Now that was a bolt from the blue........!!! Chloe was astounded she couldn't believe her ears.......her own niece......., was thinking that she forgot about her. Chloe was prepared to face everything...........Jenny's tears, her sadness, her fury, apathy but even for her life she hadn't expected bitterness, this kind of acrimony from her Bambi. She couldn't understand how someone so juvenile and innocent can bear such animosity in her heart. That thought distressed her. She had to help her; nobody can live their lives upholding such unpleasantness within them. Deep in thoughts, silently, she exited the room and started moving down the stairs slowly, when all of a sudden, she stopped, putting two and two together...................Chloe realised that that abrupt outbreak of Jenny's emotions were basically her defence to protect her frail and brittle mind, an attempt to drive away the people who try to come near her vulnerable inner self. Jenny was using her anger as a defence mechanism to deal with everything, but inside she was a terrified little girl, who was scared of what may happen next.
Without a further ado, she speedily climbed down the stairs and was going to take a turn for the kitchen when she stopped short; the front door of the house was wide open. They were temporarily residing in the town's guest house. Apparently, out of guilt, people wanted to help them, so they offered them to stay there for free........and she had agreed........So here they were. Like a ghost, she proceeded towards the door, inside questioning herself if she had remembered to close the door or not. The nearer she got to the door she could see a small silhouette sitting on the front porch of the house. But, the more closer she got, she realised that it was her niece, who had angrily walked out of her room just a few moments ago was sitting here in a heartbreaking position. Jenny was hunched over, as if she was burdened with something, that she can't withstand. She was quivering in the bright summer light. Her hairs which were tied loosely at the back looked dishevelled and shaggy.
Chloe gently continued her walk till she reached the spot where Jenny was sitting, and sat beside her in silence. She turned her head and studied her face wordlessly, she noticed the paleness of her Bambi's cheeks, and how pasty she looked. Chloe's heart bled by looking at her, immediately her heart took into account the jolly memories of them, those merry moments of them together with Helen and then the day she had left town, and her little niece had sobbed her eyes out asking her to not go, "Please Aunt Chloe, please don't go.......I am sorry. I promise I would be a good girl but don't go" but she had left. Unconsciously, her fingers lifted and lightly caressed one of the fading scars of her niece's forearm. Jenny flinched and Chloe at once withdrew her hand back and apologized tentatively, "I am sorry, I meant no harm." Slowly Jenny turned her head and cautiously stared at her aunt for a long time, as if waiting for the chastisement, her blank eyes took in the gloominess of Chloe's face. She tried to find anger, on the face at her side but all she found was the same care and adoration that she used to see when she was little and also some sadness, for her. Timidly Jenny replied "It's alright, I am just not used to....you know-"I understand, it doesn't matter" Chloe rejoined with a little smile. And again they became silent, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Both of them were lost in their own thoughts and somewhere a truce has been settled.
From nowhere Jenny suddenly spoke "Why does it always happen with me, Aunt Chloe?"
Jenny looked so miserable and distressed, that all, Chloe wanted to do was, to hold her in her arms and keep her safe from everyone and everything dreadful.
"Why am I always left alone......, I try sooo hard to not do anything wrong, be perfect.....so they won't leave me......No matter how much I cry, how much I plead them, it just doesn't matter......at the end it's always me, on my own........all the promises, all those words of assurance are like always big fat lies on my face."
By the time Jenny completed, Tears were silently running down.......on Chloe's face. Her heart ached for the aloneness and desperation her niece had suffered. Silently she was beating herself inside, for leaving her alone, when she needed her the most. She frantically tackled her in a tight hug, the entire time muttering how sorry she was with the never ending tears.
"I am soo sorry baby, God I can't even forgive myself ever for doing that.......It was just that I was soo mad at Helen, at her pining for that bastard and the entire town treated me with such hate and detestation that it was not easy.......I could see everything, how Reynolds played with Helen's Feelings, his manipulations ......how he started beating her but still it was all hopeless, she wouldn't talk to me.....i tried, God how much I tried to tell her, even show her but she never believed me. It was simply unbearable for me, to live here anymore, you were so small and Helen didn't cared about me............All she cared about was this stupid love and look what it brought at our door." Chloe was furious. At this point of time she hated her sister.......Helen's adoration for that terrible man had destroyed their family.
"But I promise just give me one chance and I swear to God you won't regret it......This time it's going to be both of us for everything.......I will never let you go. You are my only family." Chloe implored unsteadily but with a great resolution in her voice.
Jenny didn't reply. She simply turned her head back and was again looking at the distant sky.......It looked as if she was searching her answers in the immeasurable blue sky. But in reality she was penetrating her wounded mind and soul for the ability and potential to trust and take the risk again. To her, it felt as if her entire life was at stake, one wrong move and she will lose herself for forever............but if she simply accept the defeat, then any tiny expectation from the future would die this second. She was confused. Chloe saw the frown on her niece's face, and recognized the feelings of uncertainty and hesitance. She wanted to step into the mental war that was going inside Jenny's mind but knew that the final decision would have to be hers alone and thus decided to lighten the moment and started to talk about New York........"It's an amazing city Bambi, I know you will absolutely love it there........there people are good, though everyone always seem to be in a hurry, but don't worry you will get the hang of it......Beautiful places to see, the food is just fabulous.............and yeah I forgot to tell you, I work there as an editor at Pacheco Publishing House. It's an amazing publishing company.............which is very keen on publishing the matters and thoughts of the young minds-
"Aunt Chloe, you sure that you want me to move in there with you....i mean you don't have to do it-
"Don't talk garbage.......I would be the happiest woman of this entire planet, if you decide to move in with me!" Chloe said cheerfully.
"Thanks.......i guess I will take this suggestion of yours...............and you really mean what you said, don't you.......You are doing this because you love me, right and won't discard me like everyone else has, right?" Again the faltering belief was poignant but Chloe guaranteed
"You have my word, my little Bambi......no matter what happens, I would never ditch you......I care for you and love you."
"One more thing Aunt Chloe, do you have any idea who my read daddy is?"
Chloe was stunned by the innocent question, she looked into the dark enquiring eyes of her niece and mulled over the answer and simply croaked a tired "Why?"
"I don't know Reynolds always told me........that my real father hated me and that's why he left mom in the first place." she said wretchedly.
Chloe softly cursed under her breath and answered sincerely, "No Bambi, Jason loved you from the time when your mother told her she was pregnant..........Helen got pregnant with you when she was seventeen, They both were soo much in love......always together in everything but your daddy Jason was very rich, he was the golden boy and when his family found out about the pregnancy.............everything blew up, they sent him far away for the studies and a year later they themselves moved away from the town and that was the last we heard and know about them. So don't you ever belief someone else because your daddy loved you even when you were just the size of a peanut. And now don't feel guilty that because of you they aren't together today...........it was not your fault.....Things would have been better, if Helen had waited for him or if Jason had tried to contact her.......but they never did anything, so the responsibility is not yours to take."
When she finished, Jenny looked as if the weight on her shoulders had been released and after such a long time an actual heartfelt smile spread over her face and Chloe couldn't remember any of her anxiety and nervousness. Chloe gleefully hollered "Come on lass, pack your bags coz we are going to.......... New York, The city of dreams." And they happily went inside the house, to pack for the new chapter of their lives.