“You resented me about it, didn’t you?”
“No, I don’t think I’ve ever resented you about that.”
“Will, we both know very well that that’s a lie.”
“Okay, I might have despised you just a tiny bit over the fact that sometimes I wasn’t your top priority when I was 14 but I understood you at the end. You were 18 when I was born. You hadn’t lived your life. You wanted to have a career and do something with your life rather than live with your parents for the rest of your life. You knew that working 20 hour shifts in diners as a waitress wasn’t your way of living. And you managed to do something more than what was expected from you, which is something I admire.”
“You were the most important part of my life. It’s my fault we ended up this way.” She took her son’s hand. “I failed you as a mother. I failed to give you a stable home environment and all the love you deserved.”
“Mum, you did a great job with me. I never had anything to complain about. I turned out this way because of you.”
“No, I have nothing to do with the way you turned out.That is all that mentor at camp. What was his name? I always forget it. Remind me-”
“Chiron?”
“Yes!”
“No, you did a lot about me. I don’t have any hard feelings. And I don’t keep anything against you.”
“But I know you deserved better. So much better. I have the greatest son in the whole world and somehow I managed to miss out your whole life. You got into Stanford and Harvard and I wasn’t there to support you.”
“I couldn’t have actually gone there if you hadn’t paid the tuition.”
“Oh please, you would have gone with or without my money. I was always doing the bare minimum.”
“Mum, you’re here now.”
“But is it enough?” She whispered.
“More than enough. You haven’t missed out on anything. Just a couple things that aren’t as significant as what Is going to happen next. I know you’re here.”
“I might have not been a great mother, but I’ll promise I’ll be the best grandma in the world for Bianca. I can promise you that.”
“That’s good enough for me.”