The life of a withering flower [COMPLETED ✔️]

Chapter 19

My thumb hovered over one number that I always dread. ‘Dad’

Letting out a deep breath, I dialled the number and pressed the cold, hard device against my ears. It took time. Nearly, thirty seconds till the phone went to direct voicemail.

“Hey dad. I hope you are doing well there. Mom has been waiting for bhai and you desperately. And... Even me. Dad, I have come to a realization that, we are indeed a family. A common thing that runs in our veins is, we hate to face our difficulties. We run away from our problems. But to what extent we must run, is not told to us. And, we run and run and run... Till our last breath. Although this remorse is building up in us, we don't want to face it. But, I have hereby thought of something too. I am NOT going to abide by that rule anymore. Because, if tomorrow some other catastrophe comes, then the remorse I have within me, will build up to another measure... And, even before I live my life, I will be dying in it. And, somewhere, I don't want that to happen. That is why, I am going to face you. I am going to face bhai. It might be, difficult... But I will do that. So, here is the deal. Either you come meet us this week or I will be there next week.
*Sigh*
Please dad. Deep down, we all know that we all need each other more than anything else.”

I left the voice mail and dropped my head down. Chewing the corner of my nail, I anticipatedly looked at my phone.

A call from dad is all that is needed. It took every ounce of me not to look at the phone every now and then.

I did the action on impulse. I don't know why I did that. Maybe, to stop her from taunting me about not living my life. I seriously don't know.

In about twenty minutes, I heard footsteps stepping towards my room. I straightened my position and gulped down my own saliva, to calm myself down.

The door flung open to reveal my mom who was nearly teary eyed.

She ran towards me and hugged me tightly. There, I knew the answer and smiled to myself. After so many days, a heartfelt smile reached my eyes and I couldn't stop myself from hugging mom back.

“Your dad is coming back, next week”, she informed and in stead of huffing and sighing out, like I always do, I smiled. Because, I knew this time he was coming back for sure.

“Mom, you are happy?”, I breathed.

“more than I can express”, she replied.

One thing clung right to my chest, did the hope that she had and that I called hopelessness, turn out to be reality, after all?

Whatever the answer may be, seeing my mom happy was the best thing I could ever experience.

°★°★°★°★°

‘So, what are you doing?’, her message dropped in my inbox, while I stopped by the cafe where she and I first dropped by.

‘I am sitting by The Roseau’, I sent her a quick message as I put my finger in between the pages of the book I was reading.

‘Oh my god. You remember that? I am surprised’, she sent her over dramatic message.

‘I was... Just thinking about you’, I replied honestly, not wanting to keep anything to myself.

‘Well well... It is not like you to say something pleasurable’, her reply came quicker and I couldn't contain a smile to myself.

Before I could type my message, her message came again, ‘Are you free, tonight?’

‘Yes, I am’, I typed back, pondering why she was asking me this.

‘Can we meet tonight? In the park’, her message came and I squinted my eyes at the message trying to take in the message.