4

Amy arrived at her mom’s place late at night since it was an hour and a half drive from her dad’s place. She rang the doorbell and within seconds the door was opened.

Paula, Amy’s mom was worried to see her daughter on her doorstep at this hour, and within a short notice, which has never happened before. Amy usually calls before coming over, but this time was different. Paula had received a sudden call from her daughter who sounded angry and hurt, telling her that she was coming over. She didn’t even get the chance to ask her daughter what was upsetting her because, she hung up almost immediately.

“Baby. Did you drive here yourself? You could’ve asked one of your dad’s chauffeur to drive you here.” Paula finally said, giving her daughter a warm hug.

“Mom. I’m not a kid anymore.” Amy replied with an eye roll.

“I know that honey, but look at the time. It could’ve been dangerous out there.” her mom tried to make her understand.

“It’s just 9:00pm, mom.” Amy countered.

“That doesn’t mean anything. You know what… I’ll just take you to your room.”

“Finally!”

On their way to Amy’s bedroom, Paula was burning to ask her daughter what the problem was, but she decided against it, so as not to upset her even more.

“I had the maids tidy your room. The sheets are fresh.” Paula informed Amy when they got to her room.

“Thanks Mom.”

“Would you like to have dinner?”

“No, I already had dinner.” Amy replied with a hint of sadness in her voice.

“What about snacks?” Her mom tried again, just to make sure.

“Mom, I said I’m fine.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll let you get some rest now.” She gave up trying.

While Paula was making her way to the door, she couldn’t help but feel uneasy not knowing what was bothering her daughter. She most certainly won’t be able to get some sleep that night if she doesn’t find out what was upsetting Amy. Just as she was about to ask, another thought came to her mind,

‘What if Amy wouldn’t want to talk about it?’

She decided that letting her be would be the best choice. She would probably feel better in the morning, then she’d be more approachable. Paula was about reaching for the door knob, but suddenly, she stopped herself, making up her mind to ask that burning question.

“Um.. honey?” She turned around, now facing Amy,

“It’s not like I don’t like having you here, but, I can’t help but worry… Is everything okay?”

“I’m over eighteen, mom. I don’t need dad’s permission anymore when coming over, or do I?... You know what? I think coming here was a bad idea.”

Amy was irritated with her mom’s question.

“You know that’s not what I meant, Amy.” Paula countered.

Gosh, she hated moments like this. As a lawyer, it was quite easier to get answers out of strangers, but with her daughter, it was a whole different ball game.

“Amy, I’m your mother. I want you to quit holding back when it comes to me.”

Amy could hear the hurt in her mom’s voice, and it broke her heart. She never had a close relationship with her mom, it has always been her dad, that was how he got full custody of her after his divorce with her mom. He was her everything. He read her bedtime stories and tuck her in bed, took her to school and back until she turned fourteen. He took her on all his business trips, so they could spend some time together when he was free. He made sure she had everything she ever needed. It’s not like her mom didn’t play her part, but she never had that bond with her mom.

Paula sat beside Amy on the bed and gave her an encouraging look.

“Talk to me, princess.”

Amy let out a sigh and said,

“I had a fight with dad.”

To say Paula was surprised would be an understatement. She was speechless because, never in all the years she was married to Henry, or even after their divorce has he fought with Amy over any issue. Yes, they bickered and bantered a lot, but even then, he always let her have her way. She was his world, his everything, his princess, his heartbeat, like he usually calls her. Henry adores his daughter. Paula has never seen him more in love with anyone or anything besides his daughter. There were times when she even got a bit jealous of the attention he was showering on their daughter, so this news was shocking.

“Oh sweetheart, what happened?” Paula eventually asked after recovering from her surprised state.

“Dad doesn’t want me making my own decisions… I’m an adult mom, I deserve to make my own choices, but he won’t let me. He never lets me… I want to be mad at him for always doing that. I want to… But I can’t. I can’t get mad at him, mom, and I hate myself for that,” Amy finally poured out her heart.

“I wanna hate him for it, mom, but I can’t.” she sobbed.

“Shh, honey. Don’t say that.” Paula said soothingly as she rocked Amy gently.

She has never seen her daughter in this state.

‘What actually happened?’ she wondered as she wiped Amy’s tears.

She didn’t want to pressure Amy into telling her what transpired between her and her father because, she felt Amy would tell her eventually, when she was ready, so she pushed aside her curiosity and soothed her sobbing daughter.

After what felt like hours, Amy stopped crying. She wiped her tears and narrated all that transpired between her and her dad. Paula assured her that everything was going to be okay, and that they would talk in the morning because she could tell Amy was already exhausted from crying. She tucked her in bed and quietly left her bedroom. Paula had one thing on her mind as she headed to her bedroom. She needs to have a talk with Henry.