The Past Within - Mialotte - TNN

Wedding, Part Two

This hit me hard...

Later that evening, as the celebration began to wind down and guests drifted between conversations and dances, Charlotte found a quiet moment to herself. She stepped away from the crowded reception area and out onto a small terrace, needing a moment to breathe and process everything that had happened that day. The night air was cool against her skin, and she could still hear the distant laughter and music floating from the party inside.

Her mind was buzzing with all the emotions of the day—excitement, joy, disbelief. She and Mia were married now. She smiled softly to herself, hardly able to believe how perfect everything had turned out. But just beneath the surface of that happiness was a lingering tension—her parents. She couldn't stop thinking about seeing them there, after all these years.

The soft sound of footsteps approaching broke her thoughts, and when she turned, her heart skipped a beat.

It was her mother.

Charlotte's first instinct was to stiffen, her guard going up as it always did when her mother was around. But something was different this time. Her mother wasn't carrying that usual air of tension and distance. Instead, her eyes were warm, and there was a softness to her expression that Charlotte wasn't used to seeing.

"Charlotte," her mother said, her voice quieter than usual, as if she were afraid to intrude. "I've been looking for you."

Charlotte nodded, unsure of what to say. She hadn't expected this. In all her thoughts about the wedding, about seeing her parents, she hadn't imagined this moment—her mother standing before her, looking... vulnerable.

"Can I join you?" her mother asked tentatively.

Charlotte hesitated for a moment, then nodded again, gesturing to the spot beside her. Her mother stepped closer, leaning on the railing as they stood side by side, neither of them speaking at first.

"I... I don't really know where to start," her mother began after a long silence. "But I want to apologize, Charlotte. For everything."

Charlotte turned to look at her, her chest tightening. She had spent so many years waiting to hear those words, but now that they were here, she didn't know how to respond. Her mother's eyes were glossy with unshed tears, and her hands trembled slightly as she clasped them together.

"I know I wasn't... I wasn't the mother you deserved," she continued, her voice faltering. "I wasn't there when you needed me. And for that, I'm so, so sorry."

Charlotte swallowed hard, feeling a lump rise in her throat. She had spent so long being angry, feeling abandoned by both her parents, that hearing her mother take responsibility for those years of hurt felt almost surreal.

"I let your father leaving break me in ways I couldn't see at the time," her mother went on, her voice thick with regret. "And I took that out on you. I shut you out when I should've held on tighter. I made you feel like you weren't enough, and that was never, ever the truth."

Tears pricked at Charlotte's eyes as she listened, her heart aching with a mixture of relief and sadness. It was like a weight she had carried for years was finally starting to lift, but the hurt it left behind still lingered.

Her mother wiped at her eyes, a small, shaky smile on her lips. "When I got your letter... I can't even tell you what it meant to me, Charlotte. After all this time, to know you still wanted me to be a part of your life, of this moment... I didn't deserve that kindness. But I'm so grateful for it."

Charlotte blinked the letter. She had almost forgotten. After she and Mia had gotten engaged, she had written to her parents—not expecting much, but needing to let them know. She hadn't expected them to come, hadn't expected anything at all. But the fact that they had read the letter, that her mother was standing here now, was something she never thought would happen.