7

After a good night's sleep, the first in several days where I could actually rest peacefully, I truly feel at home and at peace with my decisions.

I went downstairs and had a cup of coffee that my father had prepared before leaving. My father owns a restaurant here in Paris, and he always leaves early and comes back late. Maybe with me here, he'll be able to have a more flexible work schedule. Now that everything is settled, I think it's time to share the good news with my mother.

I dial the number, and her husband Bob answers. He's a good person, just for putting up with my mother he deserves that title, as she can be quite difficult. It's no wonder my father decided to separate from her. I hear her voice in the background, so it's the moment of truth. I'll be direct before she starts screaming in my ears. Fortunately, I'm here in France, and she's in Georgia. She takes the phone and before responding, she says a few things to Bob, who seems displeased. But before he can say anything, she tells him they'll talk later and then responds to me.

"Hi, Mom. How are you?"

"Hi, honey! Everything's the same as always here. Sometimes Bob doesn't listen to me, and we end up arguing, but then everything goes back to normal."

If I don't interrupt her, she'll spend hours talking about her life with Bob, complain about the poor guy, and in the end, she'll say that despite all the problems, he's a good man and an excellent husband. Of course, I agree with her because Bob has the patience of Job.

"Mom, please listen to me!"

"Talk girl!" Now she's annoyed that I won't let her talk about her life with Bob.

"Mom, I called you because I wanted to share some news."

"Well then, tell me now. You know I'm very curious."

"Mom, I'm pregnant!"

"Pregnant, Ana Paula? Are you kidding me?"

"No, Mom, you'll be a grandma soon."

"I can't believe this. You've got to be kidding. Who's the father?"

"Well, that's another thing I wanted to talk about. My son doesn't have a father. I'm going to be a single parent."

"Ana Paula, are you trying to give me a heart attack or something? That's the only explanation. What do you mean, single mother? Who's going to support this child? I don't know if you know, but children are expensive."

"Of course, I'm aware, Mom."

"So…" My mom starts talking and doesn't give me a chance to respond. So I just listen and agree with everything she says. But when she mentioned packing up and arriving in Seattle today, I had to interrupt her and tell her the second part of the story.

"Mom, I wanted to talk about this too."

"Ana, don't make up any more stories. I'm going to Seattle today."

"Mom, I'm in France. I came to spend some time with my father."

"You went to France without telling me? I still think I'm the mother here, Ana Paula, and the least you could have done was to let me know that you were going to stay with your father for a while. You know very well what I think about this. I don't agree with any of it. You're ruining your life and throwing everything away, everything you fought so hard to achieve. And now, how are you going to do your postgraduate studies while being pregnant?"

"Mom, I'll figure everything out, don't worry."

"Worry? You must be joking! This is all I needed to hear. I have my own problems, and my daughter tells me she's throwing her whole life away to be a single mother."

"Mom, the decision is mine, and I've decided to be a single mother."

"Very well, Ana Paula. Just don't count on me for this madness". She hangs up the phone in my face, leaving me baffled, looking down at my cell phone. How can my mother be so rude and insensitive at the same time?

She is a difficult person to deal with, and it was expected that she would react unpleasantly. She almost said she was too young to be a grandmother, but I won't let that bother me. I already have enough problems. Soon, her anger will subside and she will reach out to me.

That's just the way she is, and I expected a huge scandal. My mother is explosively temperamental. I know I caught her off guard with the news of the pregnancy and my decision to move in with my dad, something she's always despised. Since my father separated from her, she has made it clear to my sister and me that he has abandoned us. She wanted us to believe that our father didn't love us, but we both understood everything and knew that our father loved us unconditionally. He was separating from our mother, not us. Before asking for the separation, he sat my sister and I down and had a conversation with us, explaining the whole situation, as he always did. Everything was done through communication, and our love for our father remained the same. My mom will make a big fuss, stop talking to me for a while, but eventually, everything will go back to normal. She always does this when we do something that goes against her will.

Now I want to forget. I feel light and at peace with my heart. I have already informed everyone who should know of my decisions. Now it's time to start organizing my life and try to settle down here. But first, I need to let Ella know that I arrived safely and that everything is fine. She must be worried. Knowing my friend, she's probably sad about me leaving, but one thing she can be sure of is that I just moved away, but I'm not going to abandon her.

I texted her letting her know that I arrived safely and everything is fine here, how receptive my dad was and how he welcomed me with open arms. I also mentioned that I told my mom, who nearly had a heart attack, hung up on me after causing a scene. From now on, I just want to focus on me and my little baby. Now I'm going to start packing my things and then start getting organized. I need to decide where to start.