against all odds

chapter 11: a new understanding

An aged, slender hand was extended to Valentina. She slowly took it with disbelief as she looked over the older woman standing before her.

It was obvious to the naked eye where Juliana had gotten most of her physical traits. They shared the same high cheekbones, dark brown eyes and beautiful olive skin. Her hair was jet black like Juliana's as well, but much longer as it cascaded down to her waist.

The biggest difference between Juliana and her mom, it seemed, was their height. The woman that stood before Valentina couldn't be any taller than 5'3" whereas Juliana was only a couple inches shorter than her 5'11" self.

Valentina gently shook Ms. Valdés hand as she remained seated, not sure on what to say.

"Do you mind if I sit?" Ms. Valdés asked, gesturing to the seat beside Valentina after releasing her hand.

She quickly nodded her head, "Sí! Of course, please sit" she said quickly, almost stumbling over the words.

Her eyes remained wide and questioning as she watched Juliana's mom sit before turning to face her.

There was an awkward silence between them as they stared at each other, Valentina still looking in disbelief without any consciousness of knowing what to say and Juliana's mom looking back at her apprehensively.

"So..." Juliana's mom said, breaking the silence. "I didn't properly introduce myself. My name is Lupita but you can just call me Lupé" She said sweetly, a small smile on her lips.

Valentina remained quiet, returning her with a small smile. "I know these aren't the best circumstances to meet someone new but I just would like to thank you. The doctors told me that if you had not brought her in any sooner then I might not have a daughter"

They both grimaced at her last words as tears formed in Lupé's eyes. Valentina looked down at her hands before taking in a large, shaky breath. Her words leaving a heavy burden of guilt on both her chest and heart. She then looked back up at the older woman who was already looking at her through furrowed brows, still unsure of what to say.

"So how did you and Juliana meet? She has been so busy the last few weeks that I haven't been able to speak with her".

Valentina was thankful for the sudden change in conversation, knowing that Lupe was trying to get both of their minds off of the thought of losing Juliana.

"We met through work, actually. Well, more like Juliana's work and my interruption of it. She is doing some various fashion pieces for an upcoming magazine shoot and fashion show for my family's company. I sort of stumbled in to her while at the studio a few days ago" she smiled, recalling how she had literally stumbled into Juliana the day they met.

Lupé's eyes suddenly grew wide. "Oh my goodness, lo siento! I should have known that you looked familiar; you're the daughter of Señor Carvajal"

Valentina looked back at her with a slight grimace, trying to form a small smile at the recognition.

"I am so sorry for your loss" Lupé said.

Valentina only nodded, looking back down at the ground in remembrance of her father. For a moment she had forgotten about his passing as the familiar pain slowly crept its way back into her.

She was shaken from her sadness when suddenly the older woman beside her took Valentina's hands into her own, softly caressing them as a way to reassure her that everything will be okay.

"You know, my parents both passed away when I was around your age".

Valentina looked up at the woman with sorrow, but remained quiet as she continued without making eye contact.

"They got into a head on collision with a drunk truck driver. They suffered for hours after the accident due to their injuries until finally facing death, meanwhile the man who hit them simply walked away with a few minor cuts and bruises. After their deaths, the driver stood trial but was never convicted"

She went silent, looking off with sadness in her eyes.

"It took me a long time to forgive that man for what he had done. I spent years and years trying to reconcile with both myself and God about why bad things happen to such good people"

She looked back at Valentina who now had a tear rolling down her cheek before continuing with a hopeful smile on her lips.

"I don't know how close you were with your father; by the looks of it, I'm assuming as close with him as I was with mine. I know that a lot of people have already told you about how 'it's going to be okay'--and in a sense they're all right. But in a much bigger sense, they're not. For a while it's going to continue to feel like everything is not okay. Losing someone like that in your life makes you feel like there's a piece of you missing"

Valentina looked down at the ground again, no longer able to contain the emotions that were now pouring out of her and threatening to shake her entire body. She didn't like to feel so exposed before a woman she had just met, but nobody had ever spoken to her the way that Lupé was now.

For the last two months it had felt like nobody knew what she was going through; not even Lucia or her brother and sister even though they experienced the same death. Sure, they all cried at his funeral and mourned his death for a few days afterward, but now it seemed as though they all had moved on.

All anyone had ever told her was that "everything was going to be alright" and "it just takes time, you'll get over it". But what if she didn't? It was so frustrating to know that everyone else around her acted like her father's death was no big deal, meanwhile she still wished for his presence every day.

Lupé went a little quiet again before gently taking Valentina's cheek in her hand to get her to look back at her as a motherly embrace. "It's okay for you to mourn him for as long as you need to. But, it's also okay for you to move on as you do. Years after my parents death, I felt as though it was getting easier for me to cope, but then I found myself feeling guilty for moving on. It wasn't until later that I realized moving on with my life didn't mean forgetting those I have lost. But, by only remembering those I lost, I often forgot about those I still had around me."

Valentina sniffled and wiped her nose as the older woman let go of her cheek in silence. She sat back, taking in the depth behind Juliana's mothers words before fully understanding what she was saying. She then looked back at the older woman with appreciation, knowing just how much she needed to hear such a thing.

"Gracias" Valentina said. "I really needed that"

Lupé nodded with a small smile and gentle eyes. "Anything I can do to help the girl who saved my daughter"

------

Minutes passed as the two women sat in silence, though it was no longer that of awkwardness but of an equal understanding for wanting peace in the quietness. Not too long after and Lucia came back with some food and drinks for all three of them.

"Wait, how did you know that Juliana's mom was here?" Valentina asked Lucia questioningly.

Lucia looked back at her slyly. "Who do you think found her contact information and called her? You know, being a rich tycoon in this city has its perks." she laughed with a small hint of sarcasm.

Valentina only smiled back at her while shaking her head in slight annoyance.

Thanks for the heads up. she thought

They all three enjoyed their food and drinks as they waited. Valentina sat back and listened to Lucia and Juliana's mom talk for what seemed like hours.

She kept dazing off, her mind wandering over and over again to thoughts of Juliana.

How is she feeling? Is she awake yet? When can I see her? Will she remember everything? Hopefully not...especially me kissing her on the cheek.

Oh God please tell me why I did that.

She snapped out of it when the nurse from earlier came trotting over to them from down the hall.

"So, Juliana is awake. She's a little out of it but very stable. Ms. Valdés, if you would like to come and see her, you may"