Finding the hidden camera tucked under my bathtub was terrifying, and realizing my son had put it there was even worse. But his tearful explanation made me realize he was on a mission to reawaken a part of me I thought was lost forever.
The jigsaw puzzle on our kitchen table had stayed the same for weeks, and I was getting worried. My son, Drake, and I used to love them, but things were much different now.
A puzzle on a table | Source: Pexels
These days, he would rush straight to his room after school and shut the door firmly behind him. That is… after coming home later than usual.
I stirred the pasta sauce and checked my phone again: 6:45 p.m. Two hours late, just like yesterday. Through the kitchen window, I watched our neighbors walking their dogs and laughing together.
Our house used to buzz with that kind of energy. Now it felt like Drake and I were living in separate worlds, connected only by quick hellos and leftover dinners. Did this happen to all pre-teens?
A woman concerned | Source: Pexels
A few minutes later, the front door creaked open.
“Hey, Mom.” Drake’s voice floated through the hallway, followed by the thud of his backpack hitting the floor.
“Kitchen,” I called out happily. “Dinner’s almost ready.”
He poked his head around the corner. I saw his messy hair covered by a backward baseball cap. Something about his eyes made me feel like my boy was back, even for just a second.
Boy with a backwards baseball cap | Source: Pexels
But they soon darted to the floor when I looked at him. I knew something was going on, but I had no idea how to address it. My boy almost seemed older than his few years.
“Sorry I’m late. Chess club ran long.”
“Chess club?” I raised my eyebrows. “Yesterday it was math tutoring. And Tuesday was yearbook committee.”
“Oh yeah, I do all those now.” He shuffled his feet. “Can I eat in my room? Got tons of homework.”
Math book and notebook | Source: Pexels
I gripped the wooden spoon tighter, accidentally dripping tomato sauce onto the stovetop, and decided enough was enough. “Drake, what’s really going on?” I asked, turning and putting one hand on my hip.
“Nothing! I told you, just busy with school stuff,” he shrugged and moved further into the kitchen. Without meeting my gaze, he grabbed a plate, scooped up some pasta, and disappeared before I could press further.
Pasta dish | Source: Pexels
I sighed and wondered to the heavens for the millionth time if I should intervene. Maybe I wouldn’t get an answer from up above, but I could try to find some of my own.
I checked the hallway, and his door was shut as usual, but he had left his backpack in the living room. It was my chance.
Inside, crumpled between textbooks, I found a piece of paper with an address scrawled in unfamiliar handwriting: “1247 Maple Street. Don’t be late. This is it.”
Backpack on the floor | Source: Unsplash
What was going on? I wondered, horrified.
***
That night, I found myself going through his old baby photos, spread across my bedroom floor like pieces of a life I barely recognized anymore.
There he was, two years old, grinning with spaghetti sauce all over his face. That happy little boy used to tell me everything. Now he barely looked at me.
Toddler covered in spaghetti sauce | Source: Midjourney
The parent-teacher conference from last week played in my head.
“Drake seems… distracted lately,” Mrs. Peterson had said, sliding his failed math test across her desk. “He’s been falling asleep in class. When he’s awake, he’s always scribbling in his notebook, but it’s not notes from the lesson.”
How could he be getting a grade like that with math tutoring? Was it time to pull the plug on all other clubs?
A math test | Source: Pexels
Either way, I knew sleep wouldn’t come, so I decided to take a shower.
The bathroom was my sanctuary, the one place I could relax and belt out old songs without anyone hearing. Tonight’s selection was “Sweet Child O’ Mine.”
The steam rose around me as I hit the chorus, and I remembered how I used to dream of being on stage.
A woman washing her hair | Source: Pexels
“Where do we go now?” I sang, letting my voice soar like it used to at the coffee shop open mics when my future hopes were far grander than what reality allowed.
Sadly, those wishes were extinguished the moment, Tom, Drake’s father and my ex, left us for his new family in Seattle.
But now wasn’t the time to dwell on the past again. The present was much more important. I finished cleaning myself up and exited my shower. As I dried my hair, I felt the pull on my ear and heard a clink on my tiled floor.
A woman drying up | Source: Pexels
My earring! I bent down to get it and saw the crystal’s shining light reflecting from just under the bathtub. Except… something else caught my eye.
There, hidden under the edge, was an old nanny cam I used when Drake was a baby. And it was ON. I immediately went pale. But I examined the angle. It would only be recording my feet. I didn’t get it.
Still, my hands shook as I took it and carefully wrapped myself in a towel to march straight to Drake’s room. The sound of his furious typing stopped when I pounded on the door.
A woman holding a small camera | Source: Pexels
“Just a minute!” he called out, and I heard drawers being opened and shut. What in the world?
“Drake, open this door right now!”
Finally, I heard footsteps and the door swung open.
He stood there in his oversized gaming headphones, and his own face turned white as soon as I held up the nanny cam.
A boy with headphones | Source: Pexels
“Drake, what is this? Why was this hidden in the bathroom?!” I asked, as my anger and bravado turned to extreme worry.
When he remained silent, I gulped and asked, “Have you been… recording me in the bathroom?”
His eyes widened at that. His expression was terrified. “Oh no… Mom, you weren’t supposed to find that. IT’S NOT WHAT YOU THINK. I can explain!”
“Then start explaining.” I pushed past him into his room and looked at his computer. The screen showed some kind of video editing software. Oh, no! What is he doing?
A laptop on a desk | Source: Pexels
But before I could panic more, Drake spoke. “I…” He slumped onto his bed. “You weren’t supposed to find out yet.”
“Find out what? That my son is making videos of…” I couldn’t even say it.
“No! Mom, listen,” he pleaded as tears welled up in his eyes. “Remember when you used to sing at the coffee shop open mics? Before Dad left?”
The question caught me off guard. “What does that have to do with anything?”
A woman looking confused | Source: Pexels
“You were so happy then. Now you only sing in the shower, when you think no one can hear you.” He wiped his nose with his sleeve. “But you’re still amazing, Mom. I wanted to show you that.”
He reached for his laptop and turned it toward me. His fingers pressed play, and suddenly, the screen showed me… well, a music video.
I saw a sunset over the city and streets filled with people chasing their dreams. But the main part was the soundtrack with my voice, clear and strong. It was playing “My Way.”
A sunset over New York | Source: Pexels
“I met an old man, Mr. Arthur. I’ve been going to his studio after school,” Drake continued. “He’s been teaching me video editing. I wanted to surprise you for your birthday, show you that you shouldn’t give up on your dreams just because…”
“Because your father left?” The words stuck in my throat.
“He owns all these old instruments, and he lets me practice drums while he teaches me about making videos.” Drake’s words tumbled out faster now. “I’ve been doing extra chores for neighbors to pay for studio time. Mr. Arthur says I have a good eye for it.”
A drum set | Source: Pexels
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because you worry about everything now.” His voice cracked. “Ever since Dad left, it’s like you stopped believing in good surprises. I thought if I could just finish the video, show you how amazing you still are…”
Tears welled and fell before I could stop them. All this time, I’d been so worried about what he was hiding. Never once did I consider he might be worried about me too.
A woman crying | Source: Pexels
“You could have just talked to me,” I said softly, wrapping my arms around him.
“Would you have listened?” He looked up at me, suddenly seeming older than 11. “You always say you’re fine, but I hear you crying sometimes. And you never sing anymore, except in the shower.”
I pulled him close, feeling his thin shoulders shake. “I’m sorry, baby. I guess we’ve both been keeping too many things inside.”
We stayed in silence for a few minutes before I remembered something. “Oh! Is Mr. Arthur’s studio on 1247 Maple Street?”
A music studio | Source: Midjourney
“Yes!” Drake said, but then frowned. “How did you know?”
“In the interest of honesty…” I began and confessed to rummaging through his backpack. Shockingly, we just laughed at each other.
***
The next day, we visited Mr. Arthur’s studio together. He turned out to be a gentle giant with calloused hands and kind eyes, surrounded by dusty guitars and vintage recording equipment.
Music equipment | Source: Pexels
“Your boy’s got talent,” he told me and showed me more of Drake’s videos. “And so do you.”
And now that the secrets were out, Drake and I finally finished the jigsaw puzzle together. I also sang outside the shower for the first time in years.
What’s more, next week, I’m singing at the coffee shop again. My son will be there, recording every moment. This time, I won’t be afraid of a little camera.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are being called “frauds” because of a rumor about what might happen to their children in the future.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle didn’t move to the US alone; they brought their son, Prince Archie, with them when they first flew to Canada. In 2021, they moved into their multimillion-dollar mansion in Montecito, California, and welcomed their daughter, Princess Lilibet.
Even though Archie and Lilibet are still very young, they are often talked about in the news. Lilibet recently turned three, but no members of the Royal Family attended her birthday party. People are wondering what kind of relationship Archie and Lilibet will have with their UK-based cousins – Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. There’s a rumor that King Charles wants to be more involved in the lives of Harry and Meghan’s children.
This fall, Archie is starting kindergarten, and Lilibet is getting ready for preschool. Harry and Meghan have been looking at schools for them, but one US journalist called them “frauds” because of this.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle moved to the US to have a more private life, away from the paparazzi and the pressures of being part of the royal family. It’s said they knew just days after their wedding that they didn’t want to stay in the royal family for long.
When Archie was born in 2019, they had already started trying to become more private. They didn’t want to be used as “puppets” by the royal family for fans and the media around the world.
Harry & Meghan ‘tricked” reports when Archie was born
In her book The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth’s Legacy and the Future of the Crown, royal expert Katie Nicholl said that Harry was “almost morbidly obsessed” with keeping Archie’s birth a secret, which is very different from the usual way royal babies are born.
Despite many fans and the public wanting to know about the baby, Harry and Meghan’s wish for privacy was ignored and seen as part of the “unwritten contract between the royals and the public.”
Rebecca English, the royal editor of the Daily Mail, mentioned that things were so tense behind the scenes that some officials were reduced to tears out of frustration and despair.
Usually, when a royal baby is born, the parents pose for photos on the hospital steps and answer a few questions before going back to their private life. But according to Katie Nicholl, Harry and Meghan wanted to handle Archie’s birth differently. Instead of openly facing the media, they tricked reporters and photographers.
Prince William, Prince Harry, and William’s children—Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis—were all born at St Mary’s Hospital, where their first baby photos were taken. However, Meghan’s doctor worked at Portland Hospital, so it made sense for her to have Archie there instead.
Prince Archie & Princess Lilibet
An added bonus for Harry and Meghan was that the entrance at Portland Hospital made taking photos impossible due to safety concerns.
“Harry had always enjoyed outsmarting the media,” wrote Katie Nicholl in The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth’s Legacy and the Future of the Crown. She added that Harry and Meghan were thrilled to have their son at Portland Hospital in London before the palace press office even confirmed Meghan was in labor.
Lilibet’s birth was different. She was born in June 2021 in California, where no paparazzi got close. However, it wasn’t long before Harry and Meghan brought their kids back into the public eye.
Two years after Lilibet’s birth, Harry and Meghan announced that they had given their children the titles of prince and princess. While they claim these titles are their children’s birthright, not everyone agreed it was a good idea. Royal expert Angela Levin believes it could have a negative impact on Archie and Lilibet’s futures.
In an article for Sky, Angela Levin said that Lilibet now has a heavy burden because of her parents’ decision.
“It will take a long time for little Lilibet to understand the burden her parents have put on her,” Levin said.
She added that by giving their daughter an official royal title, Harry and Meghan have now “attached her to the British Royal Family,” which they have criticized for many years.
“Why would you want your daughter to go through such trouble?” Levin asked, saying that Lilibet’s daily life will be more difficult because she has the title of princess.
King Charles ‘desperate’ to meet Archie & Lilibet
“Little girls love pretending to be princesses at parties, but if Lilibet is the only real princess in her class, it could cause jealousy that could be avoided,” the royal expert said.
Archie and Lilibet are growing up quickly. Archie turned 5 in May, and Lilibet turned 3 a little over a week ago. On June 5, Lilibet had a birthday party, but no members of her royal family attended. Princess Eugenie is the only royal who has visited Harry, Meghan, and their children in California.
Although King Charles’s relationship with Harry and Meghan is strained, he is reportedly “heartbroken” about not having a relationship with Archie and Lilibet. The King has only met Archie five times and Lilibet once.
Speaking with the Mirror, royal expert Ingrid Seward said Charles’s cancer diagnosis has made his relationship with Archie and Lilibet even more poignant, as he realizes he “won’t be around forever.”
“Family has always been important to the King. He remembers his own fragmented childhood because his parents were always busy with their duties. It is a great sadness to him that he doesn’t see more of Archie and Lilibet,” Seward explained.
“That’s why he will never cut ties with Harry. He doesn’t want to only see his son’s children on FaceTime. He wants to know them and be part of their lives while they are still young enough to learn from him. His cancer diagnosis has made this even more important to him because he knows he won’t be around forever.”
Meghan revealed real reason why Archie will never attend a UK school
Only time will tell what Harry and Meghan’s children will do when they grow up. They can choose any path they want, including working as royals. However, their parents likely plan for them to attend some of the best and most expensive schools in the world.
Their UK relatives have gone to famous schools like Gordonstoun in Scotland and Eton in England. But it’s said that Harry and Meghan wouldn’t let their son go to school in the UK.
In a 2022 article for The Cut, journalist Allison Davis shared a conversation she had with Meghan Markle. Meghan said she didn’t want her son Archie to attend school in the UK because of safety concerns.
Meghan explained that if Archie went to school in the UK, she would never be able to pick him up or drop him off without a crowd of photographers taking pictures. She told Allison, “Sorry, I have a problem with that. It doesn’t mean I’m obsessed with privacy. It means I’m a strong and good parent protecting my child.”
Archie and Lilibet have a lot of time before they start high school or college. For now, they will probably go to a school near their home in Montecito, California, where they live.
Harry and Meghan “inspecting” expensive private school for Archie & Lilibet
One journalist says that Harry and Meghan have started looking at schools in their area, but they’re getting a lot of criticism for their choices.
Richard Mineards from the Montecito Journal told the Mirror that Harry and Meghan checked out a local private school, which is very expensive.
“The couple was seen visiting the school campus last week, getting closer to making a decision,” Mineards said.
He added, “In our area, school fees range from $50,000 to $60,000 or more for older grades, and most students go on to four-year colleges.”
It’s assumed that Harry and Meghan can afford to send their children to private schools. However, not everyone is happy about Harry looking at such an expensive school.
US journalist Lee Cohen has criticized the royal couple, calling them “frauds.” In an interview with GB News, he said it’s “infuriating” that the Sussexes are planning to enroll their kids in an “outrageously expensive” school, especially since they often talk about equality.
Lee Cohen said, “It’s extremely frustrating to hear that Harry and Meghan, who claim to be champions of equality and social justice, are thinking about sending their children to an exclusive, very expensive school.”
Harry & Meghan branded “frauds”
Lee Cohen continued, “Their supposed commitment to equality and social justice is just a show. If they’re willing to send their kids to such an elite, extremely expensive school, they’re not really supporting equality. They’re paying tens of thousands of dollars a year for their children’s education, while many families can’t even afford basic needs.”
Cohen wrapped up by accusing Harry and Meghan of maintaining the “systems of privilege” they claim to fight against.
“Sending their kids to such a prestigious school just shows how fake their claims are. They’re upholding the very privilege they say they’re trying to challenge,” Cohen told GB News.
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