The Flames of Amarra - DR STRANGE x OC - COMPLETE

TIME IS TICKING

On her way to the kitchen, Nora grabbed another pink cupcake and quickly joined her mother. She sat on the edge of the small kitchen table, licking the icing off her fingers. 

Her mother rolled her eyes and smiled at her. “Don’t forget to give me the note.”

“It’s okay,” Nora replied. “I can pay.” She took a quick look at the living room. “So much pink.”

“It’s tradition.”

“I’m a woman, a member of the female species, and I don’t wear that much pink.”

“Thank God you don’t !” her mother let out, clearly relieved. They exchanged a quick look and laughed together. “I know you’d rather be with your father, but it’s nice of you to be here.”

“It’s my niece we’re talking about. Plus, the cupcakes are divine. Ethan should make some at the restaurant. I’d never eat anything else,” Nora said, smiling at the cupcake. 

Her mother sat next to her and held her free hand. “Kelly told me your date didn’t go as planned.”

“Hm. Don’t start. I’m good on my own, Mom. I don’t need a man to be happy.”

“I know that. But I don’t think you’re happy either, Nora,” her mother said with a sad look on her face. 

Decided not to think about any of it for the rest of the day, Nora squeezed her hand and smiled. “Maybe now is not the time to worry about my current level of happiness.”

“We don’t even see you anymore, honey. Most of the time, I have to ask your father about you.”

“Work is-”

“Taking a lot of your time, I know.” Nora’s mother grabbed a plate full of cupcakes and placed one in front of her daughter. “Talk to me when you’re ready. I’ll be there.”

Nora stayed in the kitchen by herself for a few minutes. Her relationship with almost everyone in her family took a toll ever since she learned about Kelly’s pregnancy. She never wanted things to be that way, but she was always so busy that the ring slowly drove her away from everyone she cared about. 

When she joined the others, she tried her best to take part in the games Kelly’s best friend prepared for them. It was basically the same games she already played at all the other baby showers she had been invited to over the years. Most of her friends from college had kids now, and it was probably why she never saw any of them anymore.

One by one, they started saying what her wishes for the unborn girl were. Of course Kelly’s mother wished for the baby girl to inherit her mother’s blond hair and not the boring dark brown from the  Keller's side of the family. Someone wished her to marry a rich man, another one wished her to have perfect teeth. Nora’s mother wished her not to wear pink everyday and winked at Nora from the other side of the room. As for Nora, she simply wished for her to find a way to stay out of trouble. It seemed like a good wish.

Then came the name game. Since Kelly and Ethan refused to tell anyone the name they chose for their daughter, everyone had to guess what it would be. The eye roll coming from Kelly’s mother when it was revealed that Francine, Nora’s mother, would be the girl’s second name and hers only the third one didn’t go unnoticed, but was eclipsed by Nora’s mother's tears of joy. 

“I pray everyday that you call that baby Norma,” Nora said, looking at Kelly’s mother. 

“Why would they give her your name ? It doesn’t make sense,” the woman quickly replied.

“Because my name is Nora, not Norma. Sounds like a cow’s name. Do I look like a cow to you ?”

Finally realizing that she got Nora’s name wrong all these years, the woman shut her mouth and left the room to bring the diaper cake and more gifts for the mother to be.