My Kind of Town
My Kind of Town
Role reversal
>> Queen's Medical Center
Grace Ah Sun had never believed in being her children's friend. She was their mother, with all of the attendant joys, frustrations and responsibilities, chief of which was giving them a solid foundation in life. So she offered not just hugs and wisdom but also expectations, and did not hesitate to let them know in stern tones when they were falling short.
That's why this was so difficult for the eldest of her three, her only daughter, Lily. She was 27, successful and becoming quite rich, thanks to her phyto-cosmetic company Ola Essences.
She was the boss, gave the orders. She did business with big, international companies and dealt with their high-powered executives on an even-steven basis. But when it came to her mother, well, Grace was still the mother and Lily was still the daughter, and that was that.
Their roles were about to change, they had to, but easier said than done. Maybe they could be friends afterward. But first Lily had questions to ask, and she would expect answers, honest ones. But where, how to start?
The where part answered itself. Lily was on her way to her father's room -- dang, she had to stop thinking of him like that, because Sheets Ah Sun was not her father any more -- in the cardiac unit and saw her mother chatting with a nurse at the nursing station.
"Hey, Mom," she said, gave her a quick cheek-to-cheek.
Clarita Delos Reyes, back from the strike, said she had a patient to check on and would see them later.
"How's ... Dad?"
Grace was so full of good news, she missed the little halt in Lily's voice. "Oh, he's a tough one, he's doing good. And I just came back from the ICU, Lance is so much better, they're moving him out!"
"That is great."
Maybe there was something in Lily's voice, maybe it was the way she avoided eye contact, but Grace knew something was up with her daughter. "Something's wrong." Not a question.
"Can we talk?"
"Of course!" One of Grace's rules was that her kids could come to her with any problem, any error in judgment, and if they were honest there would be no negative repercussions. They'd just deal with it. "About what?"
"Somewhere more private." At last looking her mother in the eyes.
Grace had a premonition. "Is this about Quinn?"
"As a matter of fact, yes."
Grace knew it. Mother's intuition.
"Round-aboutly, I mean."
Grace didn't like the sound of that. Round-about the subject of Lily and her cousin, and their questions about the feud between their fathers, was dangerous territory.
Don Chapman is editor of MidWeek.
His serialized novel runs daily in the Star-Bulletin
with weekly summaries on Sunday.
He can be e-mailed at dchapman@midweek.com