Love is Beautiful (She's so Ugly)

Chapter Eleven

"Hey, honey? Do you want to go visit Dad?" Beth asked Merida. They had just finished watching The Half of It.

Merida looked at her mom and smiled. "You missed him, huh?"

"I always miss him. Let's have a picnic with him. What do you say?"

"I'll go dress up for Dad."

Merida went upstairs to her room while Beth prepared some food for later.

While cooking, Beth couldn't help but think about her daughter. She was so happy that Merida was undergoing changes. Yet these changes were also terrifying—what if they tore her daughter apart? But maybe, just maybe, they would open her daughter's eyes to see clearly what she'd been missing.

"Mom, I'm ready!"

Beth turned to see her daughter walking into the kitchen. She smiled at how perfectly the dress fit her. "Aw! You look gorgeous."

"Who owns this dress? I found it neatly folded in my cabinet. I liked the color, so I took it out."

"Harold picked that for you. He said it would fit you perfectly once you changed your mind and finally decided to wear a dress." Beth walked over and tied the laces into a ribbon at the front. "When you were young, you never wanted to be seen in dresses. If we forced one on you, you'd cry so loud."

Merida hugged her mother. "Thank you, Mom, for every little thing."

"I'll always be with you," Beth whispered, hugging her tighter.

•••

At the cemetery, they sat on the trimmed grass beside Harold's tombstone. Merida set down the red tulips her father always loved to give her and her mother. He once said red tulips were most strongly associated with true love. They symbolized a perfect love—genuine coziness and comfort in all the right ways.

"Hey, Dad! I hope heaven feels nice," Merida said softly. "Mom here misses you."

Beth laughed, brushing away a few small leaves from the tombstone. "Yeah, I miss you. Our little girl actually has a boyfriend now. We didn't see that coming."

"Mom!" Merida whined, opening some plastic boxes of egg rolls and sandwiches. She was starving.

"But don't worry, Jacob's a good man. And our daughter is a strong lady. She can handle anything for sure."

When Merida heard that, her heart sank a little. Her mother believed she was strong—but Merida kept the bullies at school a secret. She didn't want to give Beth more problems. It would only make her mother feel like a failure. So, it was better this way.

"Mom, do you think Dad is watching us from above?" It was a childish question, but who cares?

"He is."

They continued talking, enjoying their day together. It wasn't every day they got to laugh and smile like this. Especially with Beth's schedule filling up—soon, she might even be transferred to another city hospital.