As I Was is the prequel to As We Are, telling the story of Jaidon Vallejo, a boy growing up in Washington Heights with a mother whose love is never guaranteed.
At home, Jaidon learns to navigate the shifting moods of a woman who swings between warmth, manipulation, and cruel indifference. When her boyfriend moves in and the abuse escalates, Jaidon adapts the only way he knows how—by staying silent, staying small, and staying out of the way. His only sense of safety comes from the home of Melissa Gravino—the kind, steady mother of his best friend—where meals are shared and no one raises their voice.
But when a violent incident forces the truth into the open, Jaidon is left with an impossible choice: protect the woman who raised him, or leave everything he knows for a love he’s not sure he deserves.
Told with unflinching honesty and emotional depth, As I Was is a story of survival, betrayal, and the complicated love between a child and the mother who couldn’t keep him safe.