arm, trying to shift the conversation.

“To see the rest you’d at least have to buy me a drink first” Duncan winked, “So a kid? When did that happen?”

“A while ago..”

“What are they like? A mini version of you?”

“No, not at all” She smiles, “I have a daughter, Maelie. She’s so smart, but finds it mean to be a show off about it. And she’s funny, she’ll make you laugh at anything and everything.”

He had rarely seen this side of Courtney before. She had gone on many rants, but her eyes only sparkled like this when she was truly passionate about something. There was no doubt that Maelie was the most important thing in her life. Duncan loved this side of her.

The sudden cell phone ping snapped him from his daze. Barely skimming over the message, Courtney knew she had to leave. It took barely a second for her to collect her things.

“I’m sorry, I have to go. The babysitter has to go, and I have work in the morning anyway…”

“No, it’s okay. I’ve waited 8 years to talk princess, I can wait more.” He winked, though he desperately wanted her to stay. “Hey, how old is your kid anyway?”

Courtney stayed silent before slowly exhaling.

“She’s seven.”