"I spy with my little eye something... blue," I say to Kai, watching as he nods his head eagerly before looking at all the toys and stuffed animals he had lined up so we could play the game with them. Now that I saw all the objects that he found around the apartment, I realized how many things he had that he never played with. I was planning to go through them at some point to get rid of some stuff without him knowing since his room was starting to look a bit cluttered.

"Is it Ricky?" Kai asks in an indecisive tone as he points to the blue octopus that I had chosen for the game. I nod my head, making him jump up in excitement while he claps his hands together. "I knew it!"

"Good job, buddy," I tell him, patting his head while he gets comfortable in his spot on the floor again. He scans all the items while I look away, not wanting to know what he was picking since he usually stared at the object for a few seconds before giving me his clue. I glance out the window to see that the rain was still pouring, just like it was when I woke up this morning. I was planning to take Kai to the park today since the weather report said it would be sunny. But they were clearly wrong, so I had to settle for playing games with my son inside.

We had already played doctor before breakfast and even a small game of hide-n-seek with Kai winning multiple times since I knew to choose obvious places for him. Then, we had some breakfast, pancakes with chocolate chips, his favorite. After we ate and I washed him up since he always got maple syrup everywhere, he had lined up all his toys and things and asked if we could play I-Spy, so that's what we were doing. I was happy to be spending time with my little man and he seemed just as enthused to be at home with me instead of at daycare whenever I was working.

"I spy with my little eye... something purple!" Kai said, jumping up-and-down a bit as he picked his item. I scan the lineup of things, making sure to take my time to let him get even more excited that he had picked something good. I already knew the stuffed animal was the teddy bear that Kadri had gotten him for Christmas since it was the thing with the most purple on it, but I wanted him to think that I didn't know.

"Hm," I say, tapping on my chin with a perplexed look on my face to make Kai giggle a bit. He was still shaking with excitement while staring at my face, waiting for me to make a guess. "is it Alfie?"

Kai giggles again, shaking his head eagerly while holding his monster stuffed animal close to his body. "He doesn't have any purple on him, Daddy!"

"Oh, you're right," I say in a playful tone, throwing up my hands in defeat with a small smile, making him giggle once again. I take some more time before pointing to the teddy bear. "the bear?"

"Yes!" Kai says with a huge smile. I look down at my son, glad that the littlest things could bring him joy and I wish I could just capture his mood for a lifetime because I never wanted to see him sad or upset. His smile was the thing I looked forward to seeing every day and I'm so glad that he was using it a lot today because it made me forget about everything bad in the world.

I reach over, brushing some of his curly hair out of his face and he reaches up to grab my hand. He wraps his tiny hands around mine, holding as tight as he could while I scanned the items to continue the game. Before I could give him my hint, there's a persistent knock on the door, making both of us jump. I felt confusion run through my body, making my nose scrunch up lightly because no one was planning to come over since everyone was busy.

Kadri and Ximena were at a meeting with a publisher for one of Kadri's books, so there was no way they were here. My parents had gone out of town for the weekend to visit one of their friends and I had watched them drive away this morning, so they obviously weren't here. And Aria knew that I was with Kai, so there was no chance he would just come over. I look over at Kai with a confused look on my face before playfully poking his chest. "Did you invite someone over?"

Kai giggles before shaking his head. "No, Daddy!"

I smile before standing up. Kai goes to follow me, but I set my hand on the top of his head. The person knocks even louder this time, making us jump once again, so I look down at my son. He looks a bit nervous, so I put on a fake smile before ruffling his hair. "Stay here, buddy."

He nods his head before settling onto the ground again with his stuffed animal in his lap. I walk over to the door, stressed that my apartment didn't have a peephole for me to look out and see who was here. I unlock the door before slowly opening it, but as soon as the person heard the lock turn, they had pushed the door open themselves. The hard piece of wood slams into my leg, making me yelp a bit before I'm slammed into the wall behind me. My eyes immediately look at Kai, who had stood up to try and run over to me, but I hold my hand out to tell him to stay put.

I finally look up at the person and I freeze as my blood runs cold with shock. Standing in front of me was the man that Officer Daniels had shown me that went to Kai's daycare. Beckett, his name was, stood in front of me with an angered look on his face, but the thing that put the most fear into my body was that he wasn't looking at me. He was looking at my son, who now stood in front of all of his toys, shaking lightly in fear. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Beckett tears his eyes away from Kai to look at me, his expression turning to one of pure hatred. I cower a little in on myself, but I don't make it obvious because I need to stand my ground and be prepared the fight this man out. He was clearly a threat to not only me, but my son, so I needed to be prepared to do whatever I could to stop him from getting to Kai. Beckett just shakes his head before letting out a bitter laugh, his cheeks turning a light red color while he continued to look over my body. "Sad excuse of a father."

"No!" Kai yells before trying to run to me again. I hold my hand out again, warning him to stay back, and this time I knew he would listen. He plants his feet firmly onto the carpet before keeping his eyes on me. I push myself off the wall before taking slow steps to stand in front of Beckett, who now had his eyes on my child again.

"Get out or I'll call the police," I threaten him, but as soon as the words leave my mouth, his head snaps to look at me with even more hatred in his eyes. I could feel my phone in my back pocket, so I start to pull it out but before I even saw the device with my two eyes, Beckett reaches out and grabs my arm.

I let out a yelp at his strong grip as he pries the cellphone from my hands before throwing it to the ground in front of us. I try to push him away, but he's too strong, so he brings his foot up before slamming it onto the screen, effectively cracking it to the point that there was no way it still worked. That made him smirk before glancing up at me with an amused expression, balling up his fists by his side.

"No, you won't," he snaps at me. His face softens before he takes a step towards Kai, who instantly moves back with tears in his eyes. I regain my strength and rush forward, getting in between him and my son. Before I could even think of it, the word leaves my mouth.

"Mockingjay," I announce, loud enough that I knew Kai heard it since my back was on him since I needed to keep my eyes on Beckett. I wouldn't let him touch him. I wouldn't. He would have to literally kill me before he even got close to him because even if he was stronger, I would do absolutely anything I had to.

Beckett's face turns to confusion as I hear little footsteps behind me before a door slams a few moments later. I knew he had gone to hide in my closet since that's what we had planned whenever the safeword was said and thankfully, there were enough things in there to hide him perfectly.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Beckett snaps in my face, spitting on me as he reaches out to grip one of my wrists in a tight grip. I stand tall, not allowing myself to show any pain anymore. He was clearly trying to get to Kai, which wasn't good. Was this his plan at the daycare? Was he going to have them give him my son and then take off? But I couldn't think of that right now because I had a feeling that I was definitely going to get hurt in the next few minutes. But as long as my son was safe, I didn't care what happened to me.

"What do you want?" I ask him with as much hatred and anger in my voice as I could muster up. I'm not gonna lie, I was terrified, but I absolutely couldn't show him. I couldn't show him that I was weak.

Beckett tightens his grip on my wrist, making me wince slightly before shaking his head again. "He shouldn't be with you, you dumbass. I've heard the stories from Amelia and it's not right and-"

"They're lies, you idiot," I snap before I could think better of it. "she hasn't even seen him since the day he was born. Trust me, I made sure that that bitch would never get to see him grow up."

Beckett literally growls before pushing me back against the wall. My head slams against it, making my body get dizzy, but I don't let it bother me. I gain enough confidence and courage before lunging at him. I bring my knee up as hard as I could before slamming it into his groin. He lets out a yell before leaning forward, his hands going down to cup his crotch that was obviously crushed by me. I didn't stop though because I needed to get him out of my apartment.

I link my arm with his before using all the strength I had to pull him towards the door. He was still in pain and leaning over, so I had the upper hand. I shoot my hand out in a flash to open the door, letting it slam against the wall behind it, vibrating the entire place. Beckett lets out a rough scream before grabbing the strands of my hair to pull on it. "You little fairy!"

I don't let his words affect me because I was so close. He was just inches from the door, so I bring up my foot to hit his groin again. He didn't seem to be expecting me to do the same blow twice, so I was able to make contact. He lets out a groan before taking a few steps back, so he was officially out of my apartment. I rush to grab the door handle before trying to throw it close. He moves fast, reaching out to press his hand on my chest before pushing me back with as much force as he had. I kick my foot out, pressing it against the door with all my strength and I hear it slam. But I was falling back fast with nothing to catch me.

My arms flail frantically before my head makes contact with the edge of the coffee table. I let out a yell before my back hits the floor while both of my feet kick out to keep pressure on the door since Beckett was still trying to get in. I take a few moments, regaining my strength and letting the dizziness pass from hitting the back of my head so hard. Once I felt okay enough, I scramble up, keeping my feet pressed against the door that Beckett was slamming his fists against to try to get in. I reach up and am able to turn the two locks before I lay back on the ground, knowing that he wouldn't get in unless he literally broke my door down.

I keep my feet on the door just in case while my hands reach up to cup the back of my head that was screaming in pain. Beckett's yelling was heard through the thin wood of my door and his fists were still pounding on it. "I'll get him away from you, one way or another! You don't deserve him! He deserves better than you, you pussy!"

I flinch slightly at the word before I hear him let out a loud yell and his loud footsteps on the stairs, telling me that he was leaving. I let my feet slide off the door before I just lay there. Right there on my apartment floor with loud pants leaving my mouth while my head was screaming with pain. I take a few minutes to myself, trying to regain my composure and strength before going to find Kai, who was probably scared out of his mind at the moment. Once I felt okay enough to stand, I sit up before pulling my body up using the coffee table.

My head stings badly, but I couldn't focus on that right now since there was a terrified child hiding in my closet. I take a few patient, slow steps before feeling okay enough to run. I rush to my bedroom before throwing open the door and falling to my knees and crawling towards my closet. I slowly creak open the door before searching for Kai since I knew he was in here somewhere. "Kai, it's Daddy. It's okay, you're safe."

I hear rustling in the right corner and I immediately look there to see my son buried underneath my laundry. I reach out, helping him untangle himself in the dirty clothes before I lift him out of the dark room. I instantly see the tears running down his cheeks along with his bottom lip trapped between his teeth to probably stop him from screaming. I settle onto the ground in the middle of my room before pulling him into a tight hug as I feel his trembling. He whimpers against my skin, holding my neck as tightly as his little hands could.

"It's okay, buddy. The bad man's gone. Everything's okay, you're okay," I whisper to him, rocking us back-and-forth as he starts sobbing into my shoulder. I run my fingers through his hair as I whisper soothing things into his ear while he continues to cry. I knew he was absolutely terrified, so I needed to just hold him for a few minutes before we leave. There was no possibility I was allowing us to stay here when I knew that Beckett was clearly still angry and there was a chance that he could come back.

I stand up from the ground, keeping my arms around my son as I grab my backpack before throwing random stuff inside. Kai sniffles against my neck before looking up at what I was doing. When he sees me packing stuff up, he looks confused. "What happening?"

I sit down on the bed before settling him on my lap again. I reach out, lightly wiping at his eyes that were now red and wet before giving him a soft smile. "We're going to take a little ride somewhere. Don't worry."

But then I remember, no one was here. My parents were gone and Kadri and Ximena were like an hour away with a publisher. I didn't really have any other friends besides some parents of the kids Kai's friends with, but I knew I couldn't go to them. Anyways, I didn't even know where they lived and my phone was broken, so I couldn't ask. I didn't even know how to get to Aria's apartment either, so I couldn't go there... but the one place I knew exactly how to get to must still be open. It was about three o'clock on a Saturday, so it must still be open, hopefully.

I lightly poke Kai's chest as he wipes his eyes with his palms, looking a bit calmed down now that he was in my arms. He also looked a bit tired, so hopefully, the car ride will put him to sleep. "Do you know that big building in the city that you always point out when we drive by it?"

Kai looks confused for a second before he nods his head, slightly. "The bright blue building?"

I nod my head, smiling at the fact that he remembered the bright walls he loved in the office building even though he was clearly distressed. "Yeah, the bright blue building. Well, what do you say if we go there? You know Aria?"

Kai nods his head, looking even more confused. "Your... boyfriend?"

I nod my head, glad that he remembered the title that Kadri and I had told him. We've talked about the man a bit since Christmas, after he got his presents from him, and I could tell Kai was excited whenever his name was brought up. But now, he was clearly tired and agitated from all the things that just occurred, so I was trying my best to not overwhelm him. "Yeah, my boyfriend. Well, Aria's friend actually owns the bright blue building and I know he'll help us. Kadri and Grandma and Grandpa are all busy, so they can't help us right now. So, how does that sound?"

Kai nods his head, looking a bit nervous now. I didn't know what else to do. I had no phone, no contact to anyone, nothing. All I had were the things in my head and I was absolutely bad at directions, so there was no way I could go to Aria's apartment or anything. My brother lived way too far away from me and I didn't think I could drive long distances right now. And I didn't want to just go to my parent's house and wait there because I need to be around people.

I need help and I know Roman would help. He would call Aria for me and help me figure things out. Even though I didn't know if now would be the right time for Aria and Kai to meet, I needed him because he was all I had at the moment. Once I see that Kai was genuinely okay with the idea, I stand up with him still in my arms before throwing my backpack over my shoulders.

I grab a soft blanket before throwing it over my son's shoulders to shelter him from the rain outside. I rush out of my bedroom before going into the living room. I grab Kai's stuffed monster before handing it to my son that smiled a bit when he cuddled Alfie. I make sure I have everything, including my keys, before leaving the apartment.

I run through the pouring down rain towards my car and throw open the backseat door. I make sure Kai was dry before settling him in his car seat. He was already falling asleep by the time I got him strapped in, so I carefully set the blanket over his lap before handing him his stuffed animal once again. I close the door before rushing around to the driver's seat, buckling up and starting the car. I let out a sigh before pulling out of my parking space and driving towards Roman's office building.