Free Repented by Sophie Monroe

Especially after what just transpired, the last thing I was expecting was his sympathy.
    “Kennedy, it’s not the end of the world. Skylar is healthy and happy. You’re doing an amazing job raising him. There are far worse things. Look at what you and Derek went through. Jake didn’t have either of his parents growing up either. Skylar has you. Things may not always be perfect, and I know you’ve struggled, but you’re a great mom. I meant what I said. I’m going to fly back to Phoenix with you tomorrow, and we’re going to get you back on track. I want to do that for you. I'm going to do that for you.”
    “How can you say that? I ruined you wedding. I thought you were Sky’s dad, and you’re not. And, you’re still here being so nice to me. I don’t deserve it.”
    And I truly felt that way. He had every right to tell me what a horrible person I was. How I ruined his life. Call me every name in the book. Yet, here he stood feeling sympathy for me.
    “Listen to me, everything happens for a reason. Maybe you just saved me from making the worst mistake of my life. Maybe Bryn wasn’t who I thought she was. And just maybe, you’ve been through enough. We all make mistakes and honestly, I’m not exactly a poster child for good behavior. I’m not proud of who I was back then, but like you, I’ve turned my life around. I’m not the same person as I was. I’m better, stronger and for the most part I like who I see staring back at me in the mirror. It took a long time, a lot of therapists and support to get to this point. With a little help, you’ll be able to do the same.”
    He took my hands, pulling me to my feet and hugged me. Breathing in his cologne, I continued soaking his shirt with heavy tears. 
    “My whole life seems to upside down. Why does life have to be so cruel sometimes? I'm so sorry, Kev,” I cried.
    “C’mon, let’s go get Skylar. We’ll take him to a movie or something. It's going to be okay.”
    I only wish I could feel his optimism.

CHAPTER SEVEN
    FOR MY SAKE
     
    KEVIN
     
    The wheels of the airplane hit the tarmac, and we were back in Phoenix. The results from yesterday were still a shocker. When we got back to pick up Skylar, Aubrey was speechless but still sympathetic. Jake made a joke about possibly having fathered a kid or two he didn't know about, and we booked it out of there before we saw the lashing he was about to get. Sometimes he still needed to remember when to shut the hell up. This was one of those times that it would have been in his favor.
    I truly did feel bad for Kennedy. The new, improved version of me had a lot of compassion and humanity. It wasn’t hard for people to sway one way or the other. Bad things happen to good people, and vice versa. Life is unexpected, yet beautiful. At the end of the day, Skylar was an innocent in all of this. He didn’t ask to be born. Regardless of the circumstances, I was the one that helped Kennedy run away all those years ago. Even though it was what she wanted, and I didn’t ever want to have to admit what happened that night, it was still wrong. Throughout my past, there were so many things I wished I could go back and change, or do differently. This was one case where I could pay my repentance for my mistake. A chance to do better. I at least wanted some good to come out of this disaster.
    After we had left Aubrey and Jake's, Kennedy did her best to put on a brave face. I acted like nothing changed, because in my eyes it hadn't. I wasn't ready to be a dad, but I was willing to accept the challenge. As her friend, I was more than happy to take up an uncle like role in Skylar's life. We went out last night and showed Sky an awesome time. We went to the movies, played games at an arcade, got milkshakes and stayed out past his bedtime. 
    When I arrived to get them this morning, Kennedy looked like she barely slept last night. Her hair was piled in a bun on the top of her head; her face was makeup-less. She had on flip-flops, a