Page 139 of Irresistible Attraction

I makemy way through Boston's streets with long strides and a head loaded with rampaging elephants. I've been wandering through the city for hours, hoping that the outside world's constant noise would quieten my mind, but it continues to shoot questions at me with lightning speed.

Why did she do it? Don't my feelings mean shit to her? Why can't people give me time to process?

"Cole! Cole, wait up," a familiar voice calls out.

I glance over my shoulder and watch Jeremy approaching me. Not wanting to talk, I keep walking, but my feet stop the moment my attention settles on a piano featured in a store's window. I rub my hand over my heart, viewing a young boy popping onto the seat and pressing his fingers on a key. His lips curl at the sound it produces. It reminds me of the first time I touched my dad's piano; it was magic. I take a seat on the bench across the store and observe how the animated child enjoys himself.

From my peripheral view, I see Jeremy take a seat beside me. For a while, we sit in silence watching the boy having fun. When he sees us gawking at him, he waves with a generous smile. I raise my hand and wave back, but when his mother shows up, he runs off.

I rise and take a step sideways, but Jeremy taps on the wood beside him. When I don't move, he transfers his weight and slips his hand in his pocket. As he retracts it, it’s balled into a fist.

"You leave me no choice, Cole." He opens his hand and when I see the item lying in his palm, I move to sit back next to him.

"God, I can't believe you still have it."

"I do. And this is an ideal moment to use it." He holds up the piece and offers it to me.

I accept and stare at it. Jeremy introduced this to me when I was around nine or ten years old. He called it the 'speaking coin.' If someone offers it to you, it means that the person wishes you to speak from the heart and that they will listen to you without interrupting.

Man, he and I had many coin conversations.

Jeremy always knew when I needed to express my emotions before I realized it myself. I plant my elbows on my knees, and as I let the silver coin glide between my fingers, words flow out.

"I'm furious. How can a mother who claims to love her son lie to him for fifteen freaking years? How!" I rise and pace back and forth. People glance at me as they pass us, but I ignore them.

"How am I supposed to forgive? I can't!"

After pacing a few minutes, I let out a puff as I sit back next to Jeremy.

"Alisha swore she would support me. But if that is so, why was she talking to and comforting my mother?"

Jeremy listens to my rambling. His face doesn't show what he's thinking. Curious, I offer him the coin. He accepts it and wraps his fingers around it.

"You've jumped to conclusions, young man. You hurried away without listening to any explanation."

"Oh, come on! It was clear. My mom was pulling Alisha into her web of lies, and she fell for her manipulating ways."

Jeremy raises a brow and shows the coin in his hand.

I scratch my beard. "Sorry."

Jeremy nods, and I sit back.

"Alisha did no such thing. The sole thing she did was allow your mom to tell her side of the story. And before she stepped into that bistro, she clarified that no matter what your mother said, she was onyourside. So, whatever you assume, you saw it wasn't Alisha taking your mom's side."

Fuck!

"But she was holding my mom's hand?"

"Is that forbidden? Cole, listen. You have every right to be mad at your mom. But do you wish to live in this state for the rest of your life? Mourning in anger won't change what transpired."

I mull over his words. This last week has been exhausting. The overflowing negative emotions have consumed me.

"You can keep seeing the situation purely from your viewpoint, but if you do, it means that things will remain how you judge them. Instead, you could also choose to listen to more than your side." Jeremy lets out a long sigh. "Your mother doesn't expect you to forgive her. But maybe, by allowing your mom to explain, you'll get another perspective on things. It might even answer the questions that have haunted you for years. Wouldn't it be nice to let go of the unnecessary weight you've been carrying with you?"

"Man, you missed your calling. You should be a psychotherapist."

Jeremy chuckles and shakes his head. "Oh, no, I've mastered these life lessons by dealing with my own family issues. And I learned that listening is key."

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