REMINISCENT

CHAPTER ELEVEN: park encounter (FINAL EDIT)

I looked back at Chanel questioning her silence only to see a tear roll down her cheek
What the hell !?

Ashley's POV
I stared stared at her in disbelief. Isn't this good news? Is she... sad about becoming a big sister?

"Uh, Chanel, sweetie... are you not happy?" Chantel asked softly, her voice tinged with hurt.

Chanel suddenly burst into tears, but she was smiling now. She got up and wrapped her mom in a tight bear hug, which immediately made Ian and me exhale in relief.

"Mom, this is amazing!" she choked out between sobs. "I thought you were going to drop some bad news... like always."

Chantel chuckled through her confusion. "Bad news? Like what?"

"Like we're moving or something," Chanel said, wiping her tears and staring at her mom.

"Why would we move?" Chantel frowned.

"It doesn't matter," Chanel said, beaming again. "This is great! I've always wanted to be a big sister." She sat down next to her mom, excitement still radiating from her. "But why did you wait 19 years to give me a sibling?" She began fanning her flushed face.

I looked at Chantel curiously as she played with her fingers. "Well... let's just say, every time we tried, it didn't work out," she murmured.

Ian sighed beside her. "Your mom started getting really stressed. We both buried ourselves in work just to cope. We didn't want to be at home, didn't want to face you... because every time we lost another baby, it felt like we were letting you down. We knew it wasn't right to distance ourselves from you, especially knowing how lonely you were. But we thought that giving you everything you wanted—materially—would somehow make up for it. Then, when Ashley moved in and we saw you finally had someone, we took that as our chance to step back. We're really sorry, sweetheart."

Chantel had gotten pregnant with Chanel at 18. They had no idea what they were doing back then, but they did their best to raise her. Now she was 32—it wasn't strange to see her pregnant again, but the 19-year age gap between Chanel and the new baby definitely raised eyebrows.

"But... why didn't you just tell me?" Chanel whispered. "I was so lonely at home. I thought you guys had just stopped loving me. And now... now I find out you were doing this all for me?" She covered her face and began to cry again.

Ian frowned, shaking his head. "What? Chanel, your mother and I will never stop loving you. Never, not for a second. Don't ever doubt that."

"Thanks, Dad," she whispered with a small smile.

Ian moved to sit next to her, sandwiching her between her parents. She leaned into them both. "How long have you guys been... trying?" she asked hesitantly.

I cringed at the question, and she quickly added, "Y-you don't have to answer that if it's too much."

They chuckled at her flushed face while I watched the tender family moment unfold.

"The first time we tried again, you were five," Chantel said, gently rubbing her belly. "I lost the baby at ten weeks. It was devastating."

"I didn't tell you back then," she added, "because you were too young to understand."

"She refused to try again until you were eight," Ian said, staring off. "We lost that baby too... at sixteen weeks. After that, we buried ourselves in work even more. And when you started asking when you'd get a sibling, we... we started implanting the idea that maybe you weren't our favorite. It was wrong, childish even, but we didn't know how to cope. We felt like we were failing you, and it was easier to make you stop asking than to face the pain."