CH 3

Hannah

In less than an hour, the car I was driving stopped in front of a building on the edge of Riverford. A few minutes later, I was standing at the door.

After pressing the bell twice, the door opened. A woman with white hair and wrinkles covering most of her face immediately gave me a tight hug as soon as she saw me. Then, she invited me in and told me to sit down at the kitchen table.

I saw the stove on and a pot on top of it. Smoke was billowing out of the pot as it delivered the aroma of the food my mother was cooking.

“Tea or coffee?”

“Tea,” I replied.

“Chicken cream soup?” Mom asked as she put a cup of tea on the table. I nodded.

A moment later, Mom put two bowls of soup on the table and then sat down in front of me. She folded her arms and used them to support her chin. I was sure she knew what was going on with me. It was just that she was waiting until I was ready to talk.

After eating a few spoon-full of soup and finishing half a bread, I couldn’t hold back the tears that were already in my eyes. As a result, I sobbed in front of her. She didn’t ask me anything, just gave me a few tissues. Occasionally, I heard her take a deep breath.

“Sorry,” I said.

“It’s okay. If you really can’t tell me, it’s okay. By crying, our feelings at least become lighter, even though the burden remains,” she replied.

Her hands, which were also lined with wrinkles, caressed mine. The warmth and affection from her flowed through my whole body and it felt so peaceful, as if I had found a place to lean on.

After calming down enough, I ventured to ask her. “Mom, I have something to ask you about your past. Is that okay?” Mom nodded while putting a spoonful of soup in her mouth.

“When you found out about all the infidelities that Dad and his coworkers committed, what did you do?”

Mom was still putting the cream soup in her mouth. To be honest, I regretted asking her about her bitter past.

“I asked him to choose one of us and you already know the answer,” she replied softly. And I decided not to ask her anything else. We continued eating without talking anymore.

When I was about to say goodbye, Mom hugged me tightly, as if reluctant to let me go. I assured her that Jensen and I would spend the weekend with her during the winter break and decorate the Christmas tree with her. She answered nothing, but I felt my T-shirt getting wet.

Before closing the door, I turned and waved at her. “Love you, mom. Bye.”

“Hannah, remember one thing. Cheating is a disease. Stay strong for Jensen,” Mom said.

Her words made me sob for the second time. I nodded while wiping my wet eyes.

“Come here whenever you need a hug.” Then my mom waved at me with a sweet smile.

After waving back, I closed the door and went home feeling a little better, at least now I knew what I had to do.

On the way, I invited April, my friend, to meet me at a coffee shop. When I arrived there, April hadn’t arrived yet, so I ordered coffee for myself and sat at a table in front of the barista.

After my coffee arrived, I sat and observed it while pondering. The coffee was like my life. I am the ground coffee, while Jason is the milk. When milk is not added to the ground coffee, the coffee tastes bitter—just like my life.

A few moments later, I heard someone sit down next to me. When I turned around, it wasn’t April who came but another person. He smiled when he saw me, and I smiled back.

I saw the barista give him his coffee, and he drank it right away while I still had the coffee in my glass. I didn’t think so, but he was paying attention to me.

“It won’t taste good if the coffee gets cold before you drink it,” he said. His voice sounded a little heavy but warm.

I turned and became so awkward that I couldn’t answer anything. Then he said again, “Chris Walker. Sorry to surprise you.” He held out his hand to introduce himself. I greeted his outstretched hand while forcing my lips to smile.

“Hannah Fox, I’ll have the coffee when my friend arrives later.” I knew my answer sounded strange, but he smiled. His blue eyes contrasted with his fair skin and brown hair, and his smile was quite sweet.

“You look sad. I know it’s none of my business, but if I may offer some advice, it’s best not to wallow in sadness or you will lose the beauty of real life. Hope your problem will be resolved soon. I have to go now. Hope we can meet again someday. Bye.” He hurried away from there while continuing to wave at me. His attitude and friendliness were enough to cheer me up that morning.

Not long after, April came. After not seeing her for so long, I wanted to hold her tight for a very long time. And for the umpteenth time, I cried again. She caressed my back try to calm me down.

I explained the problem I was facing. She listened to my story seriously. After finishing telling her everything, I asked for her opinion.

“Find as much evidence of his infidelity as possible so that you can get custody of Jensen. First, change and become financially independent. Second, find evidence of his infidelity. Third, if your marriage is beyond repair, then divorce is the only way.”

It felt like a huge rock hit my head when I heard the solution. All this time, I had been too complacent in my role as a wife and mother who dedicated all her time and life to her family, to where I had forgotten that I still had to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

I nodded and asked April to help transform me into the new Hannah Fox. April agreed, and she invited me to her boutique.

When I got there, she picked out lots of clothes, shoes, and bags from several shelves and put them in front of me.

“Take off your clothes and try them on,” April ordered.