Chapter 9: Mama
Note- This content does not encourage nor preteen relationships. This is a work of fiction.
We were years apart. Grandpa had a relationship after my mom died and married Grandma, so we had different mothers. Grandma and Grandpa were childhood bestfriends. Grandpa loved Grandma, but Grandma had a fiancee, so Grandpa started to date around.
"Who's the guy? Aron?" he asked.
"How'd you know?" she nodded and blushed.
"Figured something was happening between you two." he smiled.
After a few years, Grandpa met my mom and got married. Grandma, however, lost touch with Grandpa. Her fiancee had passed away from an illness, and she had just given birth.
After my mom was diagnosed with cancer, she always told Grandpa to move on and live his life happily. And so he did. He found out about Grandma's fiancee and how she was living.
"Hey Pumpkin, let's go see Daddy's friend. She has a daughter, too. Her name is Lily, but she's just a tiny baby," he said.
I was so happy. It had been so long since I had talked to Mom. She was my bestfriend, so I thought maybe Grandma would also become a new bestfriend of mine. I kinda hoped, she might also become my mom, not that I didn't love my mom, but I missed having her around, I wanted to have a mom.
I said happily," Me and your friend are gonna be best pals and we'll be happy like a family."
Grandpa seemed like he was caught off guard,"Yeah, like family."
Grandma tried keeping herself busy with work. I was only 5, so he would always take me with him to visit her and watch her daughter. But one day, I ended waiting for him at the kindergarten playground. I was so excited to go see her and the baby.
It turned out Grandma had attempted suicide that day.
Grandpa was just dropping off food at Grandma's. The door was locked, but all he could hear was her dog barking. Grandpa busted the door and found her on the couch with white tablets scurried on the floor. He took her to the hospital and called the school to tell me he would take awhile to pick me up. And when he did, he brought me snacks and told me to wait in the waiting room. But I was too excited, I went into the room I saw them disappear into. We would sometimes take Lily for check ups, so I thought it would be a normal check up day.
SMACK!
Grandpa never hit me or my mom, so I was shocked when he slapped her.
"What the hell were you thinking?!" he was so furious the back of his neck was deep red.
"Lily's.. she's gonna leave me too. She's gonna leave me all alone," her voice trembled.
"Hey! You've got us, too!" he yelled," What about Kayla? What if we walked in and- What about her? Were you going to leave us like that? Leave her? Leave me? Aren't we family?" his voice gradually grew softer and they both cried into eachother's arms. I was too shocked to enter so I went back to where I was when Grandpa walked back to me.
"Hey pumpkin, I gotta talk to you, is that alright?" he sat next to me and held me close.
"Um, so you know how Lily gets sick sometimes?" he told me and I nodded,"Well, today we found out that Lily is really, really sick." he said.
My heart twinged as I asked," Like Mommy?"
"Kinda like Mommy. But her sickness is a little different. We'll have to spend as much time with her as much as we can. She might go to Heaven today, tomorrow, or next week. So...." he watched me cuddle closer," I'm sorry pumpkin, so sorry." I cried in his arms, but I didn't want to waste any more time," Dad, let's go see her."
Lily passed away that early spring. Grandpa had stepped in to bring Grandma back to herself and fell for her all over again. Grandma and Grandpa got married three years later and had your aunties and uncles. But your mom was the last baby. They had her when I was 15! That's when I started dating Dad.
Since I was the oldest and had parttime jobs at the time, we didn't grow a close relationship, but I always tried to make her feel included. She was always reserved, independent and polite. I had always thought that she'd grow up to be a fine young women. Then after I got married and moved here, I hardly heard any news from home.
So, I was a little surprised when she messaged me one night and asked if she could come over with a friend. And when she did, the others messaged me that she had run away from home.
"Is something going on at home?" I asked," You know you can tell me anything. The kids are asleep and Henry is in his study."
"Sis, I-" she cried and struggled to tell me everything.
She was just in middleschool. She had met a nice young man and they had fallen in love. But when our sisters found out she was pregnant, they were furious. They were already stressed with Grandma's health, so worrying about her relationship and a coming baby irritated them. The two were planning to elope.
We had gotten a lot more closer and her boyfriend was a kind deligent young man. Dad and I decided they could live with us.
I was there day and night with your mom and dad to stay up and care for your mom.
"What're you gonna name her?" I asked.
"Julia Liana Rosarie," she said.
"That's a mouthful," I laughed.
"We'll call her Lia for short," she smiled.
"How'd you come up with her name?" I asked.
"You know Romeo and Juliet? Well..that's kinda like our love story, but I want Lia to grow up and choose her man and be able to love him without anyone or anything stopping her. Of course, he's gotta be a good person and love her too. As long as he has that, I can live in peace," she said.
We insisted they stay, but they didn't want to impose on us, so they had left with you after graduating highschool and getting a job.
But only after half a year, she came back with you.
"Sis...I can't.. I need your help. Can you look after Lia for me..?" her face was just like when she had first come here.
"Sure, I don't mind. Is something the matter?" I asked.
"I'm sorry.. I can't.. I mean. I don't mean to just watch her... Can you please take her for me? Care for her and love her..just as I would..? Please..?" her eyes were swollen red, but she continued to cry.
She noticed my confused expression and explained a little more in detail of the situation.
Your biological dad was in the hospital because of an illness and your mom needed someone to care for you because she was too young and stressed with our family, bills, and having to lose a loved one. But the reason why she gave me you to care for, wasn't because she stopped loving you. It was because she loved you, she knew she wouldn't be able to be mentally and physically there for you. Because the government had issued a new law for Parental neglect, to protect your parents and you, I adopted you. After Grandma's funeral, she had left. She would sometimes message me and ask about you, but because they moved to a different country, it would get harder to visit you and she felt like she had lost the right to be a mother. She told me she would come back for you, but up until now I haven't heard from her.
When you started learning to talk, you would call me "Mommy" or "Mom", I couldn't say no to you. You were sooooo cute, so sweet, so innocent. I always felt like a mother to you, but at that point I accepted my role as your new mother, someone you depended on and someone who you can depend on. Your sisters were mostly independent, rude, or stubborn, so Dad and I fell sooo in love with you. That's kinda mean to say about your sisters, I'm sorry. That might've been around the time Leah started getting jealous of not getting our attention. Leah was old enough to understand that you were her Aunty's daughter, but when I came home and told everyone about the news...
I sat everyone down, "Alright guys, this is really important okay? I want you to know that Aunty has to leave with uncle for a very very long time and because of the law, I'm gonna adopt Lia to protect her and her mommy and daddy, alright?"
Hellian and Marie and Sarah understood the situation, but Leah was still young.
"Isn't she my cousin though?" she asked confused.
"Yeah, but now you'll have a new sister! Isn't that great?," I was getting a little worried about how she felt," wouldn't you be happy to get another sister?"
She stood up," I already have tons of sisters. She isn't even my sister so why do I have to pretend she is?"
I got a little upset because of her remark," Hey that's a little rude of you to say. Lia is just a baby, and she's family, so of course it's natural for her to be your sister. It's kinda like some of your classmates who have stepparents or stepsiblings or foster parents. Plus Lia has always been in your life."
"So you're keeping her because of the law and not because you love her more than us?"she pouted.
I was worried I was failing Leah as a mom," I love you all just the same! I really do! From before you were in my tummy and after-"
"Liar! You never play with me anymore! And now I have to share my room again?! It's not fair!" Leah stomped to her room.
"Everyone loves you Lia, even Leah. Even if she would be upset and jealous of everyone's attention on you, she loved you too. She would always make sure you had a bottle, clean up your toys so you wouldn't hurt yourself, wipe your drooly mess, and changed your diaper. She grew up raising you half of the time. You would always follow her around and she used to hate it so much. But it got to her, she'd always be worried if you weren't by her side. I guess she started acting cold towards you when you were getting into elementary school. You were always antisocial, but then you made lots of friends. Leah was jealous you weren't by her side anymore. So Grandpa would talk to her about it.
You know Leah, she always had a hard time getting along with kids, it was to the point the whole class shunned her out.
But when you would always try to talk to her every morning, every night, and every chance you could, it would make her day. Psttt don't tell her I read her diary. She gradually returned back to her usual self because of you and Grandpa, so don't worry about her not loving you." she said as she hugged me. "I don't really remember much of when I was little, but I do remember I would always be with Leah." I said.
" That's what age does to you, haha. Alright, it's getting late now. Let's head onto bed now shall we. How about we sleep together tonight. It's been so long since I had you in my arms all night." She said holding my hand, leading me to her and Dad's room.
"Hey! No fair us too!" the triplets said with teary eyes.
"What?! What were you guys hiding there for? You heard the whole thing didn't you," Mom sighed and they nodded," Alright! Papa! Get ready! We're going to snuggle you to deathhhh!" And we all ran and jumped onto the bed where Dad was.
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