The old lady spent most of her days seated by the window facing the front of the house.
It wasn’t like there was a whole lot to see out there. The scene remained the same through the years, a small street with some trees, neighbors coming and going now and then. She often recalled the days when there were children there playing outside her home.
But she still sat there anyways. Who knew, maybe it was just a habit she formed over the years. Maybe she was looking forward to something, although she didn’t know what.
Life had certainly become quiet since her days in her prime. It’s been years since her husband’s passing, and despite being frail herself, she had no one else to depend on.
Well, except her daughter. But recently, their relationship was strained. Their conversations became difficult and the visits were rare. Patience was running thin on both sides, but the old lady did her best not to think about it.
Then one day as she sat in that room looking out at the road, her daughter came walking in. “Mom, put on your coat.”
“What for?”
“I’m taking you out. You’ve been locked away in this house for much too long. Some fresh air will do you good.”
For an instant, the old lady’s face lit up with hope. It had been so long since her daughter had taken an interest in doing something with her.
“Really?” she said. “Where are we going?”
Her daughter only shrugged.
“You’ll see when we get there.”
It was a very straightforward reply, but that didn’t bother the old woman; instead, she felt the stirrings of something that she hadn’t felt for quite a while.
Hope.
She carefully packed up her stuff, sweater, pills, purse, whatever else she needed, while she made guesses about their destination. Could be some cozy lake cottage, quaint little restaurant in the countryside or some surprise visit to relatives.
No, the details didn’t really matter at all. She was just happy to spend a whole day with her only child.
Not too soon, she found herself on the road. At first, nothing seemed different.
They drive down those streets that were so familiar to her, the shops and high-rise apartment buildings. Lights flashed around them, cars whizzed past them; she just sat back comfortably in her seat and observed all this around her.
But then, suddenly, the view began to change. Buildings became fewer. Roads less busy. Fields were on both sides of the road. The farther away from home they traveled, the more anxious she felt.
She glanced toward her daughter. “Do you think that we are going in the right direction?”
Her daughter didn’t look away from the road and replied quickly. “Yes.”
After a while of silence, the old lady looked outside once again. Now, they could see only vast land covered with scattered trees. She felt like crying, but managed to swallow her lump of emotions.
“This place doesn’t seem very relaxing.”
Her daughter held the steering wheel firmly enough to turn white. “Mother, please, do not ask any more questions.”
Something was seriously wrong, and the old lady could feel that.
Twenty more minutes passed while her daughter kept driving through the deserted highway when she suddenly pulled over onto the side of the road and stopped the car. There was a long period of silence between them.
After that, her daughter turned towards her. “Get out.”
The old woman widened her eyes. “What?”
“I said, get out of the car.”
Initially, she thought that she misunderstood her daughter. “What are you saying?”
That’s when her daughter said, “I can’t do this anymore.”
“Do what?”
“What I’ve just told you,” her daughter replied. “All that taking care of you. Always worrying about your well-being. Spending all my money on you. I am exhausted.”
It hurt her like never before. Her daughter’s actions were so sudden. “Come on, baby,” she whispered. “What are you saying?”
“You’re a burden.”
A rush of tears sprung into the eyes of the old woman.
“Don’t say things like this.”
“I mean it, and you know it.”
Her daughter then pulled open the door to the passenger seat.
“Now, get out.”
The woman felt a rush of panic. “No! Please, don’t abandon me!”
But it seemed as though her daughter’s mind was made up. Without any hesitation, she seized her mother’s arm and dragged her out of the car so roughly that she nearly fell right to the ground.
As the woman turned toward the car, she pleaded desperately, “No!”
Yet her daughter looked at her without pity. “It is a hard decision, but I am sure this is for your own good,” was all she could utter.
As soon as she finished speaking, she slammed the door shut. Not even a moment passed before the car tires churned up gravel and she sped away.
The woman froze right beside the road. She kept staring until the car became a mere dot against the horizon and disappeared. Her brain wouldn’t let itself believe what it had witnessed. How could her very own daughter abandon her just like that?
Finally, she fell to her knees and started crying. She didn’t feel rage; just immense sadness.
All the things that she had done for her—bringing her up, sacrificing herself for her, working tirelessly to provide for her, and loving her—she never dreamed that it would end up like this.
But then an idea occurred to her. Her phone.
Fumbling with her purse, she fished out her old cell phone. There was one person whom she hadn’t contacted in years. Her nephew. They didn’t talk a lot, but he was always a kind-hearted boy.
Although hesitantly, she pressed the button.
To her surprise, the call was answered immediately. “Aunt Maria?”
To hear a friendly and familiar voice almost broke her down once again.
“It’s me,” she managed to stutter.
“Auntie Maria, what’s going on? Are you alright?”
She found it hard to speak.
“I’m out on the highway.”
“What are you talking about? Why are you there?”
“I’m all alone. She left me.”
There was an uncomfortable silence on the other side of the line.
“Tell me precisely where you are. I’m picking you up.”
Forty-five minutes later, a sleek black SUV stopped right beside her.
From it, a tall man got out. As soon as he spotted her sitting all alone, he yelled. “Aunt Maria.”
Without losing a second, he came closer and put his jacket around her shoulders. “What happened?”
“She left me here.”
“Let’s go,” he said softly. “Get into the car.”
Next thing she knew, the woman was at her nephew’s place, having a cup of hot tea.
The next morning, a lawyer appeared at the door and the woman didn’t quite understand why he was there.
Then her nephew explained everything to her. The home she lived in was hers. Her husband left it to her, not their daughter, and she had no right to make her leave the place. Not legally.
The lawyer addressed her calmly. “If you don’t feel ready to sign today, that’s okay.”
But she did. For the first time in many years, her mind was absolutely clear. She took the pen. “No, I’m ready to do it,” she responded.
A week later, she returned home.
But this time, everything was completely changed. She was no longer alone. Her nephew had set up a support system for her, sorted out her legal protection, and helped her get her finances in order.
And then it happened.
One day, the front door burst open.
And in walked her daughter with multiple shopping bags in her hands.
But she stopped immediately once she noticed there was someone there.
“What is happening?” she yelled out loud.
The nephew calmly got up from his seat.
“You need to leave.”
She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “What?”
“Get your things and get out!”
She tried to laugh nervously. “This is my mother’s house, how dare you order me around!”
He came closer to her, putting a folder in her hands. “Read this.”
With all her confidence gone after reading the document, she could hardly believe what she was seeing.
“No way!”
She started flipping through the papers, afraid to face the truth. “This can’t be true.”
“Absolutely legal,” he said.
She turned to her mother. “Mom! What have you done? You gave everything up?”
And the old lady only nodded.
“But where should I go?” the daughter cried.
The entire atmosphere turned utterly silent. The old woman looked at her daughter. There were no signs of anger on her face. She did not want any kind of retribution. She was only extremely sad.
“Exactly the same place that you left me,” she answered.
The daughter realized what it feels like to be abandoned, and the woman already knew that just because someone is family they get to treat you like garbage.
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Bored Daddy
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