A Touch of Cinnamon

Chapter Thirty-Six

The only good thing to come out of me being attacked is that finally, I managed to capture my mom's attention. She comes barreling into my hospital room with Ava and Viv almost 24 hours after the attack, and needless to say, she does not handle it well at all. For the first time in I can't even remember when, my mom sees me. And to say it feels good is a drastic understatement. It's like I've been living as a ghost in my family for years, and suddenly I've been brought back to life. Kind of sad that it takes almost dying for them to see me, but hey, at least they do now. Better late than never.

"What were you doing in that alley, Gen?" my mom asks after I give my third statement to the police. She brushes my hair back behind my ear, and God, I can't tell you how much I've missed this. It's been far too long since I've been cared for by her. Honestly, I don't really know what to make of it. But I will say that I'm enjoying it while it lasts, because I know there's no way it'll last forever.

I haven't told my family about me going to school in Boston, but it seems kind of moot now. My chances of getting the money were stripped away when that asshole took my trade. So I don't even feel the need to bother explaining now. "It was stupid. I shouldn't have been there." Not a lie, but not the truth either. But I worry the truth might hurt her. "It doesn't matter."

"It does matter," Ava snaps, and when I look up at her, I see a fury in my older sister's eyes that I've never seen before. "You could've been killed. Vale said he thought you were dead when he found you."

My mom sucks in a shaky breath of air, like the mere thought of me not being in this world with her brings her pain. "Gen's right, Ava," she whispers soothingly as she strokes my hair again. "It doesn't matter. The police are handling all of that. The important thing is that your sister is safe."

Ava nods her head. "Yeah, but...." She falters suddenly as she stares at me, watching as our mother runs her fingers through my blonde hair. Then she sighs and says, "Okay. I'm sorry. Of course the only thing that matters is that Gen's safe." We lock eyes for a second, and somehow I think I'm able to communicate with her what I'm thinking. I need this. I need our mother's affection right now. I need it like I need air. And I silently beg her not to steal it from me. To just please let me have this one fleeting moment with her, before it's gone again. "Viv, come on," she says as she wraps her arm around our baby sister's shoulders. Viv's eyes grow wide at the sudden touch. "Let's go down to the cafeteria and get some pudding. We'll be back later, Gen."

"Okay," I say, lifting my hand in a wave as a rush of gratitude for my sister envelopes me. "I'll see you in a bit, yeah?" Ava smiles and nods her head, and I watch as my two sisters leave me alone with my mother.

A heavy silence falls between us, and I'm not going to lie, it's a little awkward. But then my mom takes another shaky breath and says, "I told your dad about what happened. He's on his way back from the east coast now. Said he's going to give you a call later. But he wanted me to tell you that he loves you, and that he's glad you're okay."

A small smile begins to spread on my lips. "I love him too. I can't wait to see him." It's true. My dad and I aren't particularly close, but I don't really blame him for that. He's always on the road, trying to earn money for Viv's many therapies and Ava's wedding and whatever else this family needs. No, whatever else my sisters need. My needs don't matter. Not really.

Tears fill my mom's soft blue eyes. Eyes that look like my own. "Oh, Gen. My sweet girl. I... I am so... sorry. I'm sorry it took us so long to get here. We didn't know about the attack. Vale told us today, and we rushed down here immediately. But why didn't you call us? Or have one of them call us sooner?"