“It is. I’m glad we were able to make some headway with Simone. She had an appointment with Dr. Hennings today.”
“Good. I pray she doesn’t cut herself anymore. How scary for all of you.”
“Yes, it is. I’m grateful for finding out now instead of it turning into something worse. It’s addictive. She told us about a kid at her school who has a cutting kit.”
“A cutting kit? What is that?” Savvy asked in horror.
“This kid cut out a square in a book where he keeps his razors, knife, staples, alcohol pads, and band-aids. The girls wear several hair scrunchies on their arms to hide their cuts. It’s like a secret society where the kids share ways to create self-harm kits. Quite disturbing. I plan to call the school principal and counselor to inform them about Simone and the activities of other students.”
“They need to be aware of this issue. Perhaps the school could develop a program to address cutting. I had no idea kids are doing this to themselves.”
“Not just kids. Adults too. I’ve counseled a few patients who were cutters. I never imagined my child would be one of them.”
“You don’t think a kid like Simone would even harm herself in this way. My poor niece was crying out for help.” Savvy balanced the phone between her shoulder and ear to free her hands to paint her fingernails. “I know this is upsetting for you. She’s been through a lot. Try to be patient with her.”
“I know. Maybe it’s a combination of her being close to becoming a pre-teen along with this other stuff. I need a break from this stress. It can’t be good for my health.”
Savvy blew on her bright turquoise blue nails. The color matched the dress she planned to wear for the dinner date. “What are you going to do to help yourself?”
“Pray. Drink. Pray. This is all I’ve come up with.”
“Only two out of three of those things sounds like a good idea. You haven’t been drinking too much, have you?” Savvy questioned with a spark of concern in her voice.
“Of course not. Not any more than usual. I’m fine. I expressed my concerns to Malcolm about how this situation makes me even more worried about them moving to Miami. I wonder how the distance from me is going to affect Simone. She’s struggling.” Olivia huffed a breath of air. “Malcolm and Mariah pissed me off when they said it doesn’t change anything about them leaving San Antonio. He said they would find her good psychologist there. Can you believe that?”
“He knows he should stay his butt here with all of this going on.”
“Exactly. I’m furious with him. I don’t want him in my presence any time soon.”
“Maybe I should plan a girl’s day with Simone. I’ll offer a different perspective from someone other than you, Malcolm, or a counselor,” Savvy offered.
“Good idea. I think time with Aunt Savvy is always a bonus. Feel free to set something up.”
“Consider it done. I’ll reach out to Malcolm and see when is a good weekend.” She peeked at the time on the clock. “Girl, I’d better get going. Time got away from me. I still need to put on my clothes and get to Pharrell’s.”
“Alright. Have fun and give him a big sloppy kiss on his lips. Mwah. Maybe it’ll shut him up.”
SEVENTEEN
Olivia
Olivia slipped on comfortable pajamas, which she found on Oprah’s Favorite Things list. The smell of the popcorn she removed from the microwave made her mouth water. She added marshmallows to a mug of hot chocolate to finish preparations for a quiet movie night at home.
The light from the TV illuminated the darkened room. She settled onto an oversized pillow on the floor with the popcorn bag and cup on a tray next to her. After perusing the movie menu, she selected a new release.
Olivia’s doorbell rang two times. Baffled, she scrunched her nose and rotated toward the front door. She wasn’t expecting company.
She pushed herself to a standing position from the pillow on the floor. After tip-toeing across the room, she closed one eye to peek out the peephole of the door. Before the face of the visitor came into focus, a firm knock pounded and a voice called out, “Olivia, it’s me, Malcolm. Please open the door.”
Her fury still hadn’t dissipated with his refusal to stay in San Antonio for the sake of Simone’s issues. “Malcolm?” Olivia yelled through the door. “What do you want?”
“We need to discuss some things. Let me in, please. It’s important,” Malcolm responded.
Anger crept into her belly. She took a step back and contemplated whether to allow Malcolm to come in or not. He’d never been inside her new home and she didn’t want to contaminate her space with his presence.
“It’s not a good time. I’m in my pajamas already,” Olivia shouted with her mouth close to the door. “Call me and we’ll speak on the phone.”
“Olivia. I’ve seen you in your pajamas before. Remember? Come on. I need to tell you some things face-to-face instead of on the phone,” Malcolm pleaded.
“Ugh.” Olivia didn’t want her nosey neighbors to overhear their conversation. He seemed persistent and more than likely, would not leave. She counted to ten and after breathing in deep breaths, released her anger enough to turn the knob to open the door.
Malcolm’s grim face turned into a weak smile. He removed his baseball hat before striding past her into the living room. “Thanks.”
Olivia closed the door. She folded her arms across her chest and considered Malcolm with building suspicion. “Unless you stopped by to tell me you aren’t moving the kids to Miami, we don’t have anything to discuss. Why are you here?”
“Nice place.” Malcolm ignored her question and glanced around the home. “I see you’ve put your expert touch on decorating. I like it.”
“I don’t have time for small talk. Answer my question.”
Olivia disregarded his attempt to ease into the conversation.
“Are those pink unicorns on your pajamas and socks?” Malcolm
