Fifteen years later,
"Good morning, lawyer Amelia Chen!" Her mother was five minutes ahead of her alarm clock.
She's always been like this, and Amie didn't have the guts to tell her mother that she hated it.
"Rise and shine!" She opened her door and pulled her curtains out.
Bern didn't have a sense of privacy. So no matter how she explained it as an adult. She would get angry if Amie won't let her in her room.
But it's only a matter of days because she would move out for good. The firm she would work at was three hours away from Maryville, and she didn't have a car yet. So coming home every day was impossible.
"I prepared your favorite breakfast, it's chicken rice porridge."
She then took a brush, sat on the bedside, and tried to comb Amie's hair.
"Mom, I hate chicken porridge, and let me do my hair!." She tried her best not to hurt her mother's feelings, but she just didn't know how to stop.
"Okay, you don't need to raise your voice." She stood up. But oddly, didn't look angry.
"You need to get up. Your auntie Maggie will come today. She hadn't visited us since they transferred abroad and back." She said and left Amie's room without even closing the door.
How irritating! She jumped out of her bed and slammed the door. The Aunt Maggie, that her mother was saying, is not her real aunt, it's their neighbor when she's not even born. Her mother always talking to her on the phone.
Maggie this and Maggie that. She didn't even know how Aunt Maggie looked like, even if her mother showed her the photos, she's not interested in it.
She hurried up and head out so she didn't have to meet her mother's visitors.
"Mom! I'm going, I need to meet my landlord today." She yelled.
She rushed out of the door to avoid her mother's blackmailing capabilities.
She actually met Roy, her one and only friend, married to her long-time frenemy Niella, but now is a sister to her.
She and Niella have been competing with Roy's attention since they were in high school. Neilla knew that they only had a platonic relationship, but she was jealous of her.
And Amie knew that Roy and Niella had liked each other, but since he was her only friend, she didn't have a choice but to take his attention away. She can't always be the third wheel, so they have to split the meetings.
At the cafe, she ran and hugged him like usual. Niella was there too with Baby Riel. She took Riel up and showered him with kisses.
"Give him back to me, get your own baby." Niella jokingly took away Riel from her.
Amie ignored her and hugged her too, then kissed her on the lips.
"Ew! Are you turning gay? Stay away from my wife." Roy pulled Niella away from her.
"Did you two come meet and gang up on me?" She raised her eyebrow at them and holds her waist with her hands.
They all burst out laughing.
"Oh Mimi, we're gonna miss you a lot!" Neilla said, holding her hand. They're now at the table while Roy was taking their orders.
"Me too, it's going to be a new challenge to me, away from my comfort zone," Amie said, trying to be strong, but she felt very sad, actually.
"You two are funny, she's not even moving to another state, it's just three hours and we can always video call," Roy said casually.
He's always been the rational one. If not for him, she might have run away from home. Her mother was too controlling.
Bern became more extreme when her father died, just a few days after she graduated high school.
"So how does Aunt Bern say about you moving out?" Neilla's voice was hardly audible because of the chocolate chip cookie in her mouth. She's not even shy with the loud ASMR crunching of her chewing the crisp cookies.
"You know her, she was angry, but when she realized that Phillip and Cross are huge, she calmed down." Amie smiled like it's her first victory against her mother.
Phillip and Cross were the law firm she will work on.
"Good thing she didn't check your new apartment?" He looked too worried. Roy knew her mother too much, he's concerned that it will affect Amelia's performance at work.
"Oh, she did!" She laughed like she did something to trick her mother.
"But I showed her a different apartment unit." She continued laughing.
"In the event, she tries to spy on me, she will have to detour."
Amie laughed maniacally, but Neilla and Roy looked at each other, their face unbelieving.
"You will survive this Babe, I know you do, you've survived all this time." Niella took her other hand and rubbed it with her fingers.
"Don't be too harsh on Aunt Bern. She only raised you the way she knows how," Roy commented while sipping his coffee. Bern treated him nicely. Her recipes were bombs in the mouths.
"We are always here for you Babe."
Reil cooed just right after Niella comforted her.
"I know Baby, you're here to support Auntie Amie, that's so sweet of you." She tickled the baby's belly and the whole cafe exploded with his laughter.
The vibe became light and positive. She thought, someday, even if she can't get married, if she can have a baby, it'll complete her. Just like how her mother single-handedly supported her. But right now, she would just enjoy her freedom.
The world was waiting for her to take, and she would not waste her time whining or brooding from her mother's predicament towards her. It's useless. She had to move on and look for a way to exist with no hate and sadness.
She sipped her coffee and enjoyed the moment with her friends and the positivity they brought to her life.
They stayed for a few more hours talking about Roy's job, Neilla's online business, their own dilemma as a couple, Roy's insistence on matching her with his co-workers.
"Come on Babe, we have to prove to him you're not gay." Shocked at what just Niella said. Her own best friend suspected her as gay?
She smacked his head.
"You think I am gay?" She gave him a wide-eyed, angry look.
"Duh, in case you didn't notice, I deliberately put Niella away from you, because you have chemistry."
Amie was not sure if Roy was serious about what he just said.
Niella and she hit Roy in the head at the same time.
"Ouch! See? You're bullying me." He shielded his head with his arms.
"You deserve it, you're an idiot!" Niella looked furious, yelled at her husband.