Lilly:
My mother instantly stood when she noticed me and she looked... tired. She had bags under her eyes which were a bit puffy. For the first time in what seemed forever, I saw her nervous.
"Lilly," she greeted and I stayed still, shocked.
She had never used my nickname, always referring to me by my full name. When I was a kid, and came up with the nickname, she scolded me, saying that I was being disrespectful to the name she gave me. But I continued to use it nevertheless.
Now I go by Lilly, and everyone knows me as such. I like it better. It sounds better and carefree, and happy. Liliana was longer to pronounce and sounded too serious.
"Mother," I greeted back.
She winced.
"I hate when you call me that," she admitted but I don't say anything.
I was doing it on purpose, as a way to distance myself from her, to make her know I was mad and disappointed at her. The term 'mother' for me was impersonal and more serious. Detached. That's why I was using it. She needed to behave like a mom if she wanted that title back.
"Can we talk... alone?" she said after I didn't say anything.
I looked at Phoenix waiting for guidance, because honestly, I didn't know. I still didn't trust her.
Phoenix went ahead and sat down on the couch, giving his answer. "No."
I went and sat beside him. My mother sighed, defeated, and sat on the couch in front of us across the coffee table. My dad sat beside her but left a space between them.
We sat there, in silence, waiting for someone to break the silence. I was expecting my mother to start since she asked for me to come, but when she kept diverting her gaze around the room, not saying anything, I grew annoyed.
"So, am I wasting my time here?" I bit, staring at my mother.
My dad gave her a pointed look as if scolding her. My mother pressed her hands on her knees and closed her eyes as if preparing herself.
"I'm sorry," she finally muttered, and I raised a brow.
I couldn't help but be disappointed.
"Did you really struggle to let that out, uh?" I questioned, hiding the hurt in my voice.
Maybe I was wasting my time here after all.
"Cassandra," my dad hissed and she flinched.
My mother finally looked up at me, and I saw the regret and pain.
"Lilly, I'm sorry, I truly am..." she said, swallowing. "I... I know it's not an excuse, but I grew up in a household where emotions were frowned upon, so I learned to keep my emotions to myself, and never to show my vulnerable side..."
That surprised me. Honestly, I never met my mother's parents. She had one other sibling, who died when he was thirty-one in a car accident, and her parents died when I was two, so I didn't remember them.
Mom never mentioned them so I never really thought about them. Now I could understand that my mother grew up in a toxic environment, and grew to resent her parents. Her family was from Trinidad, and mom moved to La Havanna to study where she met dad and decided to stay.
Seemed like she didn't bring her parents around us because not even Ana met them.
Still, it wasn't an excuse.
"So when you told us you weren't coming with us after I thought I was never going to see you again... it broke me, but I hid it the way I always do, and resorted to anger so you wouldn't see me vulnerable. And then I kept doubling down when I started to panic at seeing you straying away and my pride just wouldn't let me give in to my emotions..."
At this point, she was sobbing quietly, not even acknowledging the tears falling down her cheeks, her shaking hand holding a handkerchief. Seeing her like this, I just thought that my mother really needed therapy to dismantle the mess her parents left in her mind.
My own lip trembled, and I bit down to hide it, and then I realized, my mother's way must have rubbed on me a bit. I always hid my emotions back at school, for example, because being vulnerable meant the people there had an opening to attack and leave victorious.
I hid how much I hated not being as close to my older sibling as I wanted. I never had a problem with that with my dad. He always knew how to read me like a book. He had this older look in his eyes that gave you a sense of peace and comfort, and I just gave in to him, like going to hug a teddy bear.
But I also learned that communication was key to maintain relationships, so even if my instincts would tell me to go hide when I was feeling upset, I knew better than that, and to best go to my mate. Phoenix was my safe place and I knew he would never judge me... unless I do something stupid, of course.
"So... You don't hate me?" I asked, tentatively.
My mom gasped, shocked.
"Of course not! I could never! I just..." she sighed. "I just wasn't ready to let you go again. I know it's selfish, but I wanted to keep you to myself. When you showed up with your boyfriend, I panicked, and I felt threatened, which is ridiculous. Of course, you'll eventually find someone to marry. I just didn't think it would be so soon. I should have been happy that you finally brought a man to us. For a moment there we thought you liked girls and didn't dare to tell us... " she explained. "Which we would have been okay with! Of course!" she added quickly and I snorted.
Seriously mom??
I offered her a small smile, to which her eyes sparkled, a smile growing on her face, but I didn't want my mom to get her hopes up, even though hearing her apologize lifted a weight off my heart.
"But just you know, mom, I refuse to go through this again. You need to learn to manage your emotions..."
And I continued to lay everything in front of her. She will be on trial, and she won't interact with Brax until I know for sure she was there to stay, because I didn't want Brax to get attached to someone that might not be always there. Mom was of course sad, but she understood. Since my wedding was in a week, I had to rush the speech about who I really was, and where I lived. I thought it was going well until... she fainted when I had to show her my eyes and claws.
Dad and I rushed to lay her down and waited for her to wake up to continue the talk so we could call the wizard. In the end, she was able to accept it and took the oath. After the wizard left, she still looked a bit dazed and lost, but she insisted if this was what needed to be done to be part of my and the kids' life, she would do it.
I don't think she truly believed me. She seemed to be more on autopilot, so decided to show her my home so she wouldn't be all over the place on my wedding day. My dad had to push her into the portal because she started to panic and wouldn't move, and once on the other side, she was looking everywhere, amazed at the different scenarios and the vibrant nature.
The tour went well until she saw a dragon flying in the sky and she fainted after screaming her lungs out. Luckily, Phoenix was able to catch her before she hit the floor. We waited for her to wake up before taking my parents back home, or else she would have thought it was all a dream.
"Are you gonna be okay, mom?" I asked while my dad gave her a glass of water. She took it with shaky hands. We were back in Cuba in my parents' room.
"Yes, yes. Don't worry sweetheart," she said dismissively, swapping her hand in the air, a bit breathless. "I just need... a bit of time to process it all."
I didn't insist, so I just nodded and left her room to meet Phoenix in the living room where he already had the portal open. I turned around to say goodbye to my dad.
"Saturday morning someone will come here to get you all, so you must be ready for then, okay?"
My dad hugged me, reassuring me that they would be here ready on time.
I waved at him one last time and crossed the portal, Phoenix following behind me.
I walked directly to the bed and sat down with a sigh. I took my shoes off and wiggled my feet in Phoenix's direction.
"Babyyy," I whined and Phoenix chuckled, shaking his head.
"I'll get the lotion."
I let my back fall down onto the mattress and closed my eyes. Damn, every day I would get tired easily. After all, I was carrying a watermelon around. Damn.
I felt something cold on my feet and then Phoenix's hands massaging them and I moaned in relief.
"I needed that, thanks."
He kissed my knee in response.
Once Phoenix went for the other feet, I decided to break the comfortable silence we settled in.
"It went well, right?" I asked, opening one eye to pick at him.
"Yeah, better than I expected," he grunted.
True. After all, he was expecting the worst from my mom.
"I still don't like her though," he added.
"And that's totally fair. She is not in the clear with me either."
I closed my eyes, enjoying Phoenix's movements.
"Thank you for putting a boundary about Brax," he said breaking the silence.
I lifted myself on my elbows to look at him over my belly.
"Of course, my love. Our baby will always be my priority, along with you, of course," I replied.
Our eyes connected, and my chest filled with so much warmth and love, that I started craving my mate all over again. He left my feet and came onto the bed beside me, his hand landing on my protruding stomach.
"Just one more week," he whispered, closing his lips on mine. I kissed him back, savoring his taste on my tongue.
Not that our relationship will change after a week, but it meant a lot to me, and to us. It will solidify our union, our bond being acknowledged by all. I'll claim him all over again and couldn't wait to brag about him, my wonderful mate.
And to think almost five months back I hated his guts... The irony!
🐉🐉🐉
Happy Mother's day to all the moms here and future moms too!
I know it already happened but I still wanted to show you some love😘
Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Sadly, the book is coming to an end :c but don't worry! You will have chapters about the baby and a bonus chapter! You won't miss anything important :3
Thank you for being here and to continue showing love to my story. Love you lots!