"Boss, the nursing home called and they said they needed you there," informed one of the staff who picked up the call.
Ava gave a weak nod and prepared to take off from work. She left the cafe in the care of the staff and headed to the nursing home where Ava's aunt lived.
It wasn't that Ava being ungrateful child for not taking care her aunt who raised her after her parents' death. But her aunt - Olivia was the one who refused Ava's care. Olivia rather lived at the nursing home than at their house. Apparently Olivia got into an accident where it took away her abilities to walk and Olivia was paralyzed from waist down.
Last night, Olivia dreamt of her late older sister, Ava's mom. Olivia became very agitated when she woke up from the dream that the nurse had to calm her down. She kept crying and apologized over and over so the nurse decided to call up Ava.
Ava went there by taxi and it took her 15 minutes to reach there. The nurse, who didn't know the straint relationship between two of them, explained to her about Olivia's situation with the hope that Ava's presence could at least make Olivia felt better. Frankly, Ava also didn't know what to do since she was neither good at words nor caring for others but she still went into the room where Olivia slept at.
Since Olivia was the one who provide for financial support, this was the least she could do although they didn't have a good relationship to begin with. Ava would visit Olivia weekly but she did it out of her obligation as the niece and also daughter.
When Olivia saw Ava came into the room with the poker face, her tears became more intensed and Olivia almost had asthma attack.
"I'm so sorry, child. I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry." Olivia repeatedly muttered apologizes to Ava and cried till her eyes turned red swollen. Olivia held Ava's wrist and pulled her closer. Ava couldn't remember when was the last time she held Olivia's hands or probably the chance never came by.
Seeing Olivia like that made Ava felt something stuffy and trapped within her so she darted her eyes everywhere except Olivia's grief expression. When sick people suddenly acted weird and abnormal , it usually meant that they were so close to their death. Normally they would ask all sort of random questions and feel more regretful and sensitive.
"Child, do you hate me?" Olivia asked in tears when she saw that Ava didn't want to look at her.
Hate? Did she? If she were a normal kid, the one who without this mental illness, most likely she would despise Olivia for neglecting her. But she wasn't and in fact, she well understood Olivia's situation since she matured faster than kids around her age and she began to think like an reliable adult when she was just like 10 years old. The illness that she developed over time apparently was a blessing in disguise as she didn't feel the emotions that kids like her would experience which made Olivia's question invalid.
Ava responded back but her tone was more like making an obvious statement rather than a question, "Aunt Olivia, you hate me, right?"
Olivia was shook. Her eyes wavered ferociously as she whined, "Oh my child...what did i do...what did i do..."
It seemed like Ava hit the nail on the head when she asked that. Olivia felt like Ava had plunged a sharp knife into her chest and cut open her bleeding heart. The feeling she refused to admit finally came out of the closet.
"Ouh child, your mom must be so disappointed in me. I failed...as sister...aunt...and a mother," confessed Olivia.
Before Ava's parents tragically passed away, she was living her life to the fullest. Everyone knew her as someone who was bright, carefree and bubbly. But overnight, everything changed. By force she became a single mother and had to accept the right as Ava's guardian because Ava had no other relatives except her.
For someone as young as 18 years old, she struggled a lot to look after a child. She had to earn money to support herself and Ava. That was her priority at that time especially to provide for education when Ava got older would cost her more than an arm and a leg. So Olivia went through all the blood, sweat and tears setting up the coffee business and also did other part time jobs to pay for their living cost. Thus it was much better option to send Ava to the nursery while she was busy making money. As time went by and the business was booming, Ava grew up by herself and obviously she rarely met Olivia which led to their relationship further falling apart.
Since the beginning, Olivia shunned Ava for taking away her happiness, dreams and the life she used to have but at the same time she couldn't just abandon Ava. So by giving cold shoulders to Ava and the lack of parental love somehow compensated the resentment inside her. But little did she know that what she had done had turned Ava into a cold-hearted child.
Every parent would be devastated if the children whom they raised frighteningly becoming emotionless day by day. Probably that was the reason Ava's mom came into her dream looking very dejected. Olivia failed at being a good mother and aunt to Ava which made Olivia felt guilty towards Ava and her elder sister.
But what Olivia wasn't aware of was the fact that Ava was smart enough to sense the reasons behind Olivia's cold attitude to her all this while but she never expose the facade Olivia put up. Ava knew that Olivia despised her for taking away Olivia's youth. So when Olivia confessed, she didn't give much reaction to it. No sign of mad, sad, disappointed, heartbroken were shown on her face but the tension between them also didn't get any better. It only made Olivia more perturbed so the nurse decided to use a mild sedative to tranquilize the agitated Olivia with Ava's consent. Soon the tears gradually faded and Ava just watched her aunt falling asleep by the side. Then Ava quietly left the nursing home looking like nothing had happened.
But actually Ava felt a bit tired and a slight headache. She was disturbed by the stuffiness she had earlier on her chest hence she thought that by getting some fresh air and going for a walk would be helpful to make herself feeling better.
Unbeknown to herself, the walk that she took would lead her to some place and someone worth her life.