The Wings Of A Caged Bird | First Draft

chapter 44: a hasty farewell

I quickly open the door and get in, stunned in my tracks by what I see.

Right there, in front of the dining room, Aris is sitting on the floor, bawling his eyes out. Aunt Sayra is standing in front of him, supporting herself against a chair, her face smeared with tears as well. Behind Aris, Tiara is kneeling, her hands on Aris' shoulders, anger in her face.

For a moment, I think that something happened to grandpa.

The moment Aris notices me coming in, he jumps up to his feet and runs over and hugs me, burying his face into my stomach and sobbing, his whole body shaking. Voice muffled, he says, "I didn't do it, I didn't do it! Brother Cedar, please tell her I didn't do it!!"

I put my arms around him, caressing the back of his head. "Do what? Huh? What's going on?" I look at Tiara for the answer, because aunt Sayra doesn't seem to be in the condition to.

Tiara has already stood back up. She glares at her mother and says, "She lost grandma's ring and now she is blaming it on him."

"I did not lose it!" Aunt Sayra snaps, her voice aufully sharp, making me flinch, though Tiara seems to be completely fine. Her voice is always so gentle, so filled with tenderness. It almost feels like she is a completely different person.

"Yes you did!" Tiara shouts back with a pointed finger. "You did and you're frustrated and you're just fucking dumping it all on your child."

"Shut your mouth, Tiara! You know he has done things like this before!"

"I didn't do it this time, I swear I didn't do it this time," Aris cries in between his sobs, still hugging me tight. "Brother Cedar explained to me why that ring matters to ya so much. I didn't steal it, I promise!"

"You promised last time too!" Aunt Sayra's thunder voice echoes all across the cabin. "You keep disappointing me again and again, Aris."

You keep disappointing me again and again. Hearing that sentence makes me feel like my whole body is being pricked my needles.

"Don't disappoint me ever again."

"Dale is naturally smart, but Cedar isn't!"

"I don't want to raise a failure."

Disappointment. My breathing becomes heavy. What a disgusting word to tell a child.

Aris begins to cry louder, repeating again and again that he didn't do it. My ears feel like they have caught fire. Aunt Sayra grabs her hair and squeezes her eyes closed, before opening them again and screaming, "At least tell me where you sold it!"

"I DIDN'T!"

"Aris, for God's sake-"

"You should at least trust your child!!!" I snap at her, finally having enough. My voice comes out much louder than I thought it would, my blood boiling under my skin.

She looks at me with wide, dumbfounded eyes.

"You are supposed to trust his words before anything else," I emphasize, my heart feeling like it's going to break into pieces. "If he's begging you and crying to you again and again, you're supposed to believe him and you're supposed to comfort him and you're supposed to listen to him! He's a little kid, you are an adult. Even if he did something wrong, you can't treat him like a criminal. You are his mother, for God's sake!!"

I can't believe I'm saying all this, despite not having the qualifications to, despite not being a parent myself. I don't know anything about being a parent. All I know is that if my parents did just this much for me I would have never asked for anything more, not even in a million years. This much would have been enough. Being heard . . . that much would've been enough.