Chapter 42 #4
Her mother sat across from her.
They had been talking about ordinary things.
Work.
Life.
Family.
Until Lingling finally said,
"Mom."
"Hmm?"
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Her mother looked at her.
"Tell you what?"
"About Orm."
Silence.
Lingling's fingers tightened around her cup.
"She came to Paris."
Her mother's expression changed.
"How did you know?"
"I found out."
Lingling looked toward the window.
"She flew there for my birthday."
Her voice cracked.
"She came every year."
Her mother remained quiet.
"She stayed next door."
Lingling laughed bitterly.
"She was right there."
A tear rolled down her cheek.
"And I didn't know."
Her mother reached across the table.
"Lingling..."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Her mother took a breath.
"Because you weren't ready."
Lingling looked at her.
"I thought she didn't care."
"I know."
"I thought she had forgotten me."
"I know."
"I spent four years thinking I was the only one who still loved."
Her mother squeezed her hand.
"You weren't."
Lingling looked down.
"She watched me from a distance?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because she loved you."
Lingling closed her eyes.
"She could have come inside."
"She wanted to."
"Then why didn't she?"
Her mother's expression softened.
"Because sometimes love isn't enough."
Lingling looked at her.
"Sometimes?"
"Sometimes two people can love each other deeply and still hurt each other because they aren't ready."
She paused.
"Love needs timing."
Lingling listened.
"It needs honesty."
Another pause.
"And sometimes..."
Her mother smiled sadly.
"It needs sacrifice."
Lingling wiped her tears.
"She sacrificed four years."
"Yes."
"For us."
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because she thought that was the only way she could protect you and help the people around her."
Lingling's chest tightened.
"And I spent four years thinking she abandoned me and chose Sean."
Her mother nodded.
"That is the tragedy of love when people stop talking."
Silence filled the room.
Then her mother reached across the table and held Lingling's hand.
"But perhaps this time you know better."
Lingling nodded.
"We're trying."
"I know."
"We're taking it slowly."
"Good."
"We don't know where this will go."
"That's okay."
"We're scared."
"That's okay too."
Lingling looked at her mother.
"What should I do?"
Her mother smiled.
"Listen."
Lingling waited.
"Don't assume you know what Orm feels."
She continued gently.
"Ask her."
"Don't decide what is best for her without letting her decide for herself."
Lingling nodded.
"And don't try to repair four years in four weeks."
Lingling smiled faintly.
"I won't."
"You cannot erase the past."
"I know."
"But you can create something better from what you learned."
Lingling's eyes filled again.
Her mother then became slightly more serious.
"And Lingling..."
"Hmm?"
"There is something else."
"What?"
"Liam."
Lingling immediately understood.
Her mother looked at her carefully.
"If you are going to pursue Orm..."
She paused.
"Liam comes with her."
Lingling nodded slowly.
"I know."
"He's not an afterthought."
"I know."
"He's not something you deal with later."
"I know, Mom."
"He is part of Orm's heart."
Lingling's eyes softened.
"I love him."
Her mother smiled.
"I know."
"He isn't my biological son."
"That doesn't mean you cannot love him."
Lingling looked down.
"I want to be someone he can trust."
"Then be consistent."
"I will."
"Don't make promises you can't keep."
"I won't."
"And don't make Liam love you before you're certain you can stay."
That sentence struck deeper.
Lingling fell silent.
Her mother reached for her hand.
"You are both adults."
She spoke gently.
"You can make mistakes and survive them."
"But Liam is a child."
Lingling nodded.
"He doesn't deserve another person walking into his life only to walk away."
Lingling's eyes burned.
"I know."
"Four years ago, you and Orm made choices based on pain."
Her mother squeezed her hand.
"This time, make choices based on love."
Lingling breathed slowly.
"I want to do this right."
"Then don't rush."
She smiled.
"Let love grow naturally."
Lingling looked at the sky outside.
The first light of morning was beginning to appear.
Somewhere far away, Bangkok was still wrapped in darkness.
And somewhere in that darkness was Orm.
And Liam.
Waiting for another day.
Waiting for another call.
Waiting for whatever future they would eventually build.
Lingling smiled through her tears.
"I think I finally understand."
Her mother raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
"Love isn't about getting someone back."
Her mother listened.
"It's about becoming someone who knows how to stay."
Her mother's eyes softened.
"Exactly."
-
That evening, Lingling called Orm again.
Orm answered almost immediately.
"Hi."
"Hi."
"How was your day?"
"Busy."
"Mine too."
"Did you eat?"
"Yes."
"Properly?"
Lingling laughed.
"Yes, Mom."
Orm giggled.
"Your mother trained you well."
"She was actually talking about you."
Orm became quiet.
"About me?"
"She wants to see you again."
Orm's eyes widened.
"Really?"
"Yes."
A small smile appeared on Orm's face.
"I'd like that."
Lingling smiled.
"I told her about us."
"What did she say?"
"She told me not to rush."
Orm nodded.
"She's right."
"She also told me that if I'm serious about you..."
Lingling paused.
Orm waited.
"...Liam comes with you."
Orm's expression softened.
Lingling continued.
"I told her I know."
"You do?"
"I do."
A small silence followed.
Then Orm whispered,
"Lingling..."
"Hmm?"
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For understanding that."
Lingling smiled.
"He's already captured my heart."
Orm's eyes filled with tears.
"He's my whole world."
"I know."
"And if one day..."
Orm hesitated.
"If one day we really become a family..."
Lingling finished for her.
"Liam will be part of mine."
Orm closed her eyes.
A tear slipped down her cheek.
"We'll get there."
Lingling smiled.
"One step at a time."
"One step at a time."
And neither of them said it out loud, but they both understood.
This time, they were not trying to recreate the love they had lost.
They were building something new from its ashes.
Something more honest.
More patient.
More intentional.
Something that could survive distance.
Something that could survive fear.
Something that could include a little boy who had unknowingly become the bridge between two women who had once lost their way.
That night, Liam woke briefly.
"Mommy?"
Orm immediately turned toward him.
"I'm here."
"Wingwing?"
Orm smiled.
"She's in Paris."
Liam rubbed his sleepy eyes.
"Can I talk to her?"
Orm called Lingling.
The phone connected.
Lingling's sleepy voice came through.
"Hi, Baby."
"Wingwing..."
"I'm here."
"I miss you."
"I miss you too."
"Come back soon."
Lingling smiled.
"I will."
Liam yawned.
"Promise?"
"Promise."
"Good."
And within seconds, he was asleep again.
Orm looked at the phone.
Lingling looked back at her through the screen.
Neither spoke.
They didn't need to.
Four years had taught them the cost of silence.
This time, even across oceans, they chose to stay connected.
Because love wasn't suddenly easy.
It wasn't magically healed.
The wounds were still there.
The memories still existed.
There would still be difficult conversations.
There would still be fear.
There would still be days when the past came knocking.
But now they knew something they hadn't known four years ago.
They could talk.
They could listen.
They could forgive.
They could choose each other without losing themselves.
And they could choose each other slowly.
One call at a time.
One conversation at a time.
One visit at a time.
One apology at a time.
One new memory at a time.
One step at a time.
Miles separated them.
But somehow...
They had never felt closer.
Because for the first time in four years, neither Lingling nor Orm was waiting for the other to come back.
They were both already there.
Trying.
Loving.
Healing.
And hoping.
And perhaps that was what a second chance really looked like.
Not perfection.
Not certainty.
Not forgetting.
Just two people standing on opposite sides of an ocean...
still reaching for each other.
Still choosing each other.
And this time-
neither was letting go.