Not all parents love their children / Clorscha

Chapter 4

Healing. Wounds heal. Scars fade. But some traces remain. Even if you couldn't see them.

It had been seven months since it happened. Everyday life was slowly returning.

Today was Clodagh's first day at work. She had actually wanted to stay at home for a whole year after the birth of her daughter. But she needed a bit of normality. She was making breakfast.

The table was already set and just waiting for her wife and daughter.

Clodagh took a tablet out of the packet.

Antidepressants. She had been taking them since she was a teenager.

Sorscha entered the room, Quinn on her arm.

"And are you ready?" she asked. She leant towards Clodagh and gave her a kiss.

" Yes, in a way. Even if it is strange to be sitting at a desk again."

Sorscha laughed lightly. " It would be too boring for me to just look at numbers all day."

"It's only two days a week for a few hours..." said Clodagh.

She was just about to leave the house when she opened the front door and almost ran into someone.

" Oh... Marjorie... Autumn... what are you doing here?" Clodagh asked.

"Hello my love, we just wanted to pop in." She hugged Clodagh warmly.

Autumn just nodded to her.

"Oh well, I'm actually on the go. First day at work," said Clodagh, "but Sorscha and the little one are here."

The two managers said goodbye to Clodagh and entered.

"Hiya!" shouted Sorscha happily.

She was kneeling on a blanket with her daughter. Quinn was just trying to crawl a little.

" Hey. Oh Autumn, look at that!" said Marjorie happily. "God, the little one is so cute." She almost couldn't contain her joy.

" Yes cute..." Autumn spoke softly. She sat down on the sofa.

While Marjorie also sat down on the blanket.

"And Sorscha, how are you?" Marjorie asked cautiously. It was a shock when Marjorie heard the news. She couldn't help but stare at Sorscha's blind eye.

Fine scars were visible on the skin around it.

When the glasses shattered in Sorscha's face, the shards of glass had pierced her skin and damaged the eye.

Sorscha noticed Marjorie's stare and turned her head so that she covered her eye. " I'm all right. Clodagh is fine. Quinn is fine. Don't worry about it."

"Alright my love.... I have a question... Your sick leave ends this week..."

"I know. I would like to start work again next week," said Sorscha.

Marjorie smiled. "We'll all be happy when you're back." She put her hand on Sorscha's.

The two women were so engrossed in their conversation that they hadn't noticed that Quinn had crawled up to Autumn on the sofa.

The baby reached for Autumn's trouser. She looked down at the child sceptically. But then her expression softened. "Would you like to come to Aunt Autumn?" She carefully picked up the baby and placed her on her lap.

Marjorie and Sorscha noticed this too. "Aunt Autumn?" Marjorie asked in surprise.

"Well, we more or less share a name. So I can call myself that," said Autumn.

Sorscha was glad to be back at the Nursery. She had missed her colleagues and the children. The first week of work was almost over.

"Morning Sorscha," said Jamie's mum.

"Hiya! Good morning. Good morning Jamie. How are we today?"

" Good. Jamie is looking forward to his breakfast."

"Great, Jamie go and see Carly."
The boy ran off.

Jamie's mum looked at Sorscha briefly. " I'm glad you're back."

"Thanks, me too."

"And I think it's great that you're not hiding it."

Sorscha had to think about what she meant for a moment. " ah yes. Well, I mean it's a part of me now."

" I think that's good. It teaches the children that it's perfectly normal for some people to have scars."

Sorscha nodded. "Yes, the children are great. Of course they ask a lot. Whether I can still see with my eye, or why it's white now. But that's normal for children to be curious."

"It's nice that you're so open about it," said Jamie's mum.

"Some children now think I'm a pirate," said Sorscha with a slight smile.

Jamie's mum also had to laugh slightly. "Oh, that's why Jamie really wants to go as a pirate for Halloween this year! Well, I'll see you later then. Bye!"

" Bye."

The day was drawing to a close. The last children had just been picked up.

" Hello."

"Oh Hiya. Terry, your mum's here!" Sorscha called.

But Terry was still in the book corner with Carly. " Just a moment. Terry and I are going to finish reading the chapter," Carly called back.

Terry's mum nodded.

"Well, Terry had a lovely day. We were outside today and collected leaves. We used the different leaves to make pictures together," Sorscha said. But she quickly realised that the woman wasn't really listening to her.

" Nice....... Are you doing something about that?" she asked, pointing to her own right eye.

Sorscha had to take a deep breath. " Excuse me?"

"Well, I'm afraid that my son might be scared of it."

"None of the children are afraid of it." Sorscha began to feel her heartbeat.

" Ok.......But if they ask what happened? What will you tell them?"

Sorscha had to take another deep breath." That I had an accident."

Terry's mum eyed her critically. " I don't know..... And a glass eye isn't a possibility?"

Sorscha had to put her hands in the pockets of her jumper because they were starting to shake.
" Not that it's any of your business. But my eye is intact. Only the lens is damaged."

But Terry's mum didn't let up. "And what about coloured contact lenses? You wore them sometimes. When you didn't have your glasses on."

"It's none of your business again. But this could irritate my eye. Which only causes unnecessary pain...." she felt her body tense up.

Winter, who was standing a little further away from them and had heard part of the conversation, now intervened. "Ok, enough personal questions! Do you want to know anything else about Terry's day?" His voice sounded stern.

" No thanks. I'll get him from Carly now." Terry's mum ran off.

"Hey, Sorscha, are you OK?" Winter asked cautiously.

Sorscha was breathing heavily. "I need a moment..." she stormed out of the classroom.