Tall trees lined the roadway with not a house in sight. Evalina felt nervous as the driver carefully glided over the freshly paved roads. Nervous for the funeral? Nervous that this drive seemed never ending? Truth is, she wasn't sure.
Thoughts were swirling around her head. She had waited her entire life for a chance to meet her. If it was this easy to find me why didn't she try sooner? Evalina thought. Why didn't she want to see me grow up? It was as if she was reliving the middle school bully who once used the insult "your mom didn't even want you" which sent her into a spiral as soon as her mom had picked her up from school that day.
The car took a sharp turn as it abruptly turned off the roadway into a tree lined drive way. Which you could only tell was a drive way and not just a back road because of the inconspicuous mailbox hiding in the trees. Evalina grabbed onto the handle above her suddenly feeling nauseated.
The car came to an abrupt stop in front of a tall black gate surrounded by a stone wall. The wall had the initials A.W. inscribed at the very top. Evalina grabbed the funeral invite out of her purse to double check what she already knew.
Evalina was too busy trying to stuff the contents of her purse back to how they were when she heard a small tap on the glass. Evalina whipped around, suddenly brought back to the current reality.
A small woman stood, in all black, her head barely reached up to the window of the blacked out sedan. She was elderly and had a kind smile that reached ear to ear. Evalina nervously opened the door, put one kitten heel on the ground and smiled back.
"Hello Miss Evalina, welcome to Water Estates. We have been awaiting your arrival." The woman kindly gestured towards the gate which sat a mansion practically. The woman proceeded to lead Evalina into the property. Waters? Estates?
As Evalina walked up the never ending drive way she noticed the many rose bushes that lined the stone path. The roses were primarily red with a few white ones sprinkled in. Waters Estates was beautiful. The shrubbery alone could win an award.
"How was the ride miss?" Asked the elderly woman.
"It was lovely. Thank you for sending a car. I didn't catch your name?" Evalina cocked her head slightly, wondering if she was potentially related to this kind woman.
The woman chuckled and glanced up at Evalia with a twinkle in her eyes. "I am Beverly, I am the house manager of the Estates." Evalina wasn't quite sure what the term house manager exactly was but she decided to not prod.
They finally reached the three small steps that led up to black door which also had A.W. inscribed. Beverly opened the door and the overwhelming smell of cigarettes and a floral scent hit Evalina's nose. She was instantly reminded of the letter, which sat in her purse.
Glancing around, Evalina noticed the pristine foyer which consisted of vases of more roses. Otherwise there were no decorations. The house looked practically empty from the view of the entrance. The sound of heels tapping, expensive heels, started to come from above where Evalina looked up and saw a woman coming down the all black staircase. She had black slacks, a turtle neck and black sunglasses on even though they were indoors on an overcast day. The most prominent feature on her was her bright red hair. It was a short bob but it exuded a confidence like no other. As she glided down the stairs, practically staring into Evalina's soul, she took a long drag of the cigarette in her dainty hand. By the time she reached the bottom step she let out a cloud of smoke then smiled with a cheshire like grin.
"Damn, you look just like her. Lucky bastard." The red head grinned. She removed her sun glasses which revealed deep brown eyes with specks of green. "Alice, Alice Waters. Nice to finally meet you." She stuck out her hand which was adored with several gold rings.
Evalina wasn't sure who this woman was yet but she was captivated. She looked slightly familiar but Evalina couldn't place her due to her sheer nervousness. Evalina smiled back and shyly asked, "Do I really?"
The redhead let out a loud cackle and turned around heading into the hallway, "Let me show you dear." The hallway held the decor that the foyer seemed to be missing. There were pictures lined up and down the entire hall. Alice stopped and pointed to a picture of herself next to a brunette who was laughing. The two were in front of the Eiffel tower. She was the spitting image of Evalina and she was also the spitting image of the actress Valentina Valentine. People often told Evalina that was her celebrity look alike.
"A beauty wasn't she?" Alice whispered. It was then that it hit her.
This was Alice Waters. THE Alice Waters. Retired supermodel, she practically invented the catwalk. And the woman next to her in the photograph was actually Valentina Valentine. These two were best friends, often mistaken for lovers because they were so close. They never left each others side.
"Holy shit, my mom is Valentina Valentine." Evalina snapped her eyes away from the photograph and looked at Alice who had the cheshire grin back on her face. "Holy SHIT you're Alice Waters!" Evalina exclaimed.
Alice laughed, "I thought we already covered that?" Evalina was in shock. She felt excited then sad. She always thought of her mom as a woman riddled with poverty who couldn't raise Evalina. A woman who wanted to give her a better life. Valentina Valentine was rich, she didn't need to get rid of a child for financial purposes. Did she just not want me? Evalina wondered.
Alice's grin immediately turned serious. "The service is about to start, lets head to the garden." Evalina didn't have time to ask more questions but as they walked through the corridors of this mansion she couldn't help but feel poor.
Suddenly her dress felt cheap and tacky. She looked around at the life she could've lived. Her single mom gave everything she had and Evalina loved her for it. Valentina could've as well but she didn't. Valentina chose to be child free. The feelings of resentment started to bubble up within her. She tried calming those thoughts with her usual thoughts on adoption. Women have the right to choose to not have children if they so please. Evalina repeated this to herself until she was in a more calm state.
By the time she calmed down she realized she had followed Alice all the way into a gated garden. She saw only two chairs. One marked Alice and another marked Evalina. She was confused. "I thought there was a funeral service?"
"Yes..but she just wanted it to be us. The two she loved most." How could she love me? She didn't know me Evalina questioned. She shook her head and sat in her designated seat. Beverly promptly walked out of the house holding a light blue urn.
She handed it off to Alice who let out a singular sniffle and cleared her throat. "My dearest girl, Valentina, you are gone too soon, but I am blessed to have known you and gone through life with you by my side." Alice was surprisingly not crying as opposed to Evalina who had two big tears falling down her cheeks. "You would love Evalina. It's as if the universe has gifted me with another you."
A bird chirped in the wind and Alice handed the urn to a sitting Evalina. Evalina didn't quite have the words but she managed to find some. Clearing her throat she let out a soft whisper, "Nice to meet you, mom." Evalina closed her eyes once more as another tear fell. She noticed Alice didn't bother to comfort her at the moment. Which she shouldn't expect from a stranger but Alice already felt like family.
She handed the urn back to Alice who motioned for Evalina to follow her. They went down the stone path that was lined with all of the same roses that were out front. They stopped a small patch of yellow roses. The only of its kind on the premises.
The wind blew Alice's fiery hair in her face but she still looked fierce as ever. "A yellow rose was her favorite flower. She said they reminded her of her baby. A sign of happiness for her. Anytime she saw a yellow rose she knew you were okay." It was at this bit of information that left Evalina speechless.
"She thought of you often, she truly loved you." Once again the resentment bubbled up right along with the sadness.
"She didn't even know me" Evalina whispered. Which she didn't realize she had even said aloud until she felt Alice's cold hand grab hers. Alice didn't respond to the comment but instead just stared into this distance with a mournful expression.
She handed Evalina the urn and nodded. Evalina opened the urn, took a pause then released its contents into the yellow rose bushes.
As they floated off into garden Alice and Evalina stood holding hands. Maybe she didn't get to meet her birth mother, but she got Alice. And for the moment, Evalina was okay with that.