Chapter 9
The following Saturday, Lucas picked me up for our outing to the zoo.
“Liam’s really excited to meet you,” he said as we were driving. “He’s been talking about it all week.”
He pulled up to a house a few streets away from my old place, and a moment later, the front door opened and a small figure came bounding down the stairs.
“Uncle Lucas!”
The little boy stopped short when he saw me, his eyes widening in surprise. He was a sweet–looking child, with a mop of curly brown hair and big, expressive eyes that reminded me so much of Ethan’s at that age.
Lucas got out of the car and scooped the boy up in his arms, giving him a warm hug.
“Hey, little man! Ready to go to the zoo?”
Liam nodded enthusiastically. “Is this the nice lady you told me about? The one who makes robots?”
I smiled. Lucas had obviously been telling him about my work. Children always seemed to be fascinated by robots.
“This is Evelyn,” Lucas said, putting Liam down and placing a hand on his shoulder. “She’s a very good friend of mine.”
Liam studied me with wide, curious eyes for a moment, then broke into a shy smile. “Hi,
Evelyn.”
“Hi, Liam,” I replied, returning his smile. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
He reminded me so much of Ethan when he was younger, before the cynicism and the coldness had set in. There was an innocence about him, a sweetness that tugged at my heartstrings.
The zoo was crowded, filled with screaming children and exhausted parents. We followed
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Our Wedding, the Other Women Wore White
Chapter 9
the designated path, stopping to admire the monkeys, giraffes, and elephants, Liam, it
turned out, was a walking encyclopedia of animal facts, rattling off information about each creature we encountered with impressive accuracy.
As we were walking towards the reptile house, Liam suddenly reached for my hand, his small fingers wrapping around mine. I looked down at him in surprise, but he didn’t seem to notice. He was too busy watching a group of children chasing pigeons.
peace
We continued walking, hand–in–hand, and in that moment, I felt a strange sense of settle over me. It was a simple gesture, but it meant the world to me. It was a connection, a bond, that I had been craving without even realizing it.
After the zoo, we went for ice cream, and as we were driving back to Lucas’s house, Liam fell asleep in the backseat, his head resting on my shoulder. I gently brushed his hair away from his eyes, my heart swelling with a mixture of sadness and longing.
When we arrived at Lucas’s house, I carefully lifted Liam out of the car, his small body light. as a feather in my arms. As I carried him inside, he stirred slightly in his sleep, his arms. tightening around my neck.
“Mommy?” he murmured sleepily.
My breath caught in my throat. It was just a dream, a figment of his subconscious, but it still felt like a punch to the gut.
That night, as I lay in bed, my mind replayed the events of the day. I couldn’t shake the image of Liam’s sweet face, his innocent eyes, and the way he had called me “Mommy” in his sleep. It was a painful reminder of everything I had lost, everything I could never get
back.
Over the next few months, I became a regular fixture in Liam’s life. I would go over to Lucas’s house a few times a week, and we would play games, read books, and just hang out. Sometimes, we would go to the park, or the movies, or the museum.
Being around Liam filled a void I hadn’t even realized existed in my life. He was a constant source of joy and laughter, and spending time with him helped me heal, helped me remember what it felt like to love and be loved unconditionally.
One evening, as I was tucking Liam into bed, he looked up at me with his big, earnest eyes and asked, “Evelyn, can I ask you something?”
Chapter
“Of course, sweetie,” I said. “Anything.”
“Why… why doesn’t my mommy love me anymore?”
His words, spoken so softly, so innocently, shattered my heart.
I knelt beside the bed and took his hands in mine, my heart aching for him, for the pain and confusion he must be feeling.
“Oh, Liam,” I said softly, my voice thick with emotion. “Your mommy loves you very much. More than words can say. But sometimes,” I continued, struggling to find the right words, “Sometimes, when people love each other very much, they make mistakes. Big mistakes.
And sometimes, those mistakes hurt the people they love the most.
“Is… is that why my mommy and daddy had to go away?”
I could hear the unshed tears in his voice, see the pain and confusion in his big, brown eyes. I wished I could take away his hurt, make everything better, but I knew that some wounds, even time couldn’t heal.
“Liam,” I said gently, cupping his face in my hands. “Your mommy and daddy loved you very much. They always will. But sometimes,” I continued, my voice breaking, “Sometimes, bad things happen. Things we can’t control. And sometimes, those bad things take away the people we love the most. But that doesn’t mean they stopped loving us. It just means they had to go away to a different place. A place where there is no more pain, no more sadness,
no more tears.”
He looked up at me, his eyes wide and trusting, and in that moment, I knew I had to tell
him the truth.
“You see, Liam,” I continued softly, “Heaven is a very special place. It’s where all the good people go when they die. And your mommy and daddy, they were two of the best people I knew. So I know they’re up there in heaven right now, watching over you, sending you their love. They’re probably even having a picnic right now, with lots of yummy treats.”
Liam giggled at that, the sound like music to my ears.
“And you know what else?” I asked, my voice filled with warmth. “Whenever you miss them, all you have to do is look up at the stars. Because every time you see a star twinkling in the night sky, that’s your mommy and daddy winking down at you, letting you know that
they’re okay and that they love you very, very much.”
“Do… do you think they can hear me if I talk to them?” Liam asked, his voice barely a whisper.
“I know they can,” I said firmly. “They can hear every word you say, feel every thought you think. So don’t be afraid to talk to them, Liam. They’re always listening.”
He nodded slowly, his eyes welling up again, but this time, they weren’t tears of sadness. They were tears of understanding, of acceptance.
He threw his arms around my neck, hugging me tightly.
“I love you, Evelyn,” he whispered.
I held him close, returning his embrace, my own tears flowing freely now.
“I love you too, Liam,” I whispered back. “More than you know.”
