Roller Coasters.
INVOLVED: Gabrielle Reed & April Daniels. TIME FRAME: Monday, May 1st, 2017. LOCATION: Daniels’ House; Miami, Florida. NOTES: Gabrielle visits her mother. AUTHOR’S NOTE: Potential grammatical errors due to a lack of proofing.
Gabrielle locked the doors to her Audi and she moved up the distance of her mother’s driveway, moving for the doorbell as soon as her feet reached the front porch. She pressed it twice as she stood there waiting. She looked to her phone quickly checking the time before she looked back up to the door. What was taking her mother so long? She licked her lips ringing the doorbell again as she looked back to the driveway there were no other cars insight and she knew her mother was home because she told her the night before she was coming over today.
“Coming!” April called out hearing the doorbell ring a third time “Coming! Coming!” she repeated as she quickly placed all of her things back into place. If her daughter saw herself and her house all disheveled she would ask why they were like that and she did not want to lead into that today, it would be too much plus she had no clue what important thing Gabrielle had to talk to her about. Looking herself over in the mirror near her front door she fixed her sweat pants and zipped up the jacket to go with them covering her lace bra up as she did. She opened the door finally and said, “hey baby girl” as she stepped aside to let her in. She looked outside the door making sure her ex-husband was out of sight and out of mind.
She continued to wait and she could hear her mother faintly and she tapped her foot, purse in one hand brown paper bag in the other. As her mother finally opened the door to the home she looked to her oddly, “Qu'est-ce qui vous a amené si longtemps maman?” Gabrielle asked her in French. She walked into the door and looked around the house before she licked her lips sighing. “I started to bring lunch but you weren’t answering your phone when I called earlier so I just came on over” she breathed out. “Vous allez bien?”
April looked to Gabrielle as she moved into the house and she followed her gaze, as she looked over every little thing as well to see if anything were out of place herself. As Gabrielle turned back to her “oh it’s fine, I was busy is all. But it’s fine now. I can just make us something to eat really quick” she told her with a smile to seal the deal, closing the opportunity for any more questions. “Pour quoi goûtez-vous?” she asked her right back in French.
Gabrielle looked to her mother again before she nodded “um, I don’t know. Whatever you make is fine” she told her as she moved to sit down at the kitchen table. She sat her purse and the bag down, looking to her mother she said. “So” gathering her thoughts about everything that had been going on with her and her husband for the past few weeks. She looked down picking at her leggings before she said, “so I thought that Adrian was cheating on me” she told her pausing for a second. “We’ve been distant and our communication was off. I couldn’t get him to really talk to me and his birthday was horrible. We celebrated somewhat… but it wasn’t the same. I can tell that he wasn’t into it” she said as she closed her eyes sadly.
April moved back into her kitchen and she fully prepared to make her and Gabrielle some Greek salmon salads for lunch today. She moved to grab some fresh salmon out of her fridge grabbing a pan and other things she needed to season it before she prepared to cook it on her stove top. April heard Gabrielle’s words and she turned around looking to her crazily, she moved away from the food and stood looking at her over the island/bar counter top. She blinked slowly as she continued her story and April furrowed her brows “well what the hell is going on then? If he didn’t cheat what is it?” she asked her already in defensive mode, considering the man she used to be married to. The thought of him brought back the thought of earlier today and she shook that thought out of her head as she tuned back listening to her daughter’s words.
Gabrielle looked to her mother and she dropped her head again before she shook it. “Natalie, she’s poking around and trying to get custody of Christopher. She claims she just wants to see him but she actually started gathering a Lawyer and stuff to try to gain custody of him. She came by the house the other day when Adrian was not home. We got into a spat and I told her she wasn’t going to see him and had no rights to him” she explained stopping short as she rested her hands on her head, it was pounding rapidly. She rested her elbows on the table before she said “she told me she’d drop everything and leave us alone but I don’t believe her. She’s that girl.”
April looked to Gabrielle and she sighed pinching the bridge of her nose. “What does she have to do with Adrian’s behavior though?” she asked her confused. “I am missing something here” she told her truthfully. She shifted on her feet and folded her arms over her chest as she tried to make sense of this all. Everyone knew how Natalie had come to be a part of their World and how she left her son in their care and he’d become not just a child for her daughter but a grandchild for her. She’d hate to see this end badly however if Natalie felt she could take care of the boy fully now, she deserved to have him in April’s opinion. “So, are you guys going to court about this?” she asked her. “Because she’s always been, that girl.”
“He’d been distancing himself and giving me the cold shoulder because he was trying to keep her and everything that was going on away from me” Gabrielle told her mother. “He should have just told me from the beginning and I told him that. Instead of treating me like shit, I am his wife but… I can’t correct that situation all I can do now is try to figure out what next” she said to the older woman as she watched her mother fold her arms over her chest. “I don’t know I have to see what she does next. I don’t trust her, not since she lied about him being his, then saying he was someone else’s, only to come back and he actually be Adrian’s!” she argued. “That put us through a lot. And then I had Aniya to worry about, not to mention Postpartum Depression which was a battle within itself I was trying to keep it all together, and then raise another woman’s baby all in the process. And I gave him everything I had, I was the best mother I could possibly be to him then and I certainly am now.” She told her. “I don’t know, what are your thoughts about all of this?” she asked April curiously.
April sighed heavily as she moved from the kitchen walking over towards her daughter and she sat down at the table with her. April nodded her head signaling that she was listening to her every word storing some of it for later, because she had a serious problem with Adrian not playing his part properly. As she concluded April looked her trying to determine if Gabrielle really could handle the truth, her daughter had changed in a lot of ways thanks to marriage and having children but she still carried some of her same traits. “Je pense que peut-être, vous deux devriez-vous asseoir avec elle et lui parler pour voir ce qu'elle veut vraiment. Et quand vous le faites si elle a envie de vouloir son enfant dans sa vie, je me sens comme si vous et Adrian les considérons comme Gabrielle.”
Gabrielle looked to her mother she was kind of taken back by her words, had her mother not heard everything she’d just told her. She sighed looking away from her as she did, she couldn’t believe the words that had come out of her mother’s mouth. There was nothing to consider here, not at all – point blank period. “Mère, je ne peux pas faire ça. Elle l'a laissé derrière elle, elle ne mérite pas les secondes chances!” she told her. “Are you serious right now?” she asked her.
April tilted her head to the side and she gave her child a knowing look before she said “Tout le monde mérite une seconde chance, mon cher.” April licked her lips and she shifted in her chair a bit before she said. “She might have had a change of heart and needs to do this for herself. People do what they think is best in that moment. Just like your father, he thought stepping away and leaving us would help us get over your brother… he was wrong but that’s what he thought and that’s what he did in that moment baby” she told him. “She left him with you because she knew he’d be safe but she had no doubts she couldn’t take care of him, but now maybe things have changed” she told her sweetly.
Gabrielle looked to her mother sitting back in her chair and she looked to the floor. She didn’t want to be the one to sit down with Natalie, to give her another chance, to entertain the notion of giving their child back to her. Even if she was his real mother. She shook her head “she’s married I think. She was sporting a ring and she’s pregnant. I guess you are right then… maybe she is changing and just wants to regain custody of her son. That doesn’t make it right or make it hurt any less” she said as she began to tear up and Gabrielle wiped her tears with her fingers gently, sniffling slightly as she did.
April looked to Gabrielle and she looked down as she spoke she nodded her head at her. When her daughter began crying she moved to stand up hugging her close to her and she did. “It’s okay baby” she told her quietly, she rubbed the girls back compassionately. “It’s okay, he’ll still be a part of you and Adrian and that doesn’t mean he’ll be gone forever darlin’. But that is his mother” she told her as she rocked her slightly in her arms. “Let me make you something to eat baby” she told her pulling away from her as she moved to go back into the kitchen. “What’s that?” she asked her gesturing the brown paper bag on her kitchen table as she moved towards the fish preparing it and placing it in the pan to cook. She moved into the fridge and the other items she needed to make the salad.
Gabrielle sniffled again and she nodded her head at her mother before she allowed the older woman to pull away from her. She wiped her eyes again, she didn’t know where the wave of emotions came from, or well she did but she didn’t want to acknowledge it just yet. She looked to her mother at her question and she sighed sniffling again. “The other reason I came over here” she told her swallowing hard. “Mom I think I’m pregnant” she told her, her voice faltering slightly as she did. She still didn’t know how she felt about it but she had missed her period and everything is pointing back to Adrian’s birthday, they had had sex and though neither one of them were into it, this is what they’d be stuck with. A child. Again. Something she didn’t know if she wanted at the moment. Work was picking back up for both of them considering how hard it had been for either to balance both kids and everything else in their lives. Not to mention their wedding set them back a while both money and time, wise.
April turned back to her daughter as she began to make the Greek salad cutting up the Romaine lettuce placing everything into a big bowl. Gabrielle words went through one ear and out the other almost, until she looked back up at her again. “Huh?” she asked her having not heard her fully.
“I think I am pregnant” Gabrielle repeated “I missed my period and I have been missing pills here and there because I get so caught up with work. And I think it was during his birthday and I feel sick. One because his birthday was like agony for us both. And two, we made a baby from that momma, a baby I don’t even think I want” she said sighing. “Well… I don’t know yet. I have to take these test but I wanted to take them with someone around because I am scared” she told her.
April looked to her daughter and she moved to add feta cheese on top of the salad as she shook her head. “Gabrielle, how hard is it to take a small pill everyday?” she asked her shaking her head. “You take the test it tell you, you are pregnant and then what?” she asked her looking to her sternly. “You aren’t a little high school girl anymore. You are grown almost 30 and you have kids and a husband think wisely. You and Adrian have been married for 3 years now what is so wrong about having another baby?” she asked her. “A new grandchild might be exactly what I need” she said with a smile popping a piece of tomato into her mouth before she turned back to the fish.
Gabrielle looked to her mother and she sighed “Momma I know this, okay. I don’t need that right now I just need you to be here and to be supportive of all of this. I am scared you know what I have been through and you know how I am about children. I don’t want another sick one so this scares me” she told her in her own defense. Gabrielle moved to stand up and she grabbed the bag “I will be back” she told her gently. Gabrielle moved for the bathroom down the hallway.
April moved to sit the bowls of salad and fish on the table and she sat down waiting for her daughter. She tapped her fingers lightly as she looked down the hallway, it was taking her a while but after all you did have a waiting period. Getting up from the chair she moved towards her and she knocked on the door a few times “Gabby?” she said gently “you okay?” she asked her concerned.
Gabrielle unlocked the door eyes blood shot red and tears both stained and fresh were on her face. “I’m pregnant” she told her sadly as she leaned into her mother for yet another hug, she cried softly sniffling hard as she did.
April looked to her and she hugged her back tightly “oh it’s gonna be okay baby” she told her quietly as she rubbed her back with her loving hands.