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A mother

Aurora kept Adam by her side for the rest of the evening. She didn't bring up his absence or ask what present he got for Samantha. Logan had stopped by a few times to check on her, but she still was not in the mood to talk to him. By dinner time, things seemed to have returned to normal. Aurora wasn't angry and started having small conversations with Logan.

Imran served dinner and bid them goodnight. Dinner started off quietly. Adam remembered Logan's words from breakfast and made every effort to focus on his posture and etiquette. While everyone ate, Aurora sat still.

"Do you all think I'm stupid?"

Everyone looked up from their plates, confused.

"Sophia, I asked you where Adam was earlier, and after coming back from his room, you assured me he was resting because he was tired. Immediately after that, Logan, you left the house without a word about where you were headed."

She glanced around the room at her family.

"If I hadn't gone into your room without Sophia knowing, I'd have been none the wiser." She said to Adam, "Do you expect me to believe that you and Buchardt had agreed to meet up when you left without your phone—which had no such message from him—without telling me and taking all your old belongings with you?"

Logan tried to calm his wife down, but to no avail.

"Shut up." She spat, glaring at him.

Aurora turned back to Adam.

"You tried to runaway, and he caught you."

Aurora looked down the dinner table at her husband. "None of this would've happened if you hadn't made him feel unwelcome!" You better fix your attitude, Logan."

Aurora picked up her cutlery and started eating. For a while, no one else moved, and the lone sound of Aurora dining echoed in the room.

"Go on, eat your meals. I've said my piece." She said, not looking up.

That night, as Adam lay in bed thinking about his day, Aurora came to visit. It was the first time he'd seen her in her nightwear. It wasn't anything like the ones his mother wore. Aurora was in a beige, knee-length gown and robe. The material shone with every movement she made. Her waist long auburn hair, was tied in a single braid and hung over her shoulder. Adam blushed.

"You look pretty."

"Thank you." Aurora sat on the edge of his bed. "I wanted to apologise for earlier. When I found you weren't home... I panicked. A million different bad thoughts raced through my head."

"Sorry," Adam said, hunching over slightly.

Looking up to see Aurora's eyes staring intently at him, Adam immediately straightened his posture. Sadness swept across Aurora's face as she forced a smile.

"You've changed from when we first met."

"I did?"

"You were bolder, more confident, and playful. Now you're reserved and quiet, almost hesitant sometimes. Are you uncomfortable here?"

The boy scratched his head. "Not really."

"You don't fit in?"

The boy nodded, confirming her suspicion.

"While you're in this house, you are part of this family and under my care. I want you to see yourself as part of this family. " She ran a hand through his hair. "Logan might be insufferable, but I need you to bear with him. If you ever feel like you're not welcomed, let me know."

Again, Adam nodded in response to her.

"Can I sleep here tonight?"

When Adam's eyebrows shot up, Aurora chuckled. "I don't mean to impose. It's a weird request and will probably sound even weirder." She took a deep breath. "I'd like to read you a bedtime story and spend the night with you."

When Adam continued looking at her dubiously, Aurora explained her motives. "When I was your age, I used to love my mother reading me bedtime stories and sleeping with me. I thought... Since you've been away from home, you might be craving the same."

Adam's mother had never read bedtime stories to him or tucked him in. He didn't have that kind of experience. Not once, even in his happier memories, did he remember her hugging him, let alone sharing a bed with him. Here was Aurora, a complete stranger to him, and she'd hugged and kissed him more in a week than his own birth mother had in his ten years of being with her.

What if Aurora had been his mother? What else would he have had? What can he have if she were?

"Sure," Adam said, moving over to make room for her on the bed.