Chapter 20
Ifeel a poke on my arm. I wake up from a deep sleep and discover I am lying on the couch, and a cute face is looking intently at me. She looks so pretty. I pull
myself carefully off the couch and cover Rayne with a blanket. I put a finger to my lips to motion to her not to talk as I carry her in my arms back upstairs.
As we reach her room, I put her back down and wish her a good morning.
“Mommy is still asleep, so it’s just us two for now,” I say to her.
“Good morning,” she says still looking at me like she has so much to say but doesn’t know how and where to start.
“Head to the kitchen, and I’ll make some pancakes for you,” I smile.
“Mommy always makes breakfast with me. I like to pour some sprinkles on my pancakes,” she pouts.
My smile grows wider. Is this what dating a single mother feels like? Cooking for a 5-year-old? Admittedly, I am not great at cooking but I can dimly remember a
few tips and tricks from watching my mom.
“Okay, go on ahead and look for the sprinkles. I’ll do the mix while mommy sleeps, okay?” She nods in response before dashing into the fridge
I walk towards the cabinet to pick out the things I need for the mix. I turn the heat on low.
Charlee breaks some eggs and helps me prepare the mix. Meanwhile, Rayne is sleeping in the front room. She looks like an angel.
“And Charlee seems so happy. It’s melting my heart,” I think to myself.
I step into the living room to see Charlee playing with some crayons and head back to the kitchen to finish pouring some orange juice for her and attempt a
heart-shaped pancake for her.
I have never exactly experienced this feeling of protectiveness before. It’s certainly interesting how this beautiful little girl is making her way into my heart, the
same way her mom walked into my life unexpectedly. In less than two minutes, I finish my hopefully edible creation with fresh blueberries on top of Charlee’s
pancakes.
As I walk back into the living room with a plate of pancakes in my hand, Charlee blurts out something I don’t expect.
“Dad never cooks for me.”
“Maybe he was always busy,” I offer, trying to find an excuse for someone I don’t even know or care about. “Do you miss your dad?” I ask, indulging her in small
talk as I dress her up.
“Yes, but he is very far away, so I just look at his picture anytime I miss him.”
“Does mommy know?”
“No, she doesn’t like him.”
“Will you show it to me, please?” I ask.
She dashes off to a table in the corner of the room and pulls out a photo taken from when she was a child. On it, a man is holding the handles of a baby trolley.
The face feels oddly familiar.
“Do you like my mommy?” The question jolts me back to reality. What does Charlee know about liking someone?
“Yes, I do. Do I have your permission to like your mommy?”
She turns to face me, putting one hand on her hip and the other on her chin, thinking before responding.
“Will you hit her? Or make her cry?” she asks, looking a bit down.
“No, I would never do that to her or you,” I promise.
She eyes me intently for a minute as if to determine whether I’m lying or not before her face lights up with a bright smile.
“Yes, you can, like my mommy.” She raises her hand to give me a high five.
“So, what would you like to do for mommy’s breakfast, my princess?” I say, pretending to bow to her.
“French toastssss!” she yells, stressing the ‘s’.
“French toasts it is.”
I pull out my phone to place an order before we both head into the kitchen. But I can’t shake the memory of the picture from my head.
Rayne is awake by the time we reach her. Charlee runs into her arms and narrates the entire last half-hour to her.
“Mommy, Leonard made some breakfast and took care of me. He also says he likes you, and he will not make you cry,” she says with so much enthusiasm.
“Did he now?” Rayne asks, raising a sleepy eyebrow. “Did you thank him for taking care of you while Mommy was asleep?”
Still, on her mom’s lap, she turns to face me.
“Thank you, Leo.”
“You’re welcome,” I respond, smiling at her.
There’s a knock on the door and I walk over to open it. It is the delivery guy.
“Rayne, breakfast is here!” I call excitedly.
“Shouldn’t we be preparing for work?” Rayne asks as I walk back into the room.
“Errr… I own the company,” I say, smirking.
“I need to get a new job as soon as possible to avoid running this business down,” Rayne laughs.
I set the French toast down on the table, and get plates for Rayne and me. I bring Charlee’s breakfast over and set it in front of her. I suddenly remember the
picture again, and this time I know where I have seen that face before.
The CCTV footage that the police had shared with me of the accident that led to my mother’s death!
“May I ask you a question?” I ask, facing Rayne.
“Most definitely,” she smiles.
“Charlee showed me a picture this morning, and I have a couple of questions. Charlee, can you please bring the picture?” I ask, turning to Charlee.
Charlee runs to grab the picture and hands it over to me.
“When was this picture taken?”
“This was a day or two after Charlee was born. The doctors had discharged her because the hospital needed bed space for kids but not me. I had suffered
complications, so I was still in the hospital. Reece, my husband, would bring her and take her back home every day, but he came back later than usual that day,
actually, saying something about an accident.”
“Errr, I have to go.” I am up in an instant and walk towards the couch to pack my things.
“What happened? What’s going on? Something is definitely wrong,” she says, trying to catch my eye.
“I think Charlee is the baby my mother tried to save that led to her death,” I say without looking at her.
“Charlee?” Her voice sounds incredulous as if she is still trying to process the information. “Reece never mentioned anyone dying. He just said there was an
accident, and someone saved our child. Why did I believe him? He was always high half of the time. I just thought the child will put him in a good place. Reece is the reason your mother is dead?”
I walk towards her to hug her. I am supposed to be the one being comforted but right now I am comforting her. “Don’t beat yourself up about it. At least
Charlee is alive and well. My Mom’s death wasn’t in vain. I’ve longed to somehow meet the child she died to save and here I am. But, right now, I need time to
deal with this information and process it a bit.”
I leave.