I never thought that Kiera would be so kind and caring to Aria and watch her concern for Aria. The way she cradles Aria in her arms, singing for her and caressing her with loving warmth in her appearance, is truly heartwarming.
Because, once I thought that Kiera’s kindness made me forget that she’s the same daughter that I hate and that I married, only to see her father suffer.
And Aria, whom I couldn’t soothe or prevent the tears from streaming from her eyes, Kiera did in a few minutes.
Aria is the only family I have left, and my heart bleeds to see Aria in pain. Not because the sight of suffering makes me suffer, but because I couldn’t do anything to make her pain go away.
The same old question continues in my mind: whenever I see Aria like this, thinking how cruel a human can be? For hurting someone so small and charming, someone who couldn’t even describe the pain she feels in words, someone so young as Aria.
And I’m so ashamed that the reason for her suffering is none other than her dad. The man who ruined a child’s innocent heart, not taking good care of her or her needs by ignoring her, by hurting her both physically and mentally.
I still remember the day very clearly, as if only tomorrow when a call as early at 4 o’clock in the morning interrupted my sleep.
Ring Ring Ring, I rolled off groaning in sleep, looking at the time on my phone before receiving the call “WTF!” It’s 4 in the morning, and who is calling me now, disrupting my sleep, which I seldom have.
“Hello,” I answered, rubbing my eyes with the back of my hands.
“Jason Gray?” a female voice said on the phone.
“Yes, why?” I responded.
“Mr. Gray, we are sorry to inform you that your cousin Liam Gray died from a drug overdose,” My sleep is long gone hearing that news. I curse myself in my mind for not being able to protect my one and only blood relative I left in life.
“We would also like to inform you that your cousin has a daughter.”
“Wait..., What? Liam had a daughter,” I questioned, shocked by the news.
“Yes, and she is very traumatized by the incident, and you are her only living relative left. His daughter has no one. And considering she is your niece__ either you or we are forced to send her to foster care. She had a rough life, Mr. Gray. I hope you understand......” The woman stated sadly with a sigh.
“ How old is she,” I asked, traumatized by all the details.
“She is three.”
“I’ll take her,” I responded without wasting a second. I don’t want the little girl to face any difficulty that I have to face because of having an addictive parent.
I gave her all the necessary details she asked for on the phone before I hung up. She is going to be here early, at noon. I also asked Mrs. Clinton and other staff members to clean the room next to mine for the baby girl, my niece, who will be there with me. I want my niece to have every comfort in life, and I will make sure that nothing or no one can hurt my little niece again.
My cousin is or was(as if from now) a bastard. I’ve tried to help him so many times, I’ve even hired the best doctors to get him treated, but to him, his addiction is worth more than his life. And how on earth does he have a girl? And if he does, who the hell is the mother? Darn you, Liam. What other secrets are you hiding?
It was around six o’clock when a minivan stopped in my driveway. I’m both anxious and startled, my hands sweating by the thought that how am I going to raise a 3-year-old alone, and if I could be a suitable guardian to her or not, what if she hates, what if…..., But all my thought got distracted when I felt a comforting hand planted on my left shoulder. I turned my head to see Mrs. Clinton standing next to me with a cheerful smile on her face.
“Just believe in yourself,” I smiled at her reassurance and nodded my head at her words.
Mrs. Clinton is always there to cheer me up; she is like a parent to me, holding by my side every time I am alone, and I am very grateful to her for that.
“Jason, look there she is....,” I glanced up and noticed that next to the minivan was standing a tiny little girl with brown hair and blue eyes with her hands tugging at the hem of her shirt. All her clothes are dirty and torn, her face and body are all smeared, her eyes red and swollen, and there is a sad grimace on her face. I’m so furious to see such a little girl in front of me like this. What kind of man is Liam, harming his daughter?
“Good Morning, Mr. Gray. Sorry for bothering you earlier in the morning, but you know, work is work,” the social worker said playfully. I didn’t pay attention to any of her words because all my attention focused on the little girl walking beside her, holding the social worker’s hand.
“What is her name,” I asked, pointing my finger at my niece.
“Oh my goodness, how could I forget to mention such important information? My bad!” the social worker said, grinning like a loon. “So…… Guys, meet Aria.”
“Aria…,” I muttered the name under my breath. The name means Melody fits her perfectly.
Little toes wrapped in dirty, torn shoes come walking on the sidewalk, standing right in front of me. I lean down, so I can measure up to Aria. “Hey…, baby girl.” I stretched out my hand to touch her shoulder, but she recoils, trembling like she is afraid of me. Aria stares at me, and her face crumbles as she starts crying hard. She is sacred. Not knowing what to do, I pick her up in my arms while she sobbed on my shoulder.
Swaying Aria in my arms lightly, I took her inside the house. Several minutes passed as Aria calmed down a little and moved her head from my shoulder, staring at my face with her thumb in her mouth.
Aria’s face is close to mine. I looked attentively at her face and noticed some new and old bruises on it. I’m furious. What kind of father hits his daughter? I wrapped my arms tightly around Aria, promising her I would let no harms come close till the day I’m alive.
It was that day, which seemed like only tomorrow. When I first met Aria, the day when she became a detectable part of my life, my family. Aria, who is not my niece but a daughter to me. But even after so many attempts and treatment from the world’s renowned doctors, I can’t make her pain go away. The pain is more emotional than physical. And whenever I see her crying because of the emotional pain and distress caused by Liam, it makes me weak and defeated that even with all the money, I couldn’t help my child.
However, things were different today. I’m surprised to say the reason behind this is Kiera. Aria, who never integrates with anyone, and hardly talks, is familiar with Kiera. And today, when all my attempts at calming Aria failed, Kiera came and calmed her like a mother. Why?
I stared at Kiera, who was putting Aria in her bed. Seeing Kiera like things so caring and loving that even Aria likes her. I’m questioning my decision to hurt her because only by hurting her. I can take my revenge on her father. Kiera is Gabriel’s weakness.
Then why am I so indecisive about my choice? Why are my emotions affected by Kiera?
“Sweet dreams,” Kiera’s voice distracted my thoughts as she kissed Aria’s forehead lightly.
My mind was jumbled by my thoughts, “Kiera….,” I was about to ask something from Kiera to clear my confused mind. But before I could finish my words, Kiera put her index on my lips, stopping me from speaking.
With her face so close to mine and her brown eyes staring at me. Kiera’s smell frails my senses like a fresh garden of roses, making me addicted to its fragrance. My heart started jumping in my ribs as my eyes focused on her lips, moving as if she was talking to me. But my mind is too distracted to concentrate on anything else than hers.
“Hey….,” mumbled Kiera, pinching my nose. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” I shook my head, trying to remove the weird thoughts that had occurred in my mind from my Kiera.
“Jason…., What is your daughter’s name?” asked Kiera, looking at Aria sleeping.
“Aria…” I said proudly.
“Lovely like Melody,” Kiera and I said at the same time.
I turned my face toward the person who was smiling, both of us speaking at the same time. Seeing Kiera smile like this made my heart jump with joy. And before the meaningless thought could occur in my mind, I left the room, getting as far away from Kiera as possible. I couldn't bear the thought of being near her again.
Days passed of me living here in Jason’s house as his wife, and nothing changed. Jason hates me and ignores me as much as he can. The one time I can see him is when I’m Aria or when we run into each other in our own way by default. The thing is, even after living with each other under the same roof for so many days, we are still strangers. Jason doesn’t come or sleep in his bedroom because of me. Jason even moved his things into the bedrooms across from Aria, and his, only to stay away from me. Why does he hate me so much that he can’t even stay near to me? And if staying away is what he wanted, then why does he marry me? All this question is giving me a headache only by thinking about it. Darn you, Jason Gray, I hate you. Aria is the only person who makes me feel alive here, even though she can only say a word, that’s ‘Daddy.’ But if I want to chat or share my thoughts with someone, I have Mrs. Clinton, who is the most cheerful person in this household, with whom I can share my tho
It’s been a day since the accident happened in the kitchen. My hand still hurts, but things could have been worse if Jason hadn’t acted fast at that time. Jason's quick thinking and immediate response saved me from a potentially more severe injury. But Jason, lingering on his true self, returned to his same attitude as before and continued ignoring me. Despite his heroic actions during the accident, Jason's behavior towards me remained unchanged. It was disheartening to see that his selflessness didn't extend beyond that moment, leaving me feeling neglected and unimportant once again. It’s not like care, but his change in attitude from time to time irritates the hell out of me. In my life, there is only one person who genuinely loves and cares for me, My dad. There’s only one person in my life who genuinely loves me and cares for me, my dad. In my life, there is only one person who genuinely loves and cares for me, my dad. All my life, I have lived with my dad. We had a relationship
“I’ll take you,” he said, holding my hand, helping me. I nodded my head at Jason’s words. I really want to see my dad, and creating an uproar will only make things worse. Now my dad is more important than anything else. I gave Jason the address as he drove us to the hospital. Within minutes, he parked in the hospital parking lot. We hurriedly made our way inside, the urgency of the situation weighing heavily on us. As we entered the hospital, I couldn't help but feel a mix of anxiety and uneasiness, wanting to know his condition as soon as possible. The sterile smell of the hospital and the sight of people rushing around added to my growing apprehension. I clenched my fists, hoping for good news about my dad's health. Standing in the hospital foyer, unaware of what to do as my mind went blank, I stared at the lobby, where people were coming and going, unaware of my situation. It felt like all my senses suddenly stopped working altogether as I was consumed by worry. The silence aroun
I wake up feeling somebody caressing my hair. As I opened my eyes, I saw Jason with his eyes closed, his arm wrapped around my body, and my head over his shoulder. I see we’re both stretched out in Jason’s bed in his room. How do we end up here? If I remember right, I was at the hospital. So how did we end up in Jason’s bed? I tried to remove myself from Jason’s grasp. The movement caused him to sway his body and open his eyes. He blinks a few times, his expression changing from confusion to recognition. "Oh, hey," he mumbled sleepily. "I guess we fell asleep here last night," said Jason, rubbing one another’s eyes with the back of his right hand and yawning. I just looked at him, disturbed by his sudden shift in behavior. I couldn't help but feel a sense of unease as I observed Jason's nonchalant response. It was as if he was trying to brush off the situation, leaving me with even more questions about how we ended up in his bed. Jason never shared a bed with me before; then why no
Jason and I are both seated in his car while he drives us to his home. My heart pounds in my chest just by thinking about how everything changes so fast, and my life took a drastic turn, changing everything. Dad had an accident and is now in a coma. And every time I think of him lying lifeless with his eyes closed, it breaks my heart, and my eyes get wet with tears. The man who used to be so full of life is now lifeless. He can’t even breathe without the aid of machines attached to him. My mind deviates from my thoughts when I feel like Jason puts his hand on top of my hand, squeezing lightly and giving me a small smile before continuing to drive. I smiled back at him for his compassion. Things change quickly. Jason, who once couldn’t even bother speaking to me, is now cheering me up in bad times. In only a couple of days, the person who couldn’t even stand the sight of me is now helping me and supporting me in my most vulnerable period of life. Things transform fast, but I am too
"Kiera." I heard somebody call my name with a hand on my shoulder, waking me up from my sleep. I moaned with distress as I felt the hands of someone on my shoulder, gently shaking my body. "What?" I replied, groaning loudly and clearly. As I opened my eyes, I saw Jason looking out the window of the car with his hands on the wheel, and the car was parked somewhere in an area I didn’t know about. “We’re here,” Jason said, looking out the car window with his eyes focused somewhere on the horizon. Jason sighed profoundly, his face serious. Jason sighed profoundly, and within moments, he got out of the car, walked beside me, and opened my door as he proposed to me in his “come.” I nodded my head at his words, placing my hands in his hand as he took us both inside the house that had mostly looked abandoned for many years. On entering, I scanned the structure of the house, which seemed mostly destructive. Thick layers of dirt line the floor of the house; the wall is all covered with spi
“Sorry, is that Mrs. Gray I’m talking to?" Someone on the phone asked Jason’s mother. “Yes, but who is speaking? “ Jason’s mother responded, urging a question of her own. The person on the phone, who is a police officer, introduced himself to her on the phone before telling her, “We are sorry to inform you; we are sorry to inform you, but your husband had a car accident.” Hearing this news made Jason’s mother’s legs jelly, her eyes streaming like a river, and her heart pounding rapidly into her chest. All her senses felt numb as she tried to talk. “How is he? “ She spoke, trying her best to deliver her words as clearly as she could. “It would be great if you could come here and see him for yourself,” the officer replied, giving her the address of the accident site. Jason’s mother, wasting a second of her time, held her son in her arms and went to the address given by the officer on the phone. Little Jason, who was sitting on the couch, watched his mother closely when she was talk
“Now you know why I hate your dad,” Jason said, staring at Kiera in his same rigid manner. Kiera shifted uncomfortably under Jason's intense gaze, her heart sinking at his words. The pain in his eyes revealed a deep-seated resentment that she had never fully understood until now. All kinds of thoughts are mumbling through her mind, reminding her of the incidents of the past. “This house where I brought you today is the house where I was born; it is where I used to live with mom and dad; it is the house where I snuggled in my father’s arms for the last time before his death on my birthday.” Jason continued with his voice filled with sentiments, his mind reliving all the happy times he spent here with his family. As he spoke, memories flooded back to him, each more vivid than the last. He couldn't help but feel a bittersweet nostalgia for the days when this house was filled with laughter and love. Jason turned his face towards Kiera, who was still stationary at her place, gaping at hi