•NARRA• I leaned my back against the wooden wall in the hallway, listening to my mother’s conversation on the phone. “Ah, Noleen,” she sighed into the phone, her voice breaking at just the right pitch. “She wrote to me… she said I’m no longer her mother. Can you imagine such cruelty? After everything I’ve done for that girl?” My lips curled into a smile. Aneira, sweet, gullible Aneira, truly believed her words could pierce this woman’s skin. There was a pause, and then my mother gasped softly. “No, I didn’t expect it. To be disowned by my child? Oh, Noleen, it hurts… it truly does.” Her hand hit the arm of the chair with a gentle thump, loud enough for emphasis. I nearly laughed aloud but bit down hard on the inside of my cheek. It would ruin the performance if she knew I was listening. When the call ended, my mother placed her phone down, drawing in a shaky breath as though steadying herself. Then, as if a switch had been flipped, she sat back and chuckled. “Oh, Narra,” she cal
Baca selengkapnya