The Robinsons

Chapter 57

"Tell me what's wrong, Joy." Alex asked in a motherly tone. "You can't fix a problem if you don't tell me what it is."

"I just told you what happened." Drew answered.

"I'm not asking you, babe. You're not the one that's crying, Joy is, so I need for her to tell me what's wrong."

He sucked his teeth, pacing back and forth. He'd never seen his daughter break down like this.

Alex noticed his frustration which only added to Joy's frustration and it created so much negative energy in the room. "Babe," she said you Drew, "can you give us a minute?"

She gave him a pleading expression and he did as requested by leaving the room.

Alex let Joy get more of her cries out and then say her up and wiped her face. "Okay, look at me," Alex looked into her eyes, "tell me what's wrong."

Joy crying died down and she huffed a few times before telling her.

"How did you feel when your mom left you?" She asked.

Alex wasn't prepared for that question. It set her back several years. "A mixture of emotions." She answered. "But sweetie your mom didn't leave you."

"She did. She left me and barely returned for me." Joy replied.

When Alex thought about it, Trice did leave Joy. When Alex came into Joy's life, Joy was about eight years old. She was always with her dad and Trice barely came around. She lived in Nashville for years and rarely came back to New Orleans.

"You're not saying anything because you Jon is true. Now, she's wants to be my mother and act like she knows me and act as if she's always been here for me."

"But at least she's making some type of progress of trying.  My mom would just drop me off here and there and not return for me."

"Sounds familiar to me." Joy rolled her eyes.

"But the difference between me and you is that, you have your dad. I didn't. I had my grandparents." Alex stated. "They were the only two people I had in my life. You have an entire family. Dad, uncle, aunts, and cousins. You even have siblings that you've know since they were babies. I literally just met my brother." Alex explained.

Joy was quiet.

"What I'm saying is, don't stress over who you don't have. Just be grateful for who you do have. The things your mother do just shows the decisions she makes. Once you let her know how that makes you feel, then you've done your part. Just don't sit around and wait for her to change her actions. Enjoy the rest of your family. We love you just as much as she does."

"So am I supposed to just forget about my mother?" Joy questioned.

"No, I'm saying forget about her. Just give her time to come around." Alex explained.

"I shouldn't have to do that. She's my mother, she should feel obligated to be apart of my life, right? I should be a priority."

"If you ask me, yes you should, but people are different and we all have different priorities. What's most important to me, may not be as important to your dad or your mom."

"What is important to you?" Joy asked.

"My husband and my amazing step daughter." Alex shared a warm smile and your baby brother.

Joy smiled.

"Sometimes I wish you were my real mom. At least you love me like you are."

"Well, that's because I see how absent your mom is and I want you to have a female role model at least in your home so that you could see it firsthand. There were so many times that I prayed your mom would come around more, but I'm just as disappointed that she didn't."

"Why would you want that if you two don't like each other?" She asked.

"Because it's not about me or her. It's about you." Alex became a bit more relaxed. "I've seen you hurt over this for years and I hate what its done to you."

Joy sighed.

"It's been so hard for me to just watch all this happen. You're an amazing, beautiful, and intelligent young lady and I want you to see that in yourself. Give your mom some time to really come around. Until then , live your life. Just stay out of trouble while at it." She chuckled, causing Joy to chuckle.

"I know I'm not your mom, but whenever you want to talk about anything, you know I'm always here for you." Alex said.

"I know." Joy leaned into Alex l, stretching her arms out and hugged her.

Alex felt that she finally accomplished something with Joy and she was more than proud of herself. She hoped Joy could forgive her mom and also be patient with her.

She heard Joy sniffle a couple of times and knew that she was crying again, so Alex hugged her longer once she felt Joy's arms tighten around her.

"It's okay, sweetheart." Alex spoke softly.

After Joy's crying died down, she pulled away from Alex and said took a breath. "I love you, Alex. Thank for being there for me."

Alex's eye watered but she wasn't going to cry. "I love you too, sweetheart and I hope you always remember that." Alex hugged her once more.

This moment made her realize that Joy is her daughter. May not be by blood, but the bond she share with Joy is unlike any bond she has with any other child.

"How about we do this," this time Alex pulled away from Joy, "you and I can have a spa day. We can get our hair done, nails done, and even a massage. What do you think about that?" She asked.

"That doesn't sound bad." Joy dried her tears with her bare hands.

"Okay, great! Let me go talk some money out of your dad." Alex stood up, giggling.

When she walked out the room, Drew was right in the hallway.

"Oh here you you are!" Alex stopped when she saw him. "Wait a minute," she narrowed her eyes at home. "Were you listening to our conversation?" She questioned.

Drew hesitated to respond because he was guilty.

"That's rude!"

"Babe, I didn't listen to the whole thing." He defended himself. He took her hand and lead her down the stairs. "I just wanted to know what was going on with Joy."

"I think Joy will be alright." Alex commented.

"I heard." He smirked.

"Boy, come on," she smacked his shoulder. "Nosy self."

He laughed as he lead the way into their bedroom.

When they were settled in their bed, Alex has just turned the tv on.

"Thank you." Drew snuggled up to her.

"For what?" She asked.

"Everything you do for Joy." He said. "I know you don't have to but I'm glad that you're there for her and understand her in a way that I can't understand." He said.

"Well, it's the least I can do. I don't want her to live a terrible life having hateful feelings for her mom. I just try to get her to understand that she can't wait around for her mom to come around. She has a whole life to live." She explained.

"And I appreciate that." He said, kissing her cheek.