~ Emily ~
"Momma, don't you exactly recognise Vincent?" Emil asked while stuffing his mouth with pasta.
We are all having a normal family dinner right now, when my lovely brother brought up the subject of Vincent, out of nowhere.
I'm really not ready to face my mom's teasing now.
"Recognise?" Her face scrunched in confusion. "I don't get it, dear. What did you mean?"
"You didn't know that Vincent was the guy who took me to the hospital back then?" He shook his head in disbelief. "I thought y'all knew it already."
Oops. That piece of information slipped from my introduction about Vincent.
"What!?" My mom exclaimed. "Oh my God! He was that kid."
"Y-Yeah." I muttered.
"You knew?!" She exclaimed, widening her eyes.
"I did. I forgot to tell you, sorry." My face turned apologetic.
She sighed deeply.
"It's okay, dear. Now, I realise why you're so interested in his treatment." She simply stated while this was my turn to widen my eyes.
"W-What?" I nervously gulped.
"Nothin'. Just have your dinner and come to my room. We have to talk." She said.
My dear humans, my time has come now.
Don't get me wrong. My mom has no problem with my love life, but the fact that I hid it from her could be a problem.
"Okay, mom." I mumbled under my breath while my brother grinned at me sheepishly.
He must've sensed that something was up.
The rest of the dinner passed by in silence. one.
I was dreading with questions considering the talk we were going to have. Due to zoning out, I was the last one to leave the table.
I stood in front of my mom's room and knocked on the door.
Whenever I was here, I was tensed as hell.
Was this my personal nervous spot or something?
My mom graciously opened the door and let me in.
She plunged on her bed while I pulled a chair in front of her and settled on it.
It felt like Dejà Vu.
"So Emi, I called you to ask if you could accompany me to a place." My mom broke the icy silence.
Every muscle in my body relaxed at her words.
I mentally sighed. That was all.
"Where, mom?" I asked with my newfound relaxation.
"Vincent's mother's bakery." She stated with so much ease as if she was their old friend.
"W-Why?" I asked in utter confusion.
"To have a talk, of course." She said as if it were the most obvious thing.
"Oh. So,.. when are you planning to talk to her?" Hesitantly, I asked.
"Tomorrow. I can't waste any time on this. Vincent has helped us, so now, it is our responsibility to do the same for him. Right honey?"
Even I was thinking about it lately, but I didn't have the guts to actually do it.
"Yeah, right." I grinned at her.
I was really proud of her.
"But why do I need to come with you?" I asked.
It was not like I didn't want to go, I just wanted to know the exact reason.
"Heyy! Don't tell me that you're not interested because I'm sure that you really are." She said, making me choke on my saliva.
"Why would you think like that?" I asked.
"Because you're doing a terrible attempt at hiding it."
Okay. So it's official now. Great.
"Am I?"
"Mhm." She hummed. "I'm glad that you like a guy because I really doubted that you are void of feelings like that, even in adolescence."
"Mom!"
"Okay, okay. We'll continue this conversation later because it's getting late, and you know what comes with staying late?"
"Skin diseases, tiredness, and poor health. I know, mom." I said as I got up.
"Good girl."
"Okayie mom. Goodnight." I mumbled and hugged her.
"Good night, dear." She gave me a goodnight kiss on the cheek, and I left the room.
Next destination : Violet's Sweet Treats.
.
*
.
"Two strawberry shortcakes and a chocolate milkshake, please." My mom chirped to the waitress.
"Mom, when are you planning to have a talk with Mrs. Zaphyr?" I asked.
"Right after, we finish what we just ordered." She seemed to be calmer than me.
Shortly, our order was placed on the table.
The interior of the bakery was really neat and cutely decorated. No wonder, why Mrs. Violet was so busy because this place was rushing with customers every now and then.
We finished the sweet dishes in no time. It was hands down delicious.
"Honey, let's go." My mom abruptly said, and I complied with her words.
We stepped towards the counter and made the payment. "Excuse me, may I meet Mrs. Violet Zaphyr?" My mom asked politely to the young man standing at the counter.
"Ma'am, she's currently bus -" My mom cut his sentence.
"I know that. Can you just inform her that Vincent's friend and her parents want to meet her?" She said to him.
"Oh, you're Vincent's friend?" He asked me. With amusement?
Even the staff knew that Vincent didn't have many friends.
"Yes." I replied to him, and he nodded.
"Just give me a moment, Ma'am. I'll talk to Mrs. Zaphyr now." Saying so he left towards her office.
After about five minutes, he returned.
"Ma'am, she's waiting for you two in her office. You may visit her now." He smiled at us in a professional way.
"That's great!"
We walked towards the office.
My mom knocked on the door, and Mrs. Violet opened it.
Her cute apron was littered with flour, all over it. It looked like we had interrupted her job midway to get her to this office.
I examined the tidy office, and my eyes landed on a frame pinned on the wall.
It was a picture of Vincent.
He was holding a painting canvas, and his hands were smudged with different shades of oil pastels. There were small streaks of paint on his smiling face, too.
Overall, he looked like a cheerful soul, and that was a rare sight to experience.
"Welcome, please have a seat." She motioned us to the chairs while plastering a kind smile on her face.
"Hello Violet, I'm Lilly Heartwood, a therapist, and this is my daughter Emily, Vincent's schoolmate and friend." My mom introduced us to her.
"Oh, so you are Emily! Vincent had brought the cupcakes you baked yesterday, and I must say that you've got some great baking skills." Mrs. Violet appreciated me.
Okayyy.
"No Mrs.Violet, Vincent also baked it with me, so he deserves the appreciation as well." I said.
"He did? But, he didn't mention it at all." She frowned.
I didn't know what to say.
"It's the first time my son has prepared something, and how can I not appreciate his efforts? I'm glad to know that he's finally taking an interest in baking." She said I nodded in agreement.
My mom started. "Violet, it may be hard for you to hear what I'm going to inform you, but be strong and listen to me."
Her serious tone grabbed Mrs. Violet's undivided attention.
"Y-Yeah, Lilly?" She stuttered.
"Vincent has been attending counseling programs under me recently." My mom said in a breath.
"What?" She asked in shock.
"It's true."
"Why? Why would he do that? Dave and I have given him everything. He's not a depressed kid. I don't believe it!"
"Violet, I assure you that Vincent is not in depression. Well, he would've been sooner or later if Emily hadn't brought him to me. But trust me, he's getting better now. I just want you to be aware of your son's current situation."
"Oh my," her eyes started to water, "How didn't I notice this? I-I don't know how to feel right now. It's our fault. We should've been with him as much as we could."
By now, she started to sob silently.
"Violet, please keep calm. It isn't too late yet. You can change things for the better, trust me." My mom consoled her.
Mrs. Violet hesitantly nodded while burying her head in her palms.
"Th-Thank you, Lilly and Emily, for... everything. I'm really grateful for your time and effort for Vincent. I-I'll surely try to make a difference from this moment. I really will." She promised through tear blurred eyes.
"That's nice... I guess we are going to leave now." My mom said, and we stood up from the seats.
"Okay then, just remember that you're both always welcome here." Vincent's mom said.
We bid farewell, and while I was about to leave the office, Mrs. Violet called me, and I excused from my mom to talk to her.
"Yeah Mrs.Violet?" I asked.
"Emily... As I'd said earlier, you bake really good, so I just wanted to know whether I would get a chance to bake with you." She asked me with genuine hope.
"Sure, why not. I'd love to." I honestly replied, and we exchanged phone numbers.
"And thank you again for being with Vincent. I really appreciate it. Emily, you're a nice girl, and Vincent is lucky to have you by his side."
"Just my pleasure, Mrs. Violet." I politely replied before leaving bakery.
What is with everybody calling Vincent lucky?