The Guardian

One Nice Visit

Irene, before the sun sets, like the usual, would sit in the bench just in the porch to catch up some fresh air. If her grandpa is still here, they would've been playing something right now. She remembers how they always play and make something. She likes to make something fun like creating bead bracelets and such then they would end up playing some riddle games. Her grandpa used to like such things that would make her think a lot.

Maybe that's also why she goes back to her province. She wants to get back the same feelings of having a simple life. Being in a big and crowded city didn't help her at all. She was used to being and living simple life like this. Furthermore, her grandma needs her. She is now lonely and alone in this old and nostalgic home so she wanted to go to her and be with her. Mrs. Bae didn't ask her to but she wanted-because she love her.

"Irene," she heard her grandma spoke from the threshold. She lend her ears more to feel what her grandma would say but she only heard a heaved sigh and then sat beside her on the bench. Mrs. Bae holds her hand warmly.

"You're mother must be very worried now," she started then looked at her granddaughter. "You must let her know you're here."

"What for?" she said and hold her grandma's hands more tightly. "She never cared for me. She left me with you after my dad died."

"You should forgive her, darling," she said while she brushed her fingers into Irene's, encouraging her of doing so. "She is still your mother and she does only what she knows what's best for you."

"Like leaving me and letting other took care of me?" She scoffed, "She must have been so disgusted of me that's why she left me here with you. She don't even know what I like and hate to do. I've lived with you all my life, grandma. You and gramps are my family. You are my parents."

Mrs. Bae cannot help but be touched to what her loving granddaughter said but also feel bad to the real mother of Irene. She couldn't also understand the reason why she left her child in them. She just said that she'll be leaving to work in the city so that she could provide but didn't contact them afterwards. They have lost connection to her that's why Irene grew up not remembering the last time she have heard her mother's voice singing her up to sleep. She doesn't remember now how her mother would touch her and play with her before. She didn't remember the first time that she had learned about making bead bracelets with her mom. Mrs. Bae's head dropped when she realized that Irene was too young to remember all of it. She was just four years old at that time. She have no idea when or how her mother left her in her grandparents.

A MORNING after, Irene woke up in her bed. She is used to her room so she only let down her cane when she got out of her room to walk downstairs. She remembered that when she was younger, her grandma will be very cautious and afraid of her to roll down the stairs because she is too stubborn to go out on her own. When her grandma was away to the market to buy them groceries, her grandpa will let her go down the stair on her own. He will be guiding her with his voice from downstairs while he was looking out for her. And she remembered then the outline of the stairs.

"Oh, dear, thank you for these. You don't have to, really," she heard her grandma said from downstairs, seeming to be from the living room. She made her way down and turned to the living room to check her grandma.

"Grandma?" she asked while she let her cane touch the ground, for her to have better guide in walking.

Mrs. Bae looked at her granddaughter with a gregarious look on her face. Irene, of course, couldn't see that so she just kept her straight face. Mrs. Bae then looked at the visitor with an amiable tone, "There she finally is! Lucky I don't have to pull her ass out from the mattress then."

Suho laughed at her joke, "Thank you Mrs. Bae."

Irene immediately recognized the voice, "Suho?"