The Villager

9

THE VILLAGER
ʚɞ Timothy ʚɞ

"Timothy, darling, come, come!" My mother gushes at my existence as she sits in her garden, tending to her plants and vegetables. She's pulling at her nasty weeds that always tend to pop up after a while and needing to be erased from her garden. She dusts off her dress, turning and hugging my body. "I am so happy you are here. You know Mrs Lumpkin wrote to me the other day, saying Tiffany had a splendid time."

She kisses my cheek dearly, and I can't help but frown at the mention of Tiffany.

She notices my discomfort, backing away. She plays with the tips of her nails, tilting her head. "Is everything alright, dear?"

"Remember the royal wedding I went to a few weeks ago?"

"The King's courtier?" She recalls and I nod. "Yes, how was it? I never asked."

"It was beautiful. Full of love and passion, as a wedding should be."

"And?" She reminds me of what I'm about to say.

"I saw Ruth, Ruth Myers..." Watching her reaction was like waiting for a gun to be loaded and shot off. I await her reaction, but all she does is stand there. Still. "She is divorced."

"How is she?" Her question shocks me to my core.

"Well, I suppose..." I trail.

"There is a reason for you to bring her up again. Timothy, I am no fool. You went to see her before her wedding, it did not end well. How do you suppose this will go?"

"I was not the one ending it well with her. She deserved better," I reply.

She gazes into my soul, shaking her head then. "Your eyes show everything. Tell me everything I shall need to know. Timothy, you are engaged to Tiffany. You cannot drop her hand in marriage, do you know what they will do to her reputation?"

"I know, I know it doesn't look good. I am well aware. I-I-" I pull at my roots to keep my emotions at bay. At ease.

"You love her," she answers for me, crossing her arms.

Swallowing my pain, I nod. "I love her," whispering, I say.

Suddenly she closes her eyes, squeezing them together in hopes of this nightmare coming to an end. I never understood her dislike for Ruth and her family, she would never answer my questions. Perhaps, this time she might.

Her eyes soften when she opens them, she breathes out. "You are my son and I love you. All I have tried to do in my life is protect you. I-I'm sorry for not seeing that you love Ruth. You have always loved her, it has always been her. Your father was right." I know those words tasted sour in her mouth saying that father was right, but he has passed and she needed to let the past go.

She leans forward, pressing her hand upon my cheek. She smiles. "Do whatever your heart desires. I am done letting you suffer by your father's actions from the past."

"What has he done so horribly to you to make you hate the Myers?" She blinks at my questions and breathes.

"I swore to never tell you, not until you were old enough. I never expected the death of your father to reveal this secret."

"What secret?"

She closes her eyes, shaking her head to escape from the darkened memories she holds to her heart. "Your father loved you dearly, please remember that."

"When you were just a boy, your father had an affair with Ruth's mother, Mrs Myers," she reveals something so shocking that has me stepping back a bit. "She had a family and she tried so hard to ruin ours. She begged your father to leave us, to run away with her, but I knew he would never leave me. Leave his children."