33 – Jack
“Aki! My god, how long has it been since we’ve seen each other?” However, Aunt Jonah was the first to move, and she rushed up to me in order to give me a bear embrace and a peck on the cheek. “Just what the heck did you do that took you such a long time, huh, you brat? Did you have any idea that both your mother and I were concerned about you at all times? Come on, let me see how much you’ve grown. Oh, my goodness, you’ve gotten even taller! Has living abroad truly given you this much height?”
I laughed at Aunt Jonah’s antics and said, “I’m sorry, Auntie… Mom…” My eyes sneaked a look at mom without her knowing.
“Did you tell your wife that you’re coming here?” Mom casually brought up the subject while she continued arranging the flowers. In a sloppy bun, her hair was wrapped with a baby blue ribbon, making her beauty even more obvious and clean, despite some fringes that had dropped from the side of her ear.
It made me desperately want to mend it and stare at it for a little while longer.
“Oh, you’re right. I thought you were going to bring her along with you. You know that I haven’t yet seen her, right? Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to make it to your wedding either,” Aunt Jonah said.
I grinned as I respectfully told Aunt Jonah, “I’ll bring her next time.”
Aunt Jonah nodded and smiled as she left with her phone in hand. It looked like someone was trying to reach her, and she had no choice but to pick up the phone.
I moved ahead to mom and was going to assist her with what she was doing when she abruptly stopped what she was doing and turned to face me. Her eyes met mine in a serious glance.
“Aki,” she called out while heaving a sigh. I immediately realized what she meant and stopped being nosy about the floral arrangement.
I obeyed her command and remained silent. However, after a few seconds, my hand started to itch, so I went up to hers and touched it.
The expression on Mom’s face changed, and she swiftly glanced in the direction of Aunt Jonah. “Aki!” she hissed at me in a hushed voice.
“What?” was my joking reply to mom. I had to suppress a chuckle from deep within me. It was enjoyable to tease her in this manner and observe her reaction.
Mom even gave me a handjob when Aunt Jonah and her kids were around the last time we went to the beach. Now, when I held her hand, she reacted as though the touch had a burning effect on her. I heaved a sigh. Women were notoriously difficult to understand. Their mood shifted faster than the speed of light. To do something like that, I had no idea how they could do it or why they did it.
“Did you come here only to annoy me? I have work to do and you do too so you should go,” Mom exclaimed as she immersed herself deeper and deeper into her work.
What I saw made me grin. Mom was still as hardworking and passionate as she had always been. As soon as she got started on something, she didn’t hesitate to devote all of her energy, time, and attention to it. She won’t give up until she’s happy with the results, no matter how long it takes. This type of woman… Has always been someone I have looked up to. She is the same as she was before, and it is one of the reasons why I adore her so much.
“Mom, doing all of this by yourself must be exhausting, right?” I looked at mom and asked her, my heart growing increasingly heated the longer I glanced at her and watched her perform her duties with complete concentration.
It dawned on her that I was behaving like a child, and she sighed softly. “There are times when it can be exhausting, but there is no work that is simple anyway. However, I’m really enjoying what I’m working on right now, so I guess that makes everything alright…”
As Violet pointed out, publicly expressing one’s affection for one’s mother isn’t always the easiest thing to do; yet, the fact that I adore her and could see her this close makes it perfectly fine. As I saw my mother becoming increasingly absorbed with her work, I felt as though my heart was going to burst with delight. She was so stunningly gorgeous and captivating that even the plants in the background appeared to come to life around her.
I peered in the direction of Aunt Jonah and, after determining that she was still engaged in the conversation she was having with her caller, I quickly stepped behind mom and gave her a hug.
“I love you,” the quiet words escaped my lips and went to my mother’s ear as I squeezed her tighter in my arms.
Mom gave me a friendly slap on the arm, just as she did when I was a little boy. “I’m aware of it. Okay, let go now and let me finish my work.”Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.
I shook my head and kissed mom on the neck, which surprised her.
She almost let out a squeal, “Aki!”
“I want to do it,” I told mom in a deep and low whisper. Earlier, I could feel a familiar heat spreading throughout my body, but I tried to ignore it and fight it as hard as I could. However, it was too much, and I had the feeling that if I did nothing at this moment, everything inside of me would explode.
Everything in me wanted it – wanted her – more than anything else. My heart, my body, and my soul, all of me was craving for her.
She was the only person I could ever and would ever think about, and because of that, I felt powerless over myself.
I want to feel her. I want us to be one again.