📆: September 22nd, 2022
📍: Little Ruby's Cafe, Midtown Manhattan, NY
"Oh, thank you, honey." Elaine smiles at her daughter when the brunette holds the door open for her.
"No problem, momma." she waves off, entering the cafe after her mother. She tells the older woman to grab them a table and she'll order.
Elaine finds a window seat for the two of them and Toni watches as the older woman lets out a slight cough and rubs her chest.
Before she can question herself, the cashier grabs her attention, making her forget about what she has just seen. She orders a bacon egg and cheese on a bagel for the two of them, opting out on tea to drink instead of coffee.
She'd occasionally look over at Elaine while she waits for their food and every now and then she'll see her mother wipe sweat from her head.
"The cafe isn't even hot." she tilts her head, mumbling to herself.
"Order for Topaz!" she turns her head to see a woman holding up a bag with a foam cup stand. "Thank you." she sends the worker a nod before trekking her way over to the table where her mother resides.
"Thank you, Honey." Elaine offers her motherly smile Toni has loved since she was small. It always makes her feel so warm inside.
"No problem."
"So, how has everything been, dear? You and Cheryl talking again?"
"Yes, momma. We are fine now. Sorry, I worried you with that phone call." the athlete emits a slightly awkward chuckle.
"Toni, you know you can come to me for anything. I'm your
mother, no need to be embarrassed." the woman places her light tone hand over her daughter's brown one.
They stare into each other eyes with small smiles, Elaine caressing her hand gently. "Now, tell me all about your anniversary! How did the night go?"
"Amazing. Like it was a fever dream. We ate...laughed, cuddled, and watched a movie..." the brunette trails off, skipping the part where they had ongoing mindblowing sex.
"That's g–good–" Elaine begins to say but falls into a coughing fit. Toni instantly goes around the table to gently pat her back, worry written all over her face.
After a moment, her mother clears her throat. "Thank you, my love."
"Are you okay, mom?" the older woman frowns at the look of worry displayed on her daughter's face.
"Oh, I'm fine, dear. Dont worry. I've just been a bit under the weather."
"Are you sure?" Toni searches her eyes for reassurance. Something she and Mikayla have been doing since they were younger. Elaine always has the kindest eyes. They find comfort in them to this day.
"I'm very sure, Toni. Don't worry about me." the latter laughs it off.
Truth is, she's been having these chest pains, headaches, and shortness of breath for about two weeks now. Sometimes it takes a while for her to gain her breath back.
She puts on a smile, despite the pain resting in her chest and Toni lets out a small sigh of relief.
"As I was saying before, dear. I'm happy that you and Cheryl are doing better now. Don't ever let her go, baby, she seems like someone you'll want to keep around for a while."
"I wouldn't dream of it, ma. Cheryl means so much to me." her daughter smiles softly before looking down. "I think...I'm in love with her."
"Oh! Toni, that's amazing!" Elaine expresses. "I'm sure she feels the same way." she gently squeezes her hand.
"You think so?" the tan woman looks up at her, hopeful.
"hell yeah. That woman looks at you as if you hung all of the stars in the night sky." Toni chuckles at her mother's words. "I mean, anyone with eyes can see that, my love."
"Thank you, mom."
"It's what I'm here for." they share another smile. "And remember what I always say..."
"If you don't live for something, you'll die for nothing," Toni says along with her mother and they share a laugh. Elaine goes to wipe sweat off of her forehead which makes Toni frown a bit.
"Ma, are you sure that you're okay? Should we get out of here? Maybe this cafe isn't si–"
"It's alright, dear. I'm okay. I've just been putting up a sweat lately. Comes with old age."
"I thought you weren't old?" Toni smirks, taking a bite of her breakfast bagel. Elaine rolls her eyes playfully before picking up her cup of tea. "Cheers."
"For what?"
"To you falling in love." the mother counters teasingly. Giggling, Toni does the same with her cup before tapping it against the other plastic cup. They smile at each other before the athlete sets her head on the woman's shoulder. "I love you, ma. Always." she hums, shutting her eyes as she inhales the older woman's floral scent.
No matter what, her mother always smells like some type of flower.
"I love you more, Honey." Elaine rubs her arm warmly. "Thank you for taking some time to spend with your old woman."
"Hey, I always have time for you." her daughter sits up. "Always. So if you ever need anything, m–"
"I understand, dear." Elaine chuckles, halting her daughter's ranting. She cups Toni's face in her hands and presses a kiss to her forehead gently.
🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀
"How long have you had this, mom?" Toni asks from her mother's living room.
"I started when your father and I got married," Elaine answers in the kitchen, where she is making the popcorn. "Do you want butter on it?"
"Yes please." her daughter responds while she absent-mindedly looks at the titles on the tapes. One catches her eye and she stops. "Antoinette's first birthday..." she picks it up to examine it before going over to the DVR and pushing the tape into the slot.
"Which one did you choose?" her mother asks when she comes into the living room with a big bowl of popcorn.
"My first birthday."
"Oh my god. I still have that? I always thought I lost it." the woman chuckles and gets comfortable beside her daughter, the two women cuddling close. "It'd be nice to have Kayla here."
"Yeah." Toni sighs. "Too bad Hea had to start school."
"Her daughter needs her more than anything. It's understandable. Plus, she said she's coming down here next week so we can definitely plan something." Elaine pops some popcorn into her mouth.
"Agreed."
The video starts to play and Toni almost loses her breath when she sees her father holding a small camera up while he held her tiny sleeping frame.
"It's this little one's first birthday and she's sleeping..." he snickers softly before placing a small kiss on her rosy cheek.
"She's one, my love. Not 5." her mother comes into the frame. She looks over at the woman to find her smiling sadly.
She cuddles closer to rest her head on the woman's shoulder and Elaine embraces her daughter, kissing her hair softly.
"Hey, don't blame me. Our first daughter was a wild one, remember?"
"Of course, I remember. Kayla is thirteen now." Younger Elaine goes to wrap her arms around the man.
Toni starts to wonder why Elaine never showed her these videos. She could've gotten to know her father. But she doesn't hold it against the older brunette. She knows losing her father was the hardest thing Elaine has been through.
"I was so small." the tan woman giggles.
"You were." Elaine laughs along. "The doctor was worried you wouldn't grow properly. But hey, look at you now. Taller than me."
"Say hi, Toni!" Nathan zooms in on her little face while her mother did her tiny pigtails.
"Hiiiii." a small hand comes into view and Elaine cooes, looking at her daughter with a smile. Which Toni returns.
"Is it hard... hearing his voice?"
"No." her mother shakes her head. "It brings me a lot of comfort. I watch these just to hear his voice and his laugh. He was something else."
Toni smiles sadly when she sees her mother and father share a sweet kiss on the screen.
30 minutes into the home video, everyone is gathering around to sing happy birthday to one-year-old Toni and the brunette instantly recognized someone. "That's grandma
Candace."
"How did you know that?" Elaine chuckles after swallowing down her popcorn. "You were about seven when she died."
"It is bad that I only remember her because she always gave me 20 dollars every time we'd visit?" her daughter grimaces with shame.
"Classic Candace, buying her love. She and Nathan barely got along, despite her being his mother. He was always a daddy's boy. Talked like him, walked like him, took the same job as him."
"Sorta like how I am with you."
"Exactly." her mother nods. "There was something he didn't like when it came to his father though. The infidelities he inflicted on Candace weren't something he was happy about. This is why he was so set on making sure I knew that he loved me more than anything. You know, since he acted like his father, anyone would think that'll come with it."
"Did you think that?" Toni stares up at her with her doe eyes. Her mother instantly shakes her head. "Never. Your father went to bed in spiderman pajamas just so you can have a full story whenever he'd read you a bedtime story. That man wasn't a cheater."
"So, Auntie Liv got you a rubber ducky set. Can you say rubber ducky?" Mikayla holds up the packet of tub ducks
"Ducky ducky ducky!" replies little Toni.
The two woman coo with a laugh. Elaine starts coughing again making her daughter pause the home film and tend to her. The same look of worry spreads over Toni's features.
Once the older woman stops her coughing fit her daughter quickly makes her way into the kitchen to get her a bottle of water. She hands off the bottle, which Elaine accepts, trying to offer a smile. "T–Thank you, dear."
"Mom. I think you should go see a doctor."
"Honey–"
"Ma, what if the coughing and the shortness of breath–" Elaine looks at her in slight shock. "Yes, I noticed how you were trying to breathe while we walked to my car," Toni confirms. "Maybe you need to go see your doctor. This could be something...something so much worse."
"Toni...I'm fine." the woman claims once more. Toni shakes her head, not wanting to hear that bullshit anymore.
"Please, mom. For me." she reaches over to squeeze her mother's hand. "Please."
Elaine looks at her for a moment before nodding. "Okay, dear. I will make an appointment first thing in the morning."
"You promise?"
"I promise." her mother swears. It puts Toni's anxiety at ease and she sighs, assuming their cuddling position.
🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀
Elaine snores through her mouth gently while she sleeps soundly. The hazel-eyed woman smiles softly at the sight as she puts a blanket over her mother.
She stretches her limbs before standing up, grabbing her phone, and then tiptoeing away from the living room, a home film still playing in the distance.
She enters her mother's bathroom, shutting the toilet lid and taking a seat.
Toni unlocks her phone and instantly clicks Mikayla's contact, taking a deep breath shortly after. Her older sister answers after the 6th ring.
"Toni, you do know that it's 12 in the morning?"
"Yes, I'm sorry, Mikayla. But this is important." Toni breathes out shakingly. "There's something wrong with mom."
Mikayla sits up abruptly, waking her husband in the process. "Babe?" Bryce grunts groggily as he sits up too. "W-what do you mean?"
"She's been coughing and-and her breathing is fast sometimes. She's been sweating like...like she's in 120-degree weather. And she rubs her chest."
Mikayla sighs gently on the other end. "Jesus."
"I know." the brunette chews her lip anxiously as hot tears start to form in her eyes. "Mikayla...what if...what if she's sick? What if?–"
"Hey, little sis, don't cry, kay? Momma is going to be okay, yeah? You know how strong that woman is."
Mikayla is trying to convince herself too. Toni knows it.
"She's...she's not looking herself, Kayla." the athlete shakes her head tearfully. "I've been with her all day. She's more...softer...and–and..."
"Okay, okay, Toni. Breathe. Breathe."
Toni does as told, taking deep breaths in and out, despite them being shaky. "I will be out there first thing tomorrow morning, okay? And we will figure this out. Don't worry."
"I've been hearing that all day and it's only making me worry worse!"
"Alright, little sis. Okay. I understand. Hey, I need you to breathe for me, okay? In and out. In and out." the latter copies her sister's breathing patterns on the other end and finally feels her racing heart come to a slow.
"Good job. I'm packing as we speak, kay? I'll be there."
"M'kay." Toni squeaks out.
"Stay put, sis. I love you."
"I love you too." the athlete mumbles before hanging up the phone. She stands up and goes to the mirror, wiping her tear-stained face before opening the door and heading back to her mother.
A pit of worry rested in her stomach.
A/N: heyyyy! So! This is the last chapter for a while, maybe a month or so. Just a small hiatus. I'm going to be taking time for my mental health and finding my sense of self. Life has been...so weird lately and I'm just trying to adapt to this new transition of change and all that jazz. I love you all and I hope you can understand.
I hope everyone is healthy and well. And remember, take care of yourself. Because all you have at the end of the day is you. Don't forget that I love you and I'm so proud of you💕