Chapter 15 ♕
"Wait, staying?" Emily turned to me and then to Mama Gabby. I avoided her eyes and looked down. Mama Gabby cleared her throat while Aunt Lizzy folded her hands on her chest.
"Yes, staying." Aunt Lizzy replied.
"I wasn't informed." Emily blinked.
"Gabby, what..." Aunt Lizzy turned to Mama Gabby with a confused frown.
"Lizzy." Mama Gabby said with a warning stare at my Aunt. She then stood from where she sat and approached Emily.
"Millie dear...this is your Aunt Elizabeth," she rubbed Emily's arm as she spoke as if doing that would tame whatever reaction Emily will have to the situation.
"She's going to be staying with you girls..."
"I don't like this…"
"Not for long though." Aunt Lizzy cuts in. Which earned her a hard stare from Mama Gabby.
"She doesn't seem thrilled either..." Emily retorts.
"Millie..." Mama Gabby started.
"What! This wasn't either of our choices. Look at her..." She pointed at our Aunt. Which everyone did.
"She looks irritated just standing here, I bet she'll develop hives if she stays here for a whole day."
"Emily Vanni!"
"You insolent child!" Our Aunt and Mama Gabby wailed simultaneously.
"You look completely out of your element! You can't stand all of us, I refuse to stay with someone like that." She grabbed her bag and stomped up the stairs.
"Emily, stop right there." Mama Gabby commands but to no avail.
"The nerve of that girl." Aunt Lizzy gritted out. Mama Gabby turned to her.
"And who did she take after?"
"And how should I know that?" she scoffed and turned to the window.
"I'll go check on Millie," I announced. Without waiting for a response I mounted the stairs that led to our room. I spotted Emily laying on her back on the bed staring at nothing in particular. I lay beside her with a heavy thud, not sure what to say to her.
"Did you know about this?" she murmured after a few minutes of silence.
"Would it change anything if I did?"
"Do you want her to stay?"
"Do I have a choice either way?" I muttered absentmindedly.
She scoffed, "you always avoid things, Donna. I hate it so much." I sighed at her words.
"I agree. Somehow I think that is how I managed to survive, you know?" I turned my neck to face her.
"To survive this…this tragedy. I haven't quite processed it yet in my brain everything that has happened recently. I suppose I'm so busy trying to avoid it in my head that I forget to handle it in my heart. I hate it too Millie, but what do I do? Our Maa died, Millie, I cannot avoid accepting it." She watched me with tears shining in her eyes. Which beckoned me to respond immediately.
"Those few moments we had together were horrible yet the most precious moments I'll ever cherish in my entire life." The tears dripped. I quickly reached out my hands and gently wiped her tears. Emily might be a tough cookie on the surface, but within, she was a complete marshmallow. It saddened me that she appeared weaker than I felt. And so I needed to wipe her tears, even though mine was dripping and soaking my pillow. I didn't mind if she saw my tears which was a sign of my vulnerability at the moment, yet it didn't matter, it was a moment we both shared common feelings we'd never experienced before. What mattered was that we were here, with each other when the other needed it. It assured me of better days.
"I wish I was there too…" Emily whispered. I nodded rapidly.
"I know." We lay there with nothing but the sound of our heartbeats. I stood up to go check on the situation in the living room. Emily grabbed my hand.
"Where are you going?" she asked with wide panicked eyes. Shocked at her reaction, I managed a gentle tap on her hand.
"I'm just going to check on the grown-ups. I'll be back." I managed a small smile. She reluctantly released my hand. As I reached to open the door, she spoke again.
"Nothing will change will it?" Emily whispered, her eyes puffy and void of any emotion. Not sure how to respond, I just nod.
As I walked down the stairs I spotted Aunt Lizzy standing beside the window, her back turned to Mama gabby. I sighed frustratingly.
What was she still doing here? I hope she's not staying. I couldn't take it if she was. I think I'm already at the edge of breaking apart if faced with another emotional roller coaster. Everything is moving in a fast-paced succession. I couldn't get a chance to stop and pick up the hopped-down broken pieces and here comes another change I had to endure. Isn't life so unfair? Tumbling down problem after problem even when you're not done with one. I wondered if I was cut out for this or if I was merely a spectator in my own life. Just as I watched quietly for the third time today my Aunt and Mama Gabby converse. To anyone present in the room they looked calm and civil as grown-ups should be. However, to me, they looked like they were about to tear each other apart. Mama Gabby was gritting her teeth in withheld anger, while Aunt Lizzy's hands were folded in a fist beside her.
"What's the decision?" I asked from where I stood beside the stairs. My heart thumped loudly at what their response would be. Will this so-called "Aunt" of mine stay with us indefinitely until we can overcome the mourning stage or would we have to stay with another relative we've never met? I observed Mama Gabby's hard stare at Aunt Lizzy as if she was compelling her to oblige to whatever decision they finally decided on. My Aunt seemed to be having a hard time subjecting me to the silent order. She finally breathed a resigned sigh and unfolded her fist with a roll of her eyes.
"I'm merely staying for a few months…"
"Six…"
"Four." she gritted out. Mama Gabby sighed.
"Fine, but be nice, or else…"
"Or else what?" Aunt Lizzy asked frustratingly.
"I'll be adding a month to your stay if nothing goes well Elizabeth, I'm serious about this." Mama Gabby picked up her bag and approached me. She touched my cheek and smiled affectionately yet there was a hint of sadness. The laugh lines beside her eyes looked weary today, she looked exhausted. I managed to return a small smile.
"Now, get used to each other." And just like that, Mama Gabby was out the door and I'm left face-to-face with a stranger.