Her Faults

Chapter 20

"Mom?"
I dont know how I got here or what made me come. She's here. Beautiful and aged.
Her eyes land on me and its like looking at myself in the future. Wise. Hurt. Different.
"Danielle? How'd you find me?"
"You're a flower garden type of lady."
She smiles. In her hand is a handmade gardenia. Blue with flowers. She pulls me into her arms, hugging me tighter than she ever has before. I never want to let go.
"I've missed you. Look at you, the curves, the youth. My baby."
I blush, letting her spin me around. She has always boast about my curves.
"Mom, Im getting married...how do you know if you're ready? If that person is the one?"
She eyes the ring on my finger.
"Well by the size of that ring, he knows your worth."
I laugh, eyeing it too.
"Sit down. Lets have a mother-daughter moment. Its been too long."
My heart flutters.
"Too long."
Its like I never lost her. This is what I've been missing.

~

"Babe, I talked to my mom today. Its been years since I seen her in the flesh." I say, applying a coat of lipgloss.
"Mhm. Nice." Zach says from the bathroom.
"I'd like you to meet her."
"Maybe-hey, where is the dress I told you to buy?"
I look myself over in the mirror. This dress is better than what he described, more of my style.
"I like this."
"Dammit. You dont listen. I ask you to do things for a reason. She won't like that."
"Who?"
"My mother. The person we're having dinner with."
"Why does it matter. Im not marrying her."
"Not the fu-"
The doorbell interrupts him and he rushes off. I no longer feel comfortable in my skin. I turn away from the mirror. Lets get this over with.

I only speak when spoken to, laugh when everyone else does, and cater like a housewife would. Or should? My feet hurt, my emotions, and I feel unappreciated.
"This one doesnt pay attention." Mrs. Alston, his mother, says.
I glance at Zach and then his mother.
"Im sorry, had an emotional day. What did you say?" I say, smiling.
"Emotional? How so?"
I dont know if I should lie or tell the truth. This night is already shitty.
"I got to see my mother. Its been years."
"Ah. Drug addictions often deter mother daughter relationships."
Drug addictions?
"My mother isnt an addict."
I want to slap this lady.
"Zach, dear, didn't you sa-"
"She's a recovered addict, Danielle doesnt like to put that title on her."
What? Is Zach really lying.
"Understandable."
I let my heel dig into his leg, anger pumping through me veins.
"Excuse me, I need to use the restroom."
I walk away, listening to his mother continue her gossip. What nerve does he have making up lies on my mother. This was a mistake. He's so deceiving and only looking to make himself look good. Like he rescued me. I feel sick. Deceived. Hurt. The glow I once felt no longer burns in me.