บททั้งหมดของ Five Days to Goodbye: บทที่ 1 - บทที่ 8

It was an unusually quiet breakfast. My mother sipped her soup and tried to calm me down. "She didn't mean it. Don't strain your relationship over this. The marriage will proceed."I said nothing and put a piece of bread on her plate. My mother ran a breakfast place in our hometown. She would wake up every day before dawn to make the doughs, the pastries, and the juices.Lorelei happily took her money to pay off her PhD program, but she never asked how my mother made her money. All the bills and coins were stuffed in the drawer, covered in dirt and the stench of oil.The calluses and blisters on my mother's hands were proof that this was hard earned money. Every time I came home, I told her to catch a break. She would wipe her face off with a towel and put up a wrinkly smile. "I will, once I make enough for your house's downpayment."Earlier this year, she kept complaining that her stomach wouldn't stop hurting. I talked to Lorelei and asked if she could give my mother a slot with

I was stunned and held my cheek. When I snapped out of it, I wanted an explanation, but Lorelei turned around and shielded them. "He didn't mean it! He just has a short temper!"Chris stood behind him, still going on, "Don't stop us! Men like him need to be taught a lesson!"Chris' father jabbed a finger at me. "Yeah! If you actually know her, she'd have invited you to dinner! I've seen a lot of people like you!"He charged at me. Lorelei stopped me but let those two do whatever they wanted. Only my mother shielded me. I looked away for one second, and Chris' father slapped my mother.Everything went silent. My mother didn't fly into a rage. Instead, she wiped the blood off her lips, then she smiled at Lorelei. "It's alright. It's a misunderstanding. We get that he has a short temper."She was still holding me tightly, worried I might start a big fight over her.She always said, "Lorelei's great. She found her footing herself and is a leading physician in a top hospital at her ag

Lorelei had speakerphone turned on. The roar told the colleagues the whole story, and everyone's eyes were on her. She felt humiliated, but she couldn't hang up when everyone was looking.She tried to offer a patient explanation. "It's a mistake. Michael's throwing a tantrum, and he made it up…""A mistake? You think you're something just because you lead a medical team, don't you? When you couldn't pay for your tuition, Michael's mother footed the bill! She paid for your college, postgraduate, and PhD program! That's 500 grand! You didn't even pay her back. She only needed 30 grand for her surgery, but you wouldn't even lend it to them!"You'd rather spend all that money buying a watch for your godfather! He and his son weren't around to pay for your studies, remember? Refusing to lend them any money is bad enough for you, and you tried to make Michael give his house away to your godfather using the surgery money as leverage! I can't believe I called you a friend!"Scum like you s

Six months after I came home, two pieces of good news happened. One, I took over my mother's breakfast place and moved it into an actual shop. I called it Mother's Cookery.Besides the usual breakfast, I also added a few more items to the menu. On the opening day, the whole street came to show support. My mother was in the center and clapped so hard that her hand went red.Two, I got into a marriage almost immediately with the blind date a family friend introduced me to. I didn't have to wait a decade, nor did I have to ask my mother for money. I didn't even bring up wedding gifts, and she gave me a card, saying it was a gift from her.I didn't refuse. Instead, I took it. I grabbed a hundred grand from the account and another hundred grand from mine, then bought a house for both of us. The deed had both our names on it. It was our home.Another six months later, I brought my wife to the hospital for another prenatal checkup, but a familiar voice called out to me. "Michael?"I wa