Lia and Tamara sat quietly under the shade. Lia stared at the sky overhead, not knowing what to say or do. Tamara did not seem like she wanted to say more about it. For a long moment, they just sat there in silence.
After a while, Lia settled in to rest her head on the shoulder of her mother.
"I'm glad to have found you," she whispered. "How old would have been your son?"
"7 years old now." Tamara lightly patted Lia's arm. "I would have wanted you to meet him."
"I'd love that too."
Lia felt her mother lean into her which was something that she did not usually do. Tamara may be motherly, but as a person, she was the one people rely on, not the person relying on others. She was independent, rarely breaking down. Lia admired that about her. This small movement was like a small chink to Tamara's invincible shield. Lia bowed once again to protect this small family she had now.
Lia faced her mother. "Thank you for taking me in."
"We were both alone at the time," Tamara answered with a wistful smile. "I thought this child is like me — scared and scarred. But unlike me, you were much younger, you did not know to protect yourself."
"Do you-- do you perhaps regret it?"
"At the time, I saw you as an atonement. A new way to start life. But now, you're my daughter. I want to give you the best that I can give. And not because you are a replacement for my son either. I don't want you to think of it that way."
After a while, Tamara continued, "Though when it comes to regret, perhaps I was regretting not being a good parent to my son."
Tamara patted Lia on the arm to quell her protests. "I did not give him a chance to feel his father's touch. Thinking about it now, I did not really listen to my husband."
"There's my sob story," Tamara straightened in an attempt to lighten the atmosphere. "We can now put it away and move on to more joyous stuff, meaning your birthday."
They spent the rest of the morning planning the food that they were going to prepare for their dinner before Lia had to go and work.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lia skipped as she went home from work at the clinic. Going home early for once felt nice as she had asked for a day off in the restaurant.
Somehow, she kept an eye for any signs of Eldric around the vicinity. For the next few weeks, after they met, he kept on popping out of nowhere. He would appear at the restaurant during her shifts or bump into one another on the streets. There was even a time when he looked surprised to see her coming out of the clinic.
She figured that maybe because they are in the same vicinity that was why they kept on seeing each other. It was odd, nothing more, nothing less. Lia decided not to think too much about it and placed it on another odd thing in this world. This time, there did not seem a shadow of Eldric around so she continued skipping merrily on her way home.
She arrived home and found something odd again.
Tamara stood in front of their house, clutching a letter in her hands while reading it. With the dim light, Lia could not quite tell make out her mother's features, but the older woman seemed agitated.
Lia stepped closer carefully, "Something wrong?"
It took a moment for Tamara to focus on Lia and another minute for her features to clear up. "You're home early."
Lia did not miss how her mother placed a letter discreetly inside her pocket but decided to no longer pursue the matter. "I did tell you that."
Tamara guided Lia inside their house. "Yes, yes. I might have forgotten. I'm getting old. Anyway, help me set up the table? Yolly and Frankie would be here any moment."
While Lia did not want to dwell on the letter, that did not stop her mind from replaying some scenes from the past days when she found her mother reading something. The image resembled a lot like what she had stumbled into earlier, Tamara reading what looked like a letter and then hiding it when Lia came in.
But she did not want to force her mother to open another wound from her past on the same day. If she was willing to tell, then maybe in the future.
A knocked was heard, and soon, Yolly's booming voice filled the house. Once their companions have settled on their seats, they started eating and talking merrily.
They were having a good time when, suddenly, someone knocked on the door.