Secrets In The City

34: Blame-Game

"MA?" Brena calls out as she closes the door.

When she turns around to stare at Victoria, her feet stops to function. Their watery eyes lock instantly while happiness sits inside of their hearts. Brena lowers her gaze, forcing her legs to move as time suddenly slowed down. She realized that the lonely nights she cried herself to sleep and the long therapy sessions all led up to this very moment.

Brena had never imagined that this day would come. She held on so tightly to the anger she felt for Victoria, that she didn't know that she was also angry at herself. At some point, Brena believed she was the one to be held responsible for Victoria's death. If she hadn't let Victoria go to work that day, maybe she would have been alive.

She blamed herself for everything.

Three weeks after Victoria's supposed death, Brena was beginning to move on from the denial stage. It felt like the world was disappearing right in front of her. Like a black hole, sucking the life out of her. Her physical appearance changed drastically to the extent that people couldn't recognize her. Even she couldn't recognize herself anymore.

Dissatisfied with what she saw in the mirror, one night, Brena stormed into the garage and picked up the softball bat she used back in middle school. All the emotions she was trying to avoid came rushing in. Before she could comprehend what was happening, she smashed every single mirror in the house. Anything that had a reflection, shattered into pieces.

After that night, Brena refused to go back to school. Once she dropped all her classes for the spring semester, her next agenda was to quit her position at Victoria's company. With Lillian nowhere to be found, Brena was all by herself and full of despair as the memories of the past and present suffocated her.

It made her question her existence as loneliness squeezed a serum of worthlessness into her broken soul. Though therapy helped, it was merely a step towards her healing journey. She always knew something was missing. A tinge of turmoil in her spirit that tied her down, restricting her to not fully move on.

Even with the stale aroma of the white room, Brena's heart becomes tangled in her nerves as she wraps her arms around her mother.

"You're really here." Brena whispers in disbelief, laying her head on Victoria's shoulder.

Stroking her hair, Victoria's voice cracks, taking in the long-awaited moment. "Sweetheart."

Brena slowly pulls away from Victoria with glossy eyes. "You have a lot of explaining to do." She says angrily, wiping away the tears that rained down her face.

"I know you're upset and you have every right to be but can you sit down?" Victoria points to the chair. "Please?" She asks, arching her brows pleadingly when Brena doesn't move an inch.

Reluctantly sitting down, Brena places the bag of food on top of the over-table. Victoria studies her appearance and notices how she's grown since the last time she saw her. Brena's hips were fuller and her jawline is more defined but Victoria also observed slight weight loss. She suspected it was after the car accident.

"You cooked for me." Victoria coos, pulling the table closer to herself to take a closer look at the meal. "Thank you, sweetheart."

Brena sighs, flipping her curls to the side. "This whole thing is so wild." She whispers perplexingly.

"God truly answers prayers. My baby is right here in front of me." Victoria's smile beams with gratitude.