On Sunday, we went to the cemetery, returned home, heated up the leftovers, said a prayer, and sat down for a Mother's Day lunch that had more to do with remembering my mother than any other woman who had left my children's lives.
Then the doorbell rang.
I got up to answer the door. The second I opened it, I completely lost my breath.
Natalie was on the balcony, dressed as if she'd been invited to a better place before coming there.
Impeccable shoes. Expensive coat. Hair styled to look natural. For a second, my brain refused to connect that woman to the person who had left behind five children and never called again to see if any of them still had nightmares.
Natalie walked past me before I could find my voice and went into the dining room. The children froze. Rosie recoiled behind Owen, not understanding why, just feeling the shock and using his body as cover.
Natalie started crying immediately. Loud, open, theatrical.
I missed you all so much.
Nobody moved.
Then she turned to the children and said the phrase that made me boil inside:
— I had to leave because of your father. He didn't earn enough money to give us a decent life.
I saw confusion appear on the faces of the younger girls.
Natalie continued constructing her own version of the story right there, in front of them. She said she had left "only for a while." She said she had sacrificed herself. That she had changed.
Meanwhile, her eyes kept scanning the house. The old curtains. The repaired cupboards. The meatloaf on the table. She looked at our life with visible discomfort.
Rosie held Owen's hand. That almost broke me.
Natalie bent down toward Rosie.
Baby, it's Mommy. I missed you so much.
Rosie looked at me, not at herself.
"Why are you here?" I finally asked.
Natalie stood up again, wiping away her tears.
Because I'm ready to be part of this family again.
— The family you left behind with diapers, overdue rent, and no food at home?
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