Deadly Father's Day

James Parker and I first crossed paths in high school.

Back then, I was the class valedictorian, always clinching the top spot.

And he was the perpetual silver medalist, always a step behind.

As time went by, our names became synonymous with the leaderboard battle.

He later switched to my class and convinced the teacher to pair us up as desk mates.

"Hey Emma Thompson, I'm James Parker. Bet I'll be outdoing you soon enough."

That was his ice-breaker.

I merely shot him a look over his cocky grin and kept mum.

But that ignited an unspoken war between us.

James was relentless, competing both overtly and covertly.

Whenever a question popped up, he'd beat me to the punch with an answer.

He consistently arrived at class just before I did and stayed a few minutes after I left.

He was dead set on proving he was the top dog.

Yet, when report cards rolled out, he was always just shy of my score.

That fueled him to hit the books even harder.

For our senior finals, we ended up in the same room—those exams were pivotal for both of us.

Midway through, I felt dizzy and my vision blurred.

Then I keeled over from his chair.

My fall caused a stir across the exam hall.

Without skipping a beat, he gave up the exam, scooped me up and dashed to the nurse's office.

That stunt cost us both—missing the exam tanked our grades.

Once I got back on my feet, I grilled him, knowing how much he prized his GPA, "I was out cold, so you could've snagged the top rank, right? Why bail on the exam to help me?"

A flicker of unease crossed James's face, but he quickly masked it with arrogance, "I'm all about fair play. I don't need any cheap wins!"

He scoffed then added, "Besides, can you be cool and take good care of yourself? If I weren't there, who would've hauled you off to the nurse?"

After that incident, James seemed to change.

He kept tabs on me, sometimes obviously, sometimes just peripherally.

When the sun beamed in through the busted blinds, he'd nonchalantly stand and shift aside.

His shadow would stretch across to my desk, shading me from the glare.

I caught myself staring at his gangly frame, struck by the gesture, and got somewhat taken aback.

As college applications loomed and we all shared our plans, James declared his intent to pursue medicine.

When probed about his choice, he glanced my way.

"I'm planning to look after someone prone to trouble."

I blushed under his intense gaze.

Dropping my eyes, I couldn't bear to look back at him.

The crowd started egging us on, curious about how long he intended to "look after" me.

He answered with a softness that was rare for him, "If she's up for it, I'd be happy to look after her for the rest of our lives."

His words resonated deeply, and as I raised my head, I found myself lost in his sincere, clear eyes.

I imagined a future with James that seemed boundless.

But that was before Olivia Mitchell came back to town.

Olivia's return changed everything.

"Birthdays can wait. Olivia's ill, and I need to be with her."

"I won't make it home tonight. Olivia's feeling low and needs some company."

"New Year's is just another day. You and Alex celebrate. Olivia's on her own..."

James always found a reason to bolt because of a call from Olivia.

It felt like our home didn't matter to him anymore.

His blatant favoritism towards Olivia slowly gnawed at my patience.

Yet, I kept my complaints to myself, only for Alex's sake.

Despite his youth, he seemed to see right through my facade.

When I was down, he'd come up and reassure me in his little voice, "Don't be blue, Mom. Alex will always stick by you."

He often said he wanted to outdo his dad, to be the one to take care of me in the future.

Those moments always brought tears to my eyes.

Alex was my everything.

For him, I'd endure any ordeal to preserve our family.

No matter how often Olivia pulled James away.

I bore all the slights.

Because I wanted to stay and watch Alex grow.

But I never got that chance.

Instead, I watched as my son turned to ashes.

My son is gone.

Lost to James' indifference and cruelty!

Now, there's no reason left for me to bite my tongue.