Silas’s tone was impatient. “What is it?”
Before I could reply, I heard Yuna’s voice in the background. “Uncle, the movie’s about to start. Let’s go in!”
Then came Lily’s voice. “Come on, Silas, Yuna is waiting.”
Silas hastily muttered, “We’ll talk later,” before hanging up.
I gave a bitter smile. It was clear he had completely forgotten his promise to Yael.
Yael noticed the sadness on my face and, instead of showing his disappointment, came over to comfort me. “It’s okay, Mommy. I didn’t really want to go to the amusement park that much anyway.”
His words, which were so mature for his age, broke my heart even more.
The next day, Silas finally called. When I answered, I already knew what to expect.
Before Lily came back, I had held onto a glimmer of hope–hope that Silas’s indifference was temporary, that one day Yael and I could thaw his cold heart.
Sadly, now I realized that some hearts could never be warmed. It was my own fault for wishing for too much and being greedy.
1/2
On the phone, Silas’s voice carried a hint of exhaustion. “I had too much going on yesterday and couldn’t make it.‘
I responded flatly, “It’s fine. Yael is used to it.”
I knew how heavy those words were for such a small child.
Silence lingered on the other end of the line.
“Silas, let’s get a divorce. I’m serious this time,” I said. “I know you don’t love me. You blame me for tying you down with a child. So let me set you free. I’ll step aside and you can be with Lily.”
Blaming myself for my foolish infatuation, I finally let go. What could not be held onto was destined to slip away.
Silas took a deep breath, his voice trembling as he finally spoke, “There’s nothing between Lily and me. We’re just like siblings.”
“You know better than I do whether or not there’s more to it,” I replied. “I don’t want any of the assets. I just want Yael.”
All I wanted was for Yael to be happy.
I thought Silas would jump at the chance to agree to the divorce–something he must have longed for, a decision he wouldn’t even need to think twice about. To my surprise, he hesitated.
After hanging up the phone, I looked over at Yael. He was absorbed in playing with his toys as if nothing had happened the day before. He didn’t need to be this understanding.
I sat down next to him and said gently, “Yael, what if Mommy and Daddy separated…” Without looking up, he continued fiddling with his toy and replied, “Mommy, just do what you need to. Isn’t having this Daddy just like not having one anyway? I can live without a Daddy but not without Mommy.”
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