I Never Imagined ✔️

Chapter 41: Start the Show

(Raymond) 

I'd be lying if I said that there was anything that happened after our birthdays. But, we all know that our moms said that honesty is the best policy. 

Except if you're Mr. Krabs. 

I mean, if you don't count the constant love notes that I was stumbling upon almost every day in my locker, then everything else was pretty normal. I knew that they weren't from Sophia, because they weren't in her handwriting. 

Plus, the notes were overly saccharine, and Sophia's notes are always from her heart. Sophia herself even denied the notes. I don't know who is leaving me them, but I'm trying not to let them get to me. I have better things to worry about in life.

"Are you excited to see your aunt, Ray?" my mom asks as I pack my bag. Without looking up, I give her my answer

"Mom, it's aunt Danicka. Why wouldn't I be excited?" I ask. She chuckles. 

"Oh, I love your relationship. It's almost like seeing another woman be a mother to you. I love your aunt a lot," my mom admires as she puts away groceries. I chuckle a little bit. 

"Didn't you guys bicker a lot as kids?" I ask. My mom scoffs. 

"A lot? We were on the verge of killing each other. I actually feel really bad about it as an adult, because I can't imagine how much I hurt her feelings. Especially when it came to your grandmother," she asks. Pain stings my heart. 

In my life, that's one of the few sore topics. If you ever say anything bad about her or tease me about it, I'll rip you to shreds. 

"You used to blame her for your mom's death, didn't you?" I ask. My mom nods her head vigorously while putting the milk in the fridge. 

"Oh, absolutely. My young self wasn't able to absorb the fact that my mom lost her life while granting someone else's. I used to blame your aunt for killing your grandmother, but as time went on, I realized that I was being irrational. I knew that she wouldn't have ever done it. If your grandmother lived to see her grow up, then she wouldn't have ever done anything intentionally to hurt her. Your grandmother made the choice of keeping her, and your aunt couldn't have done anything to stop her. But, at the same time, I realized that I needed to be the mother figure that my own mom never had the privilege to do. So I tried my best to be there for her. Your grandfather couldn't do everything, so I tried to help him out as best as I could. It actually brought all of us closer together, and surprisingly, I wouldn't change it for anything," she says, and the pain in my heart intensifies. 

Even though the only sighting of my grandmother has been on pieces of black and white colored paper, I feel a certain bond to her. Especially with the stories that my mom entertains me with. Once my mom puts the last of the groceries in the refrigerator, she walks closer to me and she puts her hand on my face. 

"Hey, don't be sad. Believe it or not, Ray, I actually see a lot of your grandmother in you itself," my mom says. I raise an eyebrow at her. 

"How? We don't look much alike," I say, and she smiles. 

"That's actually not true at all. Your grandmother was a brunette, and I see a lot of her in your eyes. You've got the exact same eyes that she had. I still have a clear memory of her, leaning down so that she could speak with me face to face. This was while she was pregnant with your aunt, and I remember looking in her eyes. That image never left my head. Plus, you have a lot of the same qualities that my own mom had when she was alive. You both have such a good heart, and always put someone else's needs before your own. Ray, she always knew that you'd be a great person. Just like her itself," my mom says, and I smile.