***

Selina hugged her knees up to her chest. She couldn’t stop sobbing no matter how hard she tried. Why hadn’t she realized it sooner?

-Flashback-

“It tastes like my mom’s,” Selina replied. “It really does.”

Jiro stared at her alarmed feeling like Selina would be on the verge of crying.

“Do you want something else?” asked Jiro.

Selina shook her head no.

“I’m surprised your maid made this,” Selina told sounding disappointed.

Her silence made Jiro wonder what he should say to comfort her. It was the first time he had felt unsure about what to say to her.

“Oh yes…I’ve been wondering,” Selina began breaking the silence, “I’ve been in your father’s office once and there’s only a picture of you both. What about your mother?”

“My mother…well my real mother, to be exact, passed away when I was young. Sometime afterward my dad brought in another mom,” Jiro told.

“As in your step mother?” Selina asked.

Jiro shook his head no and Selina thought he looked sad.

“There was no such feeling as love between that mother and my dad. It was just my dad thought I needed motherly love so he brought her in. In fact she was like a nanny and at the same time she felt like a real mother to me,” Jiro explained. “She taught the maid how to cook and she redecorated the house.”

Selina looked around.

“Where is she?” Selina asked.

“She fell ill so we placed her in the hospital,” Jiro replied.

-End of Flashback-

Why hadn’t she realized it then?

“She fell ill.”

“She fell ill.”

“She fell ill.”

“She fell ill.”
 
The words swirled around in her head until she couldn’t take it anymore. Her hands shook and her sight blurred. Suddenly the ringing of her phone made her jump. Selina stared at it for a while and reached for it. Chun was calling.

“Selina your mother…” Chun started then stopped when he heard Selina’s sobs.

“Chun…Chun…” Selina cried.

There was loud knocking on her door. It didn’t stop.

“Make it go away! Make it go away!” Selina screamed.

Chun felt panicked. What exactly as going on? Why was Selina crying?

“Selina!” Jiro shouted from outside. “Selina! Please open the door!”

***

By the time Chun had hung up he was already racing toward his car. Selina was either in trouble or something bad had happened. It felt like forever before Chun finally reached the restaurant. He rushed passed to see Jiro standing helplessly outside the door knocking and shouting.

“What’s going on?” Chun asked.

Jiro suddenly turned around with his weary face. Chun immediately saw tears gather up in his eyes. Jiro took a breath, but couldn’t talk. Chun moved Jiro aside and took a hold of the door knob. He pulled and pushed a few times until the door knob came out. Chun turned back to look at Jiro wondering what was wrong. Jiro shifted his eyes away from Chun’s and hurried into the house. Chun quickly followed.

Jiro stopped in front of Selina’s bedroom door to find that it was locked. From outside they could make out her loud crying. Jiro gulped and his hand shook as he tried to open the door.

“Selina…please open,” Jiro begged.

Chun could make out how Jiro’s voice shook.

“Please…” Jiro begged as tears ran down his face. “Your mother’s dying.”

Everything was silent and Chun felt a bolt of shock fly through him. Had they already found out? But if they did shouldn’t they be happy? Why were they crying?

The door unlocked and Selina stared at Jiro. Both their eyes were red and swollen.

***

Selina could feel nothing, but her heart racing as she rushed up the stairs. She came to a slow stop when she stared down the corridor she’d entered just that morning. Tears didn’t stop flowing from her eyes. Had Jiro really taken away her mother? Had she missed the motherly love that belonged to her? Had her mother loved Jiro? Selina reached for the door knob and pushed the door open. She put her hands over as she saw her mother lying on the bed. She looked so tired…her poor mom…her poor mom. A loud sob came out of Selina as she rushed toward her mom without hesitating.

“Mom!” Selina cried. “Mom! Mom! Mom! Mom!”

Jiro could feel his tears fall as Selina cried beside her mom. Chun stared painfully at Selina then turned to look at Jiro. The reason why they had been crying was because Jiro’s mom was Selina’s missing mother.

Jiro felt guilt fly through him. The mother he had hated at first when she arrived at his home belonged to someone else. He had taken Selina’s missed love away from her. She had suffered 15 years without anyone by her side. Jiro suddenly felt a hand land on his shoulder. His father had come. His father was finally there.

“So pretty…” her mother muttered as she ran her hand over Selina’s face. “My little girl…all big…”

Selina felt tears drop from her eyes.

“Don’t cry…” her mother said with tears forming in her eyes too.

Selina dried the tear from her mother’s cheek. Her skin was still soft just the way Selina had recalled it.

“Did you have a hard time?” Selina asked. “They treated you well…right?”

All the things she had wanted to ask her mom were gone from her mind. Just looking at the pale woman before her Selina was sure her mother thought of her everyday. Her mother nodded with tears streaming down her face.

As night came and visiting hours ended Selina was forced back home. However, Chun accompanied her in place of Jiro. That was the first night in a long time Selina had stayed up all night.

***

Jiro sat in his bedroom and stared at the portrait he had placed next to his bed. The two most important people in his life turned out to be mother and daughter. Jiro could feel his heart become broken. Would Selina hate him forever? Would they ever be together?

There was a knock on his door and his father walked in.

“Are you ok?” his father asked.

Jiro stared at his dad, “How can it be? How can it be this way? Dad.”

His father sat next to him and put his arm around his beloved son.

“Don’t be a cry baby…you were always a cry baby,” his father told patting his back.

***

Her mother’s fever had gone down a bit, but even if it did it didn’t change the fact that her life wouldn’t last long. Selina was glad Jiro hadn’t appeared before her. She didn’t know what she would do if he did. Maybe she’d scream at him and hit him and feel sorry for herself.

“I want to go outside,” her mother whispered. “See the flowers…”

Selina nodded and walked out to get a wheelchair after begging the nurse who finally gave in. Her hands didn’t stop shaking as she helped her mother out of the bed. She pushed her mother along the small path under the big trees. As she looked down at her mother from behind Selina could remember how big her mother used to be. She had been a healthy woman who was strong and big…but now she was small and frail. Selina could feel her tears fall again.

“Lets stop here,” her mother said before emitting a cough. “I want to lay on your lap.”

Selina helped her mother out of the wheelchair and as her mother’s head landed on her lap she was amazed at how light she felt.

“I wanted to take you swimming during the summer…go on a picnic in the spring…take you shopping for dresses,” her mother said as loudly as she could, “I wanted to watch stars with you, send you on your first date.”

Selina felt tears run down her cheeks and tried to sob quietly. She tried not to shake so that her mother would be comfortable on her lap.

“See you get married, have children and grow old,” her mother said. “But I didn’t have the chance to…mom is sorry.”

Selina shook her head unable to speak. She put her hand over to stop the urge from crying aloud.

“You must not hate Jiro…he was a darling boy,” her mother said. “I’m sorry…mother is sorry.”

Selina couldn’t stop her stream of tears as her mother’s head suddenly became light. She turned her head away and shook. She hadn’t wanted her last words to be sorry.

“I love you mom…” Selina whispered.