Bab 69: Call me mom
The woman who just walked in has the same pitch-black curly hair (tied in an elegant bun) and gray eyes like that of Robbie's. However, unlike him, she has an oval face, a soft, kind mouth, and a glowing wheatish complexion. She is quite short with a lean structure, but her presence is quite large. She has the word 'class' written in every nook and cranny of her stature. It is so profound that even some of the cafe's customers turned to look at her.
My jaw dropped on seeing Mrs. Walker. Not only is she a beauty, but she barely looks thirty. Had I not known she was Robbie's mother, I would have thought she was Robbie's sister. Mrs. Walker is such a sophisticated and classy lady that I suddenly felt under-dressed. Even in her hurried and exhausted form, she still managed to look very elegant. I was completely tongue-tied on seeing her.
Robbie got up and hugged her, chirping, in a happy tone,
"Mum, sorry to call you when you're so busy."
She patted his back with a bright smile, "Absolutely not. I can spare at least a day for you," she said, giving him a quick kiss on his cheek.
Robbie moved back and said, turning towards me, "Mom, meet Tony, my..." he hesitated to give a term to me.
I stood up feeling more anxious than before and said in an awkward hurried tone, "His partner."
Mrs. Walker smiled at me warmly and said gently, forwarding her hand, "I am so glad to meet you, son. Robbie talks a lot about you."
I took her hand, still feeling very nervous, as I said with a panicked laugh, "I-I see. He told me about you too."
"Did he now?" she giggled as she let go of my hand and turned to Twen, who was hiding behind me, grabbing onto my shirt.
Robbie said, pointing his palm towards Twen with a proud smile, "And that's our son, Twen."
She tilted her head to see Twen, who in turn fidgeted with my shirt, looking down nervously, "Hello Twen," she said, bending down to his height and speaking softly.
Twen raised his head to look at her warm, kind eyes and said shyly, "He-hello."
"How are you?" she asked jovially.
"I am fine," Twen said, looking back down.
"I guess this old lady's face must be scary that's why you are not even looking at me," Mrs. Walker said in a mock sorrowful tone.
Old?!!!
She looks way too young to be the mother of a 25-year-old, let alone the grandmother of a seven-year-old.
Twen quickly looked up, taking her words seriously, and shook his head, saying earnestly, "No, aunty. I-I am.."
Mrs. Walker laughed warmly and patted his head gently, "I know, love. Sorry, this aunty is just joking. Do you like chocolates?"
Twen blinked and looked at me as if not sure whether to answer. I prodded him encouragingly. He looked back at Mrs. Walker and said politely, "I do!"
Mrs. Walker straightened up and brought out a nicely wrapped chocolate box and forwarded it to him with a dazzling smile, "Then, this is a small gift from me."
"Thank you!" Twen said as he accepted the gift, his eyes glowing.
She gave me an apologetic look and said in a sorry tone, "I hope you don't mind, dear. I couldn't resist bringing a gift for my grandson. After all, it is our first meeting."
I cannot believe she is being apologetic about such a trivial matter and seeking my approval. She is a rare combo of beauty, brains, and a kind personality. I quickly shook my head and said with a smile,
"No, ma'am. You have every right to give him presents. He is your grandson."
Her eyes twinkled on hearing me. She patted my shoulder fondly and took a seat beside Robbie. She ordered a cappuccino and watched Twen tearing open the chocolate box and munching a bar of salted caramel chocolate. I told him not to eat everything at once, to which he agreed, giving me a chocolaty smile.
"Do you like it, dear?" Mrs. Walker asked with a broad smile.
"Yes! It's really yummy," Twen answered, chowing down another blob of chocolate.
"Is that so? I am glad. I heard from Robbie that you love to run?" Mrs. Walker asked, taking a sip of her cappuccino.
Twen stopped munching and looked at Robbie, who was pretending to not hear the conversation and sipped on his Heaven Cream Cuppa. There was a strange emotion in Twen's eyes which quickly got replaced with excitement as he looked at Mrs. Walker and said,
"Yes, I love to run. I won three medals in this year's sports event."
"Excellent! Such a talented boy!" Mrs. Walker said, sharing his excitement.
"Yes, and mommy took a lot of pictures. He also cheered me on. This was my first competition," Twen blabbered, his eyes shining with joy.
"Amazing!! How about I join your mommy in cheering you next time?" she asked, giving him a cheerful smile.
"Y-You would really come to watch my competition?" Twen asked, surprised.
"Of course! How can I not come to cheer for my little prince!" Mrs. Walker said affectionately.
"Mommy, did you hear? Aunty said she would also come next year," Twen said, looking at me with a wide grin.
I am in a little awe. Twen normally doesn't gel well with strangers this fast, but he is already so chummy with Mrs. Walker. I guess her kindness is infectious. I smiled at Twen and said, patting his head,
"Yes, I heard, and she is not aunty. She is your grandma!"
Twen's smile suddenly vanished. I got perturbed. Did I say something wrong? Is he still not prepared to accept her as his grandmother? I was looking on as Twen turned to Mrs. Walker, who too was looking at him confused and concerned. Robbie tried to look relaxed, but even his eyes looked tense. Then, Twen looked at me and said in a confused whisper,
"But-but she is so young! How is she, grandma?"
We didn't expect this reply and stared at him for a few seconds till his words finally clicked us, and we all burst out laughing. So, he was not upset or unwilling. He is simply confused as Mrs. Walker looks too young to be a grandmother. She smiled at him broadly,
"You can call me Granny Ash! Then, I wouldn't sound so old, right?" she suggested.
Twen, who was looking at all of us with confused eyes as we suddenly started laughing, turned to see Mrs. Walker when she spoke and blinked in surprise at her suggestion. He thought for a while and then said with a cute smile, "Granny Ash is cool!"
The three of us smiled. Mrs. Walker looked a little emotional but smiled through it as she looked at me.
"I have to thank you, Tony. I heard everything from Robbie. You are such a brave boy! It is all thanks to you that I met Twen today," she said, looking at me and then Twen emotionally.
I didn't know what to say. I know that I refused to abort, but that was not because I didn't have money but because I felt that an innocent soul shouldn't suffer because of an adult's mistake! Never did I think that it would lead to such a day where someone would call my step to be brave and would be glad that I made the choice that I made. I felt a little embarrassed on hearing Mrs. Walker and spoke shyly,
"You don't need to thank me, Ma'am-"
"Mom," Mrs. Walker said, interrupting me.
I looked at her bewildered, "Excuse me?" I was sure I heard her wrong.
"Call me Mom. I don't know whether in the future you will be my son-in-law or not, but through Twen, we are already a family. I am as much your mother as I am Robbie's! So, call me mom."
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