C266 Call Me Mother

The afternoon passed far quicker than either of us had expected. Before we knew it, work had ended, and Alicia and I drove back to the Mooney Residence together. For the first time since morning, the pressure that had weighed on our shoulders began to ease. The warmth of home always had a way of making every burden feel a little lighter, even if only for a short while.

As our cars slowly rolled through the gates, I noticed two familiar figures already waiting outside. Mary and Georgia. The moment they saw us, both of them hurried forward with bright smiles on their faces. I had barely stepped out of my car when Mary completely ignored me and rushed straight toward Alicia. "My child!" Before Alicia could even react, Mary wrapped both arms around her in a tight embrace. "I've missed you so much. Have you been taking good care of yourself?"

Alicia froze for a moment before laughing helplessly. "Aunt Mary..." Mary immediately frowned. "Aunt?" She tightened her embrace even more. "Alicia, ever since you came out of the hospital you've been calling me 'Aunt.' Do you know how unhappy that makes me?" Alicia looked at me with pleading eyes, silently asking for help. Unfortunately for her, Georgia and I simply exchanged amused glances. Neither of us intended to rescue her.

Unable to hold back my laughter, I folded my arms across my chest. "Wife, you're on your own." Georgia laughed even harder. Mary continued speaking as though she hadn't heard either of us. "My child, you are already part of my family. Why are you still calling me 'Aunt?'" Alicia smiled awkwardly. "Aunt... I've been at work the whole day. I'm sweating." She gently tried to free herself. "Why don't you let me freshen up first? I'll hug you properly afterwards."

Mary shook her head firmly. "No." She looked Alicia straight in the eyes. "I'll only let go after you call me 'Mother.'" Silence followed. Alicia's smile slowly disappeared. For a brief second I noticed the hesitation in her eyes. After learning the truth about her mother's death, the word Mother had become far heavier than before. It wasn't simply another title anymore. It carried emotions... Memories... Pain... Loss... She remained quiet for several seconds before taking a deep breath.

Finally, in a soft voice, she said, "Mom... I'm fine." Mary's eyes instantly lit up. Her smile became brighter than ever. "There!" She finally released Alicia before lovingly cupping both sides of her face. "Now that's my daughter." She nodded proudly. "From today onward, I expect you to call me 'Mother' every single day." Alicia couldn't help laughing. "Yes... Mother." Mary looked completely satisfied.

Only then did Georgia chuckle. "It seems someone has officially joined the Smith family." I laughed as well. "Grandma, I think Mother has been waiting for this moment for a long time." Mary smiled proudly. "Of course I have." She gently held Alicia's hand. "My daughter has suffered enough already. From today onward, she has another mother who will always stand beside her." Alicia's eyes became slightly moist. She squeezed Mary's hand gently. "Thank you... Mother."

Seeing the emotional atmosphere developing, Georgia quickly clapped her hands. "Enough standing outside." She smiled warmly. "We can continue this inside." Everyone nodded. Together we walked into the mansion. Inside the living room, Quinton, Peter and Mark were already seated comfortably, chatting while drinking tea.

The conversation immediately stopped when they saw us entering. "You're finally home," Peter said with a smile. I nodded. "Good evening, Grandpa." "Good evening." Everyone greeted one another before taking their seats. Alicia smiled politely before saying, "Dad... I'll freshen up first." She then looked at everyone around the room. "After dinner, Mike and I have something very important to discuss with everyone."

The smiles around the room slowly faded. Peter immediately noticed the seriousness in her tone. "What happened?" Alicia simply smiled faintly. "I'll explain everything later." Mark nodded. "Very well." "We'll wait." Quinton also became curious, but seeing Alicia's exhausted expression, he chose not to ask any more questions. "Go and freshen up first." "We'll talk afterwards." Alicia nodded gratefully. "Thank you."

I looked at everyone. "I'll go upstairs too." Peter waved his hand. "Go." "You two have worked hard today." We thanked everyone before heading upstairs. For some reason I walked ahead of Alicia. When I reached what had been her bedroom, I casually opened the door. The moment I stepped inside... I froze. The room looked completely different. Instead of Alicia's belongings, the room was now filled with my parents' luggage, clothing boxes and several packed suitcases.

I blinked twice. "Wife..." Alicia stood behind me smiling innocently. "Yes?" I pointed inside the room. "You gave my parents your bedroom?" She nodded naturally. "Of course." I looked around once more. "But..." I scratched my head. "Where are we supposed to sleep now?" Alicia burst into laughter. "You weren't here yesterday." "You left everything for me to do." She folded her arms with a playful smile. "So I moved everything by myself."

I stared at her helplessly. "You really did all this alone?" She nodded proudly. "I did." Then she reached for my hand. "Come." "I'll show you." Still confused, I followed her down the corridor. She stopped in front of another bedroom. When she slowly pushed the door open... I immediately recognised it. It was her late mother's room. However... It no longer looked like a room frozen in the past. Everything had been carefully reorganised.

Alicia's clothes now filled the wardrobes. The room still carried the same elegant atmosphere as before, but it finally felt lived in again. Only one thing looked out of place. Several large boxes stood neatly stacked beside the wardrobe. They were mine. I looked toward Alicia. "My clothes are still packed." She smiled. "That because they came in this morning." She walked toward one of the boxes. I said to her, "Go freshen up I will do the unpacking."

Without wasting another minute, Alicia went to the bathroom whole I began unpacking. Few minutes later she came in and said "Husband your tun now I will continue with the unpacking." For the first time since everything had happened, the room slowly began transforming into our room rather than simply her mother's room. It somehow felt... peaceful.