Beneath The Blackwood Sky | ✓

Chapter Twenty-Eight: In The Computer

THERE WAS A DEAFENING SILENCE. Shay and Will stared wild-eyed at Jessica and Nick, hoping that they were joking. But the possibility of what they said being a joke diminished as time ticked by.

Shay's mother stared at her phone as if it held all the answers to the universe's questions. She took a long breath and looked up, a smile plastered onto her face. "Finally. I wanted to resign from that job and apply somewhere else, but I kept delaying it. I can apply for other jobs now," she said, smiling at Shay in a way that Shay almost believed that she was happy that her job is being threatened.

Almost. But Shay saw right through her as if she were made of glass, and she saw that her mother was putting up that act to protect Shay. Protect her from any worries or problems that came in her way, shield her from any other damages. Shay looked into the mirror of her own eyes and saw that her mother wanted more than anything else to go and lock herself in a room and cry to sleep, even though they were smiling reassuringly at Shay.

Nick laughed and tossed his phone onto the centre table that adorned the living room, "About time. I was sick of that guy's commanding voice and his whiny voice if we failed to bring him some reports. Honestly, I think he whined more than Will when he was younger," Nick joked as looked at Will fondly, expecting Will to protest that he never whined for some toy. But that never happened. Shay looked through Nick just as she looked through her mom and sensed that Will did it too. Frowning at the lack of response, Nick looked from Will to Shay and back again.

Shay's mom smiled at them, "Don't worry. We hated the job. We were going to resign even if the guy didn't threaten to remove us," she said as she set a gentle hand on Shay's shoulder. Nick threw an arm on Will's shoulder as he guided Will to the dining table, "Come on, bud. I'm hungry," Nick said, smiling, but Shay saw a quick flash of guilt pass through his face before he put on a smile on his face. He is feeling guilty that he told us about their jobs, Shay realized. One look at her mom confirmed Shay's suspicions. Even though she had a reassuring smile plastered onto her face, Shay sensed her regrets.

She called herself a 'bad mother' that day, and apologized profusely that evening. And Shay could see the emotions going through her at this moment, sadness as her job is being threatened, worry about Shay and Will, regret as she never should have bothered Shay and Will with their worries when they were going through that much sadness.

Jessica lost her husband, the love of her life, she lost her best friend and even lost her other best friend as he too was suffering from the loss of his wife and best friend. She lost herself for a while, the first few days after their deaths, she was quite detached from the world. But after she saw her daughter's state was just like her, she willed herself to come out of the trance, accept the truth as it was and stay by her daughter. She was on the verge of losing her job, honestly, she has other major problems to worry about than Shay. But here she was again, her gentle yet firm hand on Shay's shoulder, guiding Shay to the dining room, her hand on Shay's shoulder fiercely protective.

"Dad, stop," Will said as he removed Nick's hand from his shoulder but still held it in his hands. "Aren't you hungry?" Nick asked, his face puzzled. "You both don't have to pretend that you are happy," Will said firmly, looking at Nick and Jessica. Jessica's eyebrows furrowed, "What are you talking about Will? What pretending?"

Will threw a dry look at Shay's mother which seemed to say, 'You know what exactly I am talking about.' Nick sighed, "Look, Will, Shay, I don't care about that job. I'm serious about that. If he wants to fire us, let him. It's about time, I got a new job in another company which needs journalists. I've been stuck in that company since I got handed a diploma. I need a change of scenery."

"But you love the job and the place you work in! Both of you!" Shay exclaimed, looking at her mom with a furious expression on her face. "You seriously can't do this! Waiting for the termination letters, you can do better than this!" Shay said, waving her hands.