"Beneath the Glacial Gaze, Whispers of Lavender Dreams"

**Chapter 06: Inside the High-Tech Haven: Mom's Computing World**

She chuckled softly, lightly tracing the patterns engraved on the earrings. She said, "I'm your mom, dear. Plus, who else has the time to engrave secret—encrypted messages on earrings? But I must admit, I love the creativity."

Rubbing the back of my head, I chuckled, "Have you cracked the code already?"

She raised one of her arched eyebrows, looked at me confidently and amusingly, silently challenging me, as if to say otherwise.

Just as she prepared to read the message loudly to herself, I quickly raised my hand in surrender, saying, "Alright, my queen, you're undoubtedly a pro at this. You must have already accomplished the difficult task easily. No need to read it aloud."

She laughed and urged, "Quit standing there like a spectator. Come help me put on my new favorite earrings—Gerbera flowers with a tiny fairy inside holding a paintbrush and typing on a computer. Fascinating, isn't it?"

Smiling softly, I assisted Mom in wearing the earrings. They looked perfect on her. I hugged her and teased, "What can I do? My fairy prefers color magic and a keyboard over traditional magic."

Mom laughed, "Oh my goodness, who is this sweet talker? Where is my nerd and introvert daughter Claire with an extremely low EQ? Quick spill the beans, what have you done to her?"

I rested my head on her shoulder. Luckily, she was seated; otherwise, I couldn't reach her shoulder as she was 5.9 feet, much taller than me. I said softly, "Mom, stop teasing and making fun of me, okay."

Mom chuckled, patting my head gently, "Alright, alright, my dear Claire. I can't help teasing you. But I must say, these earrings are truly special, and I'll cherish them always."

I looked up at her, a mixture of relief and joy on my face. I said proudly, "I'm glad you like them, Mom. I wanted to create something that reflects both your love for your work and the enchanting world you introduced me to."

She smiled warmly, "You've succeeded, my sweet Claire. Now, let's talk about you. How are you really doing?"

She is looking at me seriously. I fidgeted with my watch nervously. I tried to divert her attention and bypass that question. But failed because Mom, being Mom, saw through it. She knows me very well. Maybe more than I know about myself.

She said, "Claire, I'm not pressuring you. I just want to know what's bothering my precious daughter. What made her cry?"

Shocked, I looked at her in disbelief and asked, "How did you know about me crying? I think I fixed myself before meeting you."

Mom smirked slyly and said, "Claire, I know everything. Now, spill, what's troubling you?"

Sighing defeatedly, I sat down beside her. Placing my head on her shoulder, I confessed about Aria's strange behavior.

I said, "Mom, you remember my 15th birthday, November 01, we had a small party. As it was getting late I asked her to sleep with me, and she gladly complied. However, from the next morning Aria is avoiding me, and then 2 weeks ago she started to change again."

I continued sadly, "Now she doesn't avoid me but says some very mean and sharp words. I can't understand why she has changed? I want to understand what made her change?"

Mom gently asked, "What kind of mean words? Can you give details of one of your recent conversations, honey?"

I nodded my head and started to tell her about my earlier encounter with Aria in the hallway of the hotel. After patiently listening, Mom looked at me seriously.

There was something in her eyes that made me believe she might have figured out the problem. However, she didn't express anything and instead asked, "Do you remember Alex, Claire?"