Silver light from the lightning spread across the night sky.
The sound of the raindrops slowly started and the fragrance of wet soil made the surroundings pleasant. Open windows turned the dark hospital room chilly with cold air gushing in and the waving white curtains made the scene more creepy.
A bed is placed at the center of the room with a weak, young lady dressed in patient gown laid on it.
The picture looked enchanting and the contrast between the sleeping beauty and the stormy sky brought out a magical sensation.
The door to the room was opened and promptly closed. A shadow moved forward slowly towards the bed. The dark figure came more and more closer to her with every passing second and it finally leaned towards the beauty on the bed.
--
"Ahhh..." A scream sounded in the silent room.
Isabella sat up with terror brewing in her heart, and her head aching tremendously.
Sweat dripping down from her forehead and tears flowing from her eyes. Her palms sweaty and cold with her whole body trembling.
Her heaving chest and dazed eyes made her look like a pitiful bird kept bound in a hellish cage for years.
"Mommy...." a little girl sleeping on the other side of the bed jolted and turned on the bed light, then looked up at Isabella.
Hearing her daughter's voice, Isabella calmed down and hugged the little girl tightly, close to her chest.
The little girl rubbed her mother's back with her tiny hands comforting the crying woman.
"Mommy... Don't cry..."
Isabella nodded lightly and continued holding her daughter for a long while.
"Don't worry mommy. I'm here with you" the little pie spoke in a sweet, cheery voice and wiped Isabella's tears lessening her uneasiness.
The mother and daughter duo hugged each other and laid down again, drifting into sleep. A calm smile spread across both their faces.
-----
"Mommy...Good morning" the little pie spoke jumping on the bed and greeted her mother placing a kiss on Isabella's cheek.
Her daughter greeting her with a kiss and 'good morning' was the best thing Isabella would die to enjoy every day.
Last night's nightmares and lingering sleepiness were shooed right away with her daughter's kiss. With good spirits she jumped down the bed to start a new day.
Isabella rushed through a series of morning activities as she had to rush to work specifically several odd-jobs. With her minimal paycheck she has to keep up with the rising cost of living.
Hence, she couldn't waste even a single minute and had to head out immediately.
Isabella picked her bag and ran towards the door.
"Mommy..." the child seated on the chair behind the coffee table in the living room shouted.
"What...?" Isabella who was almost at the door stopped in the way and turned around.
"You forgot something....." little cute pie spoke in a serious tone.
"What...? I Forgot something" Isabella rummaged through her shoulder bag and found everything she needed.
The child who was watching her mother's actions hurried towards the door and stood beside her mother.
She thought her mom would at least give her a goodbye kiss or a hug before leaving and she couldn't ask for one now making her mother feel guilty as Isabella forgot about it.
Isabella noticed her child and asked instantly "Baby... I've got everything I needed. What did I forget?"
The cutie pie opened her little hand and handed something to Isabella.
"This....." Isabella was stunned to find a string of unevenly spaced beads in her palm which looked like a bracelet.
"I made this for you, mommy. You can look at it whenever you miss me"
The cutie pie tugged her mother's skirt asking her mother to lower herself and gave her mother a sweet kiss on her cheek.
Isabella didn't know what to do except to hug her daughter tightly. However, in her heart she already felt unbearable pain and guilt clouded her mind.
A little gesture from her child was enough to move Isabella immensely. But she never once provided this kind of warmth to her child.
Isabella was immersed so deeply in her busy work and hurried daily life and didn't realize how much her baby missed her love and company. Although, she hired a nanny during the day, she knew a nanny could never compensate for her presence.
She, a single mother had enough on her shoulders because she had to fend for money.
She never had time for her child. Perhaps, she never made time for herself too.
Isabella was always living under the shadows and had never looked for an opportunity to walk into the light.
But now, looking at her daughter, Isabella decided to change her way of living and also her attitude towards the world.
She couldn't keep herself buried in pits of oppression instead she had to pull herself out to stand steadily in the open world.
She had to become a strong woman who could stand on her feet, someone capable, with unlimited energy and support to look after her child.
Isabella who hugged the child, came back to her senses after a whole minute.
"Alright...baby. Help me wear it" Isabella handed back the string of beads to her daughter.
The little one tried locking the string around her mother's left arm but her little arms made her action clumsy and she couldn't tie the bracelet properly.
Isabella smiled looking at her daughter's face which looked disappointed. The little one was feeling down because she couldn't tie the string around her mother's hand.
The string volumed so thin with a limited length, the little child has to struggle to tie the string without slipping.
Isabella felt very much delighted with her daughter's adorable actions and expressions, she couldn't help but keep kissing her daughter's little face repeatedly.
Filled with her mother's little kisses, the baby eased a little before gazing at her mother's lovely face.
"How about we do this?" Isabella picked the string from her daughter's hand and rolled the string around her fingers and tied it around her necklace tightly as though a ring of beads was hanging down from the metal chain.
"Perfect...." the mother patted the ring of beads hanging down from the chain that kept rubbing across her chest.
"Wow...Mommy.... it looks so beautiful" the child clapped her little hands in joy.
"Yes...my darling..." Isabella nodded and pecked her daughter's cheek.