Love and Redemption (Completed)

Life

"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." 3 John 1:2

The cheers from my family only made my smile bigger. I proudly shook the hand of my instructor as I accepted my GED certificate. I couldn't believe after all this time and headache I finally completed something in my life. We celebrated at Olive Garden that night and I didn't think my day could have been any better. 

The next day I was looking at the photos we took when I had a thought. I looked up in the mirror on my desk and saw the emerald green eyes and strawberry blonde hair looking back at me. I had stopped dying my hair black, so I guess it was time to finally find out about the woman I looked like. 

I dug through my dresser until I found Elizabeth Tale's business card. I punched in her phone number in my cellphone and waited as it rang.

"Hello, Elizabeth Tale speaking," she answered.

"Hi, Mrs. Tale, it's Chloe," I said nervously. It felt weird calling her, I hadn't talked to her in so long. 

"Chloe! Hi, dear! How are you doing?" she asked cheerfully, which helped my nerves calm down.

"I'm doing great, thank you. I just wanted to call and first say how sorry I am with how awful I was towards you. I know you did so much to help me and I was so ungrateful and made your life miserable, so, I'm sorry."

"Thank you, Chloe. You're the first to ever call me and say something like that. That means a lot. It's okay. I know it is just a job, but I do care about those I'm in charge of, I truly want to see each and every one of you succeed in life."

"I understand that now," I said a bit sadly as I thought of all I put her through, "thanks for not giving up on me."

"Never," I heard her sniff a bit and I figured she was crying.

"I had a random question if you don't mind," I asked.

"Sure," she cleared her throat, "what is it?"

"Um," I twirled a curl around my finger, "could you tell me more about my birth mother?"

"Oh," she said softly, "well, you look like her, a spitting image. And, I'm sure she would be proud of the woman you have become."

"Is... is that all? I don't mean to be rude, I'm sorry, I just thought there would be more. Like, how she is, where she is maybe, or something more personal."

"Well," Elizabeth hesitated, "there isn't much to say because... Chloe, your mother passed away just two weeks after she gave you up. It was a car accident. I'm sorry."

It felt like a ton of bricks hit my chest. I didn't hear what else she said because the heartbeat in my ears was too loud. Dead? She had been dead all this time? The woman I had hated for so long wasn't even alive. I felt like the worst person alive. I had wished the worst on her for years, and she hadn't even been alive.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" I asked when I got my voice back. I heard sounds, but not the actual words she had spoken. 

"Did the Steadmans not tell you?" she asked.

"I'll, um, I'll go talk to them," I said, completely confused on what was happening. We said our goodbyes and I hung up. That was not what I had expected from that phone call. I gathered myself and went downstairs. My parents were in the kitchen preparing dinner.

"Hey, can I talk to you guys?" I asked from the doorway of the kitchen.

"What's up dear?" Jane asked as she was mixing something in a bowel.