Hidden Burdens (working title)

Chapter Thirty-Three

Author's Note:

YouTube has recently been recommending inspirational videos about Robin Williams and Jim Carrey, so I just thought I'd share one of my favorite quotes. Also, I thought it fits the theme of the story. 

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Ben reached over to shut off the alarm clock before rolling onto his back. Now that it was the end of October, the days were getting shorter and the sun took its time rising in the morning, making it harder for Ben to push himself out of bed. But he did it anyway.

That's why the last couple of days Ben had to force himself to sleep in, per Kayla's suggestion, to take some time to rest. The suggestion to take a weekend to themselves was still on the table, if needed. But since he was struggling with the idea, Kayla compromised with him to let her take the lead for a few days. In the meantime, Ben caught up on sleep and used the time to read the first chapter of the book his men's group was reading, as well as the book Mr. O'Reilly recommended.

Since he was drifting in and out of consciousness, Ben pushed himself out of bed, setting his feet on the floor. He lingered a little longer, still trying to shake the sleep from his eyes and fully wake up before just standing to his feet. A cold shower helped before getting dressed for the day.

Ben quietly made his way downstairs where Samson was there at the bottom of the stairs to greet him. His tail wagged from side to side. He reached over to rub the dog's ears and neck on his way to the kitchen, where he got himself a glass of water. Letting Kayla and the kids sleep, he grabbed his wallet and keys on the way out to his truck.

It wasn't until Ben was on his way to the diner did he realize he left the book at home. He thought back to the last place Ben had it. The earliest he could recall was when he was reading through the first chapter for the second time in the kitchen while cooking dinner.

Just as he thought, the book painted the typical Christian guy. The strong, brave kind that goes to work and raises a family. The same thing his mom wanted of him and she wasn't even a Christian herself.

Ben had felt a weight push down on his shoulders as he read the author basically call him a failure just because he didn't have a real job or biological children. He ended up having to put down the book and distract his mind with other things. Though there was the call he got from Claudia's school. That, of course, steered his mind elsewhere. 

Unfortunately, it wasn't a positive distraction.

Sooner or later, Ben had a feeling something would happen. They were told Claudia was prone to getting into fights. It was any wonder how it lasted this long.

It didn't help that her caseworker rarely paid a visit or called, and only checked in through a text.

Ben breathed out through his nose. He thought about what that girl had been through, with a mom that did not care about her and being bounced around several foster homes because they couldn't handle her. 

No wonder Claudia didn't care much about anything.

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This time, Kimmy woke up on her own before Kayla made her rounds.

Her wish came true with the sun sleeping in for a little bit longer. It was barely light out as she reached over to peer behind the blinds.

Sitting up, Kimmy rubbed the sleep from her eyes before pushing the headphones from her ears, letting them drop behind her on the bed. She looked over to see Claudia asleep in her bed, where she should have been last night.