Cathy is bewildered when she sees her son wearing new clothes and listening to music through brand-new headphones. One day, she follows him, eager to discover where or who he’s been getting everything from. She’s taken back to her childhood when she sees who it is. Recently, I started noticing that my son, Alex, has been dressing up in new clothes that I didn’t buy for him. Yesterday, I saw a new pair of headphones slung around his neck.”Honey, where did you get the earphones from?” I asked while making breakfast. “From Dad,” he replied, texting furiously. “And the clothes, too?”

“Hmm,” he said. “Yeah.” It made sense — Alex’s father, Ian, and I were divorced, so between the two of us constantly getting Alex new things, it was difficult to keep track. But even so, Ian was a practical man. I was the one to splurge on things when shopping, not Ian. He always got Alex good quality items, especially clothing. But never name brands — Ian hated spending money on them, saying they were a complete waste. That’s why I was suspicious because all Alex’s new clothes were name brands. “I don’t know what to tell you, Cathy,” Ian said into the phone. “But it wasn’t me. Maybe he got a part-time job or something.” “He’s fourteen, Ian. No part-time job would pay him that much.” “I’ll ask him,” Ian reassured me. “We’ll get to the bottom of it.” I’ve never wanted to be one of those moms who micro-managed every move her child made. But nothing made sense — Alex couldn’t have gotten the money alone. While washing the dishes after dinner that evening, I heard Alex whispering into his phone. “Mom,” he said, walking into the kitchen. “I’m going to my friend Jeremy’s house to work on a project together, okay? ” “Need me to drop you off?” I asked, wiping my hands. “No, it’s not far. I’ll walk.” A few minutes later, he left. This was my only chance to see if Alex was up to something. I gave him a head start but watched him from the window. Then, I grabbed my phone and keys and followed him. Two roads later, Alex got into an unknown car with a blonde woman. I couldn’t see her features well from where I was, so I had to move closer. Slowly approaching the car, I started to make out her face and a revelation hit me like a ton of bricks. I stood there, watching Lia turn her face in the car, hugging Alex. Although I hadn’t seen her in a long time, the blond strands of hair lit up by the streetlights framed the face I had known my entire childhood. The rush of emotions was overwhelming as I grappled with the fact that Lia, the sister who had disappeared from our lives long ago, was back — and entwined in my son’s world. Backstory: Lia and I grew up close until we became teens. I had grown into a mini-version of my mother — always ready to take over the house and care for my father. But Lia had grown into a wild teen without regard for rules or safety. Straight after high school, she had disappeared with her boyfriend. Despite all our efforts, my parents and I couldn’t find Lia for years. The police told us that we could keep looking or continue to live our lives. My mother felt that she had lost her child and mourned for Lia. My father, on the other hand, gave in to his anger and felt betrayed by Lia. I kept looking for her. I made friends at the local police station and constantly checked on leads — but when Alex was born, I stopped looking. I finally accepted that Lia didn’t want to be found. But now, she was sitting in her car next to my son. I marched over and opened the back door, sliding into the car. “Mom!” Alex exclaimed.