“Only if you’ve finished your homework!” I shouted back.
Thundering footsteps cascaded down the stairs as both girls, now 15, burst into the kitchen, laughing.
“We’re starving,” Liza proclaimed dramatically, reaching for a cookie. Her dark curls matched her father’s, while Sophie’s blonde waves came from me.
“Dad’s going to be late again, isn’t he?” Sophie asked, perching on a barstool.
I nodded, sliding glasses of milk their way. “Budget meeting. He said not to wait up.”
“Hey, did you guys see the flyer? For the Spring Pageant?” Liza asked, her eyes bright with excitement. “We should totally do it.”
Sophie hesitated. “I don’t know…”
“Come on! We could wear matching dresses and everything,” Liza insisted.
“And who’s going to make these matching dresses?” I raised an eyebrow, already knowing I’d be volunteering.
They both turned to me with identical pleading expressions.
“Please, Mom? You’re amazing with the sewing machine,” Sophie said.
“Please, Elina?” Liza echoed. She’d never called me “Mom,” but the way she said my name carried the same warmth.
How could I say no to those faces?
“Fine,” I laughed. “But you’re both helping with the design.”
Later that night, as David slipped into bed beside me, I whispered, “The girls want to enter the Spring Pageant. Together.”
He pulled me close. “That’s great. My mother called, by the way. She wants us all for Sunday dinner.”
My stomach knotted. “Wendy invited all of us?”
Even in the darkness, I felt his hesitation. “Well, she asked about Liza specifically, but—”
“It’s fine,” I cut him off. “We’ll all go. It’s been weeks since her last… comment.”David sighed. “I’ve talked to her so many times, Elina. I don’t know what else to do.”
I squeezed his hand. “We just keep showing her that we’re a family… all of us.”
Sunday dinner at Wendy’s sprawling colonial house was always an exercise in restraint. And that day was no exception.
“Liza, darling, I got you something,” she announced after we finished her famous pot roast. She pulled out a small jewelry box and handed it to her granddaughter.
Liza opened it to find a delicate silver bracelet with a heart charm. “Wow, thanks, Grandma!”
Sophie sat quietly beside her, her sad eyes fixed on her empty plate. I felt a familiar burn in my chest.
“The girls have exciting news,” I said, forcing brightness into my voice. “They’re both entering the Spring Pageant at school.”
