Jeffrey was quiet.
Then he said, “I think I want to someday.”
I looked at him.
“Are you sure?”
“Not now.”
He picked at the sleeve of his sweatshirt.
“But someday.”
George frowned.
“Why?”
Jeffrey shrugged.
“Because if she’s really sorry, I want to know.”
I realized then how different children are from adults.
Adults often want clean endings.
Good person.
Bad person.
Right.
Wrong.
Children can hold two truths at once.
Vanessa had abandoned them.
And they could still wonder who she was.
She had tried to use custody as leverage.
And they could still wish she might become someone better.
I told them I would support whatever healthy relationship they chose to build, provided they were safe.
That became our rule.
No forced forgiveness.
No forced anger.
No pretending.
Over the next several months, Vanessa participated in supervised visits.
At first, they were awkward.
She tried too hard.
