
"Dad, can't I just eat in my room?" Aleah asked David as we sat at the dinner table for dinner.
I spent my weekend with David once again with his kids here. We're currently having dinner together, you know like family. David asked me to spend my weekend with him once again, after meeting the boys last week, I think this is David's way of trying to make us more familiar but unfortunately it didn't work.
"No, we're going to eat together here" David told her.
"Dad, I'm still not hungry" whined Aleah.
"So you said you were very hungry and wanted to eat something but now why did your hunger suddenly disappear?" David raised an eyebrow.
"That's before .. that's okay, I'm just gonna sit here," she rolled her eyes before pulling out her phone and started texting. "It seems I have no choice but to sit here even though I don't want to."
I didn't miss the little stare she showed before typing on her phone. I looked at David and noticed that he was really watching me. I was just sitting there messing around with the food on my plate. Aleah's rudeness was enough to make me lose my appetite. I thought it would be different for the second time when we met, but this was the worst. I've been trying to talk to Aleah ever since I got here, but he clearly told me that he didn't want me to talk to him and then walked away. I decided that I wouldn't try again, I knew it was too early to start judging or making decisions about him, but he was very naughty and disrespectful. He didn't want me to talk to him then I wouldn't do it, I would just focus my attention on the sweet little girl who seemed to already love me. David didn't realize how disrespectful his daughter was to me, when David turned his head he was acting normal but when David stepped out or didn't see her, the boy glared at me.
With dinner together, that was David's way of trying to get us hooked, but it was impossible, it took more time than breakfast and dinner meetings for it to work.
"Aleah, can you put your phone down for a few minutes. We're eating, remember what I said there's no cell phone on the dinner table" David told her.
"But Dad, I just sent a message to Amanda. I don't eat anyway," reason.
"Aleah is the point. Meal time is family time, you have to take a break from your cell phone and your friends and interact with family members" David told her.
"He's not our family" Aleah glared at me before looking back at his father, "if mealtime is family time and I have to take a break from communicating with my friends, why is he here? Shouldn't the same be true for you and your friends? He's not family then."
"Aleah, don't be rude," David grumbled seriously, "apologize now!!"
"Because of acting like a disrespectful child and being rude to Naomi," David said to her, "Naomi is here because I invited her, I want her here."
"Dad! This is not fair! Why should I apologize to her !? I didn't make a mistake, I was just telling the truth!"
"Aleah, watch your tone as you talk to dad. Stop acting like a bad boy and apologize" David told her.
"Sorry," Aleah muttered before slamming his phone a little hard on the table and leaning over on the chair.
"I don't know what happened to you so suddenly like this or are you in trouble?" david told him.
I feel very uncomfortable now. It was like the first time in a while I was at a loss for words and didn't know how to react or what to say. I feel as if everything is starting to fall apart here. I know Aleah hates me for reasons I don't know.
"I memorized a new song today at school," Alisa spoke, somehow, easing the growing tension.
"Yes? About what?" I smiled at him.
"It's about five balloons, you want to hear it?" He asked with a smile.
"It's exciting" David smiled, finally coming out of his seriousness.
"Sure, please dear."