"No beaches or deserts for miles where you're heading. Just lakes. A lovely big lake." Her therapist said this as he hugged her goodbye.
"Got your picture?" he asked. He knew she had her picture, he was just obsessive like that. She tapped her handbag pocket. In it contained a picture of a woman she had met. A woman who was her daughter, but she didn't know her or remember her. She didn't remember much, her first memory was walking. Just walking. She hadn't know where he destination was, or what she had left behind, but it was oddly serene. She smiled.
"Bye Ajay."
"Miss you Bells. Remember what you have to say to the first person you meet? When you get there?"
"I'm looking for a Miss Cassandra Goth. Can you tell me where I might find the Goth mansion?"
"And the bit about your name? What about if they ask your name?"
"I'm Bella Goth."
Bella had caused quite a stir when she arrived in Strangetown. She was walking along one of the main roads when Ajay found her. He took an instant liking to her, and asked her what her name was. Her personality was funny, and she seemed strangely innocent. She had no idea. He asked her where she lived. She had no idea. Ajay was training in psychology at the time, and was concerned by her behaviour. She acted like a 6 year old out after hours. He had taken her to the police, and they had identified her as a woman who had gone missing in a town 100's of miles away called Pleasantview. She had a deceased husband, and two children. She was shown pictures of them, told her entire life story, but she still had no idea who she was. Ajay sort of adopted her, and taught her how to read and write. When she was ready, a bus was arranged to take her to Pleasantview to meet her family, and hopefully live with her daughter. Bella knew she was special, people always whispered when she walked past them, she hated it. She was alarmed to find she had been married, and that she had two children. She took the picture out of her purse and stared at the gloomy face of her daughter. She didn't look fun at all! She preferred to forget what her son looked like, in the picture he had not been particually attractive!
"Bye Ajay." And then she turned and walked to the bus stop. She hated goodbyes, and Ajay had been the only person she had liked in this sandy place. She had no idea what she was going to find, but it had to be better than what she was leaving behind.
Bella had been assigned a low budget condo on the rougher side of town. She walked in to find it decorated quite nicely. She put down her things and hung up all the clothes she had, which wasn't many. She decided to go for a walk and see who she could find to ask about her daughter Cassandra and where she lived. Ajay had stressed it was vital that Bella should meet Cassandra and Alexander and get to know them.
Bella's condo: Ground floor.
Bella's condo: Bedroom and Balcony.
The bus journey had been a long one, and Bella's hair wasn't looking as good as she hoped, so she pulled it back into a ponytail and touched up her make up. She felt the side of her head tenderly. She was getting a headache, she normally got them when she was trying to remember her life here, and now she was actually here Bella knew she would be getting a lot of headaches from now on. She had one last look in her bathroom mirror and went to the phone.
Bella was tierd of cars and buses, she asked her surly taxi driver which community lot was closest to her house. He told her the swimming pool was, and she asked to go there. She looked at the picture of her daughter. She was thin, maybe she stayed slim by swimming, it seemed a good place to start anyway. It was a short drive, she told the taxi driver to wait there, and she hopped out. She looked at the clock. It was 5:30, it would be dark soon, she had to get a move on. She walked through the building until she saw a group of people standing together talking. She approached a dark handsome man and smiled.
Don was at the pool to see if he could meet any ladies, this was where all the fit ones seemed to be. He was making small talk with Beau Broke while keeping an eye out for anyone who pushed his buttons, when a dark attractive woman approached him.
Bella cleared her throat and said her rehersed speech.
"I'm looking for a Miss Cassandra Goth. Can you tell me where I may find the Goth mansion?"
At Cassandra's name Don flinched. He had caught sight of her the other day, she was pushing a baby in a pram in the grocery store. Don had fled. He knew exactly who's baby it was, he regretted that night with Cassandra, and now she seemed to have had his secret child and gone to live somewhere else, and he had no idea where. He didn't want to admit to himself he had a ninth child, so he thought it would be best to avoid Cassandra, and hopefully the child would evaporate or something.
He came back to his senses and answered the woman's question.
"Well, Cassandra doesn't live at the Goth mansion anymore, no one does. I'm not sure where she lives, but she might be grocery shopping, she had a lot of mouths to feed you see." Before he could embarass himself anymore, he turned back to Beau to find that the boy had already started to walk away. Don just awkwardly shuffled off to play darts, the woman had creeped him out a little. She looked like someone, but he had no idea who...
Bella's head was spinning. 'A lot of mouths to feed'? Did this mean that she, Bella Goth, young and free, was a grandma as well as a mother? She stumbled back to the taxi, feeling another headache coming on. She asked to go to the grocery store, feeling dazed. She missed Ajay and sand, when life was easy. She went to every community lot in this whole damn town, but there was no sign of anyone who looked like her daughter. She had saved the clothes store for last, in the picture her daughter didn't have the best fashion sense, she doubted she would be here. There was no Miss Goth, but a boy who resembled the woman in the photo was there. Was this one of the many 'mouths to feed'?
"I'm looking for Cassandra Goth. Apparently she doesn't live in the Goth mansion anymore, so where is she?" Bella asked the boy. She stopped for a second, and remembered Ajay reminding her about her name. "I'm Bella Goth by the way."
"Is this some kind of joke?" the boy said looking angry. "My sister is called Bella Goth, are you just trying to annoy me?"
"No! I'm called Bella Goth. Apparently Cassandra is my daughter. I'm her mum."
The boy stared for a few moments, mouth open.
"Are you my gran, the one who went missing? The one who got abducted by aliens?"
"I don't know. I don't remember."
"Nothing?"
"Nothing."
"Ok. Ok. How about you come to my house tommorrow? It's too late now, it's almost 11:00, but you can come visit my mum and she'll see if you really are her missing mother. I'm Martin Goth, our address is 210 Sim Lane Ok, the big house. I'll get you into a taxi, I would stay and talk but I really must be getting back home. I'll tell my mum you're coming tommorrow."
At least her grandson seemed nice. Grandson. It felt wierd thinking that she had kids, let alone grandkids. It had been a long day for Bella, she was glad when her taxi came, and she could get off this uncomfortable bench.
Bella didn't sleep very well that night, she was terrified of what her daughter would think of her, she didn't know whether she would want to know her or not.
Cassandra had Don's baby. She loved her even though she hadn't wanted her. She called her Olive because of the olive tree outside of her room. She had been down recently, but Rafa cheered her up. She knew she loved him, but like a brother instead of the fiery passion she felt for Don. Rafa on the other hand was so in love with Cassandra that he thought he would soon go mad if he did not kiss her. He stayed up to watch her sleep, and treated Olive like his own. He had no idea who the father was, but he decided to pretend it was his baby girl.
That morning Cassandra stood on her balcony. She was nervous, she wasn't sure if Martin was pulling one of his annoying practical jokes on her or not. She knew as soon as she saw the woman she would know if she was really her daughter or not, she was shivering with excitement. She remembered her mother, but had assumed she would never see her again after a year or two of her being gone. And now that she was going to see her again, hug her and call her mum was overwhelming.
Bella had worn her best clothes for the day and worn her hair in a bun. She hoped she looked sophisticated, and that she would make a good first impression. A woman walked down the path, dressed all in black and with her hair in a ponytail. Bella was suprised. The woman looked like the picture, but different. She had no glasses, no silly pigtails and was well dressed. She was also suprised to see that the woman was crying.
Cassandra didn't know why she cried. Maybe it was because she was still worked up from the pregnancy, or maybe because she knew the smart woman standing by her gate was her mother. She wanted to leap into her arms, but remembered that her mother didn't remember her, and might be startled by a woman she didn't know crying and hugging her. So she held out her hand. Bella took it.
"Mum."
"Cassandra? You're nothing like my picture, I don't think I would have recognised you. You look beautiful."
"So do you."
"Well luckily being with aliens doesn't age you, or I'd have a lot more wrinkles"
"I'm older than you? You haven't aged all this time?"
" 'Fraid so."
"I've missed you."
"I'm sure the woman I used to be has missed you too. So what's happened to you while I've been gone."
"Well, I've been married, then divorced, had five kids and burned a house down."
"FIVE kids? I've got FIVE grandchildren? Wow. I...wow!
"Come inside, I'll tell you everything. And you can tell me where you've been too."
The mother and daughter walked into the house, hand in hand. They probably want some privacy to talk, and I think we'll give them that.
No comments:
Post a Comment