The Fairytale Arrangement

I never imagined my life and what has happened in my wildest dreams. Four years ago, my life something happened that changed my life forever.

Four years ago, I was a single mother. My son was the greatest and only joy in my life. I found myself alone, raising a child by myself. My life had been shattered and I didn't know if I could ever really pick up the pieces. My marriage fell apart, at that point I believed I would be alone forever. I closed myself and my heart off from the world, completely ready to be alone forever. I focused all my time and energy on my son. The rest of the world fell away and I disappeared into being a mother. My son had been through so much already, I had to protect him at all costs. I hid from the world, like

My ex-husband had hidden everything from me. The debt, the drugs, the women. Remembering four and half years ago, I thought it was the worst day of my life.

I had moved across the country for my husband. I was from New York City, and he was lived in Bixby, OK. It was a small town outside Tulsa. I was a stay at home/ work from him

Mom. I made and sold things online. I didn't leave the house much, between Michael and my business. Matt liked it that way. I thought he wanted me to himself, but it turns out he was hiding his other life from me.

The day the sheriff's office came and threw us out of our house. All of the stuff, our memories tossed on the front lawn like trash. I held Michael in my arms as I sobbed. The sheriffs' officers seemed so cold. This was their job, they'd done it many times before, it had taken its toll. They barely seemed human. They walked past me cradled on the ground, holding my son trying to protect him from the pain. They didn't acknowledge I was there as they threw my entire life away.

Finally, one officer towered over us. I was so scared I could barely breathe I didn't know what was going to happen. I didn't even know what was going on and I couldn't get ahold of Matt. Was this officer about to take my son away? He crouched down next to me, and I instinctively held Michael as tight as I could, draping my body over his to protect him. The officer held out a grey elephant, the one Michael had since he was born. I had his name and his birth information on it. Realizing, he wasn't going to take Michael or hurt me I relaxed my grasp. Michael reached for the elephant pulling it close to his chest. It had always been his favorite. I managed to get out "thank you" through my sobbing. He asked if we had a place to stay and I couldn't say anything. Matt was out of town for business or at least at the time that's what I thought. I managed to compose myself enough, to hold a conversation. I had to; Michael was depending on me. I managed to get out "why is this happening?". The officer seemed a little taken back, like how couldn't I know? He gently spoke releasing I had no idea what was going on. He bluntly said, "your mortgage hasn't been paid in over 8 months" I gasped, "that's impossible I work hard, I put money every month to pay the mortgage". This must be a mistake; the bank must have made a mistake. The officer's eyes dropped, "I think you should speak to your husband about this". I knew Matt would clear this up, but he wasn't here. He may have a temper, but he wasn't going to leave his family out on the street. "He's out of town on business" and the officer let out a sigh. He reached over and gently rubbed my back, "no, he's not. I'm sorry". I couldn't believe his words; how could he know and where was my husband? He was supposed to be in Topeka for work. I could see the pain in the officer's eyes! Before the officer could say anything, a tow truck pulled up.

My car was being repossessed. I could keep the car if I paid $689. I pulled out my bank card and handed it to the man. It was declined. I pulled out my bank card, the money I had put away. There was over $5,000 in there. I had been saving up for a big family vacation to Disneyland. The card was declined. How? I pulled out my phone and checked my bank account. It had a negative balance, I screamed. I called the bank and all the accounts had been cleared out even my personal account. I screamed at the man on the phone, "I'm the only one on the account, how could someone take the money out?" There was a long pause, "please hold" my heart was jumping into my throat while I waited. The man came back on the phone, "it appears your husband", he cleared his throat, "he brought some documentation that allowed him to empty your account". This could not be happening. I dropped my phone and looked at the officer. At this point, I couldn't imagine this getting any worse. A heard a car pull up and Matt jumped out.