What was she saying? I was confused. I didn’t say anything, because at that moment nothing felt safe or right

Chaim was slouching in the passenger seat, slack-faced, looking deliberately bored. But apparently boredom was no obstacle to his willingness to pick up a steak sandwich and fries with me. Oozing sandwich in hand, I took a deep breath and sent a quick prayer upward.

“So, I was putting away your laundry, and my hands kinda brushed up against a nice wad of cash and some papers. Can you tell me about them?” I davened that my words and tone came across as I intended, light and curious. Teens are so tricky.

Chaim looked at me, head tilted, appraising me. Please Hashem, let him trust me.

“Name, rank, and serial number. That’s all I’m obligated to tell you.” He fiddled with the sandwich wrappings.

He is so my son. I chuckled. “Last I checked, that’s if you’re captured. I’m on your side, buddy.”

Chaim’s face softened. “Check and mate.” He sounded relieved, or maybe I was just hoping he felt that way.

I did the waiting thing, let him talk first. But he was in no rush. I lost patience after three minutes. “Nu, what’s going on?”

Chaim fidgeted with his tzitzis, twirling and untwirling them around his finger.

“I have a side business in Yeshiva. It really picked up after I was kicked out of the dorm.”

Welcome back, pit in my stomach. Chaim stuffed a few fries in his mouth.

“What’s your business?”

Chaim swallowed. “Nothing major, the yeshiva doesn’t let boys get packages to the dorm, they have to go through the front office and the secretary goes through them and it takes so long. So people order stuff to our house and I bring it to yeshiva for them. I charge a small fee.”

“Small fee? There was a lot of money there, and I haven’t noticed that many packages around the house.”

Chaim spread his arms out in a “search me” gesture.

“I’m also like, what’s it called, like a middleman. Guys want stuff, but they can’t get out of the dorm or hitch or they’re stam lazy, so I get it for them.”

“That’s still not adding up to all that money,”

“I also take orders, sometimes it’s sushi, or danishes, and charge for coordinating. I also started just ordering stuff that I sell on the spot. Some places give me discounted rates for big orders. Or if there’s a sale on Gold Toe socks, I’ll buy a bunch and sell them in Yeshiva.”

A real entrepreneur. How did I not know any of this? “Wow, impressive.”

“I know, right?” Chaim rejoined.

Wrong. I pivoted. “How long have you been doing this?

“I started after Pesach last year, I took over from a guy who was graduating, but I’m much bigger.”

Chaim’s arms moved fast, his voice was animated, he was alive like I hadn’t seen him in a long time. This was not going to end well. But if this had started so long ago, why had he suddenly started acting out?

“But—” I started. Chaim’s face fell. “Never mind.” I waved away my own words with my hand. I smiled at Chaim, he returned a real smile and took another bite of his sandwich.

Avrumi, we gotta talk.