11 Chilly Tale of a Summer Break - Final (2/2)
”I'm sorry,” Aleta said when the girls took the stairs down to meet Rosa.
”It's fine,” Emma said with a faint smile. ”You were just worried.”
”I wonder if you can at least stay until afternoon.”
Emma stopped.
”Actually, I have something to ask you.”
When the two girls stepped outside, Rosa walked to them and hugged her daughter. She had a worried face and took some time to let go of Emma's body. When they got inside, Rosa looked confused as she stared at her perfectly healthy daughter.
”It's complicated, my dear,” Emma's grandma said, hugging her daughter. ”A lot happened but she's fine now. You two will need to talk about it later, but for now, you can calm down.”
Rosa still looked worried, which made Emma feels guilty because she didn't contact her mother after their talk the previous night. It took some time and a cup of tea for Rosa to calm down and accept that everything was fine.
”Still, it's a shame that you couldn't contact me before. I won't be able to come back now before your summer vacations are over, so…”
”I know, don't worry. I'll go with you today. But can we at least stay for lunch?”
”Of course,” Rosa said. She looked at Aleta standing close to Emma and holding her fingers. Rosa smiled. ”Want to spend some more time together?”
”H-Huh, yeah. But also…”
Emma walked to her mother and pulled her hand, placing the object she was holding on her palm. Rosa looked at the ring, confused.
”I want you to come of us,” Emma said.
***
The cemetery where Sherry was buried was between the Inn and the city, a little away from the main road. Aleta guided Emma and Rosa while Emma's grandma stayed behind to make lunch.
When Rosa saw the tombstone with Sherry's photo, she crouched in front of it. It was also the first time Emma saw how Sherry actually looked like. The photo was old and black and white but showed a melancholic girl with long dark hair. Somehow, Emma thought she reminded her of Aleta. Aleta was cuter, though.
”We were always together,” Rosa said, looking at the tombstone. ”She was like a sister or a best friend. And I really loved her, I really did, but,” she fell in silence and touched the tomb. ”When your father came into my life, she changed. She became violent suddenly and I-I was just scared. I had to go away. I,” with another pause, she seemed to control herself to not fail her voice in front of her daughter. ”I just left her behind. I just abandoned her.”
Rosa placed the ring on the grave.
”Her death. I doubt it was an accident. I was ashamed, afraid, I didn't know what to do. So I never came to see her. I didn't even come to her funeral. I just pretended that she never existed. I…”
”She,” Aleta said while holding Emma's hand. ”She never hated you, misses Stephens. I'm sure. I'm sure she, I'm sure she loved you to the end. I can't explain, but she wouldn't want you to feel like that.”
Rosa looked behind and gave a sad smile to the girls.
”Mom,” Emma said. ”I'll give you some time alone.”
Emma pulled Aleta with her and the two girls put distance between them and the woman. When Aleta asked why, Emma just said: ”No parent wants to cry in front of their children.”
They stopped in the cemetery entrance. While waiting, Emma leaned against the gate and gave out a sigh.
”But it's a shame. I'll need to go home now,” she said.
”I-I'm sorry.”
”I said that's fine, right? Well, you should trust your friends better, though. You should've told me. I would never avoid you because of something like that,” Aleta lowered her head and Emma gave out a smile. ”But well, that's not the end of the world, and we don't need to wait a whole year to talk again. I'll give you my email address and my number. You can go to a cyber cafe sometimes and call me out.”
”M-Me? Using the computer?”
Emma laughed.
”You can ask the clerk to teach you, it's easy and they're there to help. And you're smart, so I'm sure you'll get it. Or maybe tell grandma to put an internet in that hole of a place but that's unlikely to work. We can video talk. Just so we can see each other's faces again.”
”I-I'll think about it,” Aleta said, turning her blushing face away.
When Rosa came back, she gave the girls a bitter smile. Emma pretended not to notice her mother's red eyes and the three just walked back to the Inn.
After lunch, Emma took her bag and headed to the car. Before they could go away, she gave Aleta a long hug, passing a note with her number and email address to her. She also told her grandma to take the girl to the city sometimes, which the old woman promised to do.
Emma realized Aleta wasn't there in the moment her mother turned on the car and started to move. Looking at the Inn's window, she realized the girl was back to her room, waving at her.
***
”Will you tell me what happened?” Rosa asked after some minutes driving.
”It's a long story,” Emma said, her head leaning against the car's window. She was in a better mood than when she got there but having to leave before the planned time now depressed her. ”I'll tell you when we get home. I don't want you freaking out while driving.”
Rosa made a ”Hum” but didn't ask anything else.
”Your ring?” Emma asked. She realized Rosa wasn't with it when she came back from the grave.
”I left it there. Maybe it was a bad gift considering it but I couldn't think of anything else. She took it from me once so I gave it back to her.”
Some minutes of silence passed while Emma looked at the trees and all the nothing outside the car.
”It was impossible, though,” Rosa said. ”I understand her feelings but it was impossible with a girl. I loved her, just not that way. Does that makes me a bad person?”
”You shouldn't force yourself to be with a person you don't love,” Emma said, looking at her phone screen, waiting for it to get signal. ”You're not a bad person for that. But if it was me, I wouldn't have run away. I would face her and tell her everything.”
”Of course you would,” Rosa said smiling. ”You're braver than me. Maybe you took it from your father. Or your grandma. I'm sure your grandma would say you got it from her,” after more minutes of silence where neither mother or daughter said anything, Rosa asked: ”What would you do in the same situation, though? With another girl falling in love with you.”
”Is that a question to ask your daughter?”
Rosa laughed, but still waited for an answer.
”A girl, huh?” Something about that question bothered Emma but she couldn't point out why. She had been asked the same question in the past and had just brushed it away, saying that it was impossible. But now something like a missing piece of a puzzle was bugging her. ”A girl like Aleta, maybe?”
”Aleta? Why Aleta?”
”You're asking it because of Sherry, right? Aren't they both alike?”
Rosa gave her a daughter a surprised look.
”Not at all? I mean, Aleta is a sweet girl. She's gentle and smart. Don't get me wrong, I loved Sherry, but she was the exact opposite. She was wild, and not very bright. I don't know the particulars but her situation with her family was pretty bad. She never had a basic education and it was hard for her to catch up. She didn't go to school with me and she never learned how to write.”
”Wait, she couldn't write?” Emma asked. Something was bothering her about that statement. Suddenly she found it. The missing piece in the puzzle. If a kiss was enough to put Sherry at ease and make her move on, why didn't it work on the first time? At the time, that didn't make sense, but Emma couldn't find out why and just let it go. Now she had found another inconsistency. ”Sherry couldn't write? But then what about that letter? Couldn't she write a single letter?”
”A letter? No, she couldn't. She couldn't even write her own name.”
”Mom! Turn back!” Emma said suddenly, taking her mother by surprise.
”Turn back? What do you…?”
”I need to see Aleta again. Please, mom, I won't ask for anything else. Just this one time!”
Rosa considered saying no but the afflicted expression on her daughter's face convinced her. They weren't that far from the inn yet, so it wouldn't be a problem. Just this time she agreed.
***
Aleta's door was opened suddenly and Emma walked inside. Aleta threw a confused look at her. She was lying on the bed. Her eyes were red from crying.
”Emma? Why?”
”That letter. You know, the love letter. Did Sherry write it?”
Aleta's face became pale. She sat on her bed and stammered.
”Y-Y-Yeah. R-Right? I mean, huh. Why?”
”Sherry couldn't write.”
”H-How…?”
”Mom said it. Sherry couldn't write. That letter also had my name. Not Bud. Emma was written on it. Sherry couldn't even call me by that name. She didn't want to believe I wasn't mom. So who wrote that letter?”
Aleta remained in silence.
”Then there's that kiss. Why would Sherry kiss me at the stream? She couldn't even do something like that before trying to kill me. My kiss freed her, right? It's something she always wanted to do with mom but never had the courage. But then, what about the kiss before that?”
Emma approached the bed.
”Was that kiss you?” She asked.
”I…” Aleta said, fiddling with her dress and avoiding looking at Emma. ”I wrote the letter, yeah. But you weren't supposed to find it. I had decided not to give it to you. I think Sherry was the one who put it on your door.”
”The kiss?”
”That kiss. I-I...”
Tears were welling up in Aleta's eyes.
Emma approached her and, holding her face gently, kissed her lips. Aleta retreated, putting her fingers on her mouth.
”W-W-Why…?”
”Could I fall in love with a girl? Mom asked me that just some time ago. I think I can now,” Emma said, sitting beside Aleta on the bed. ”I know how you feel but it's complicated right now. There's no way I can give you an answer so suddenly. But I also don't want to reject you. I need time to sort out my feelings better. So, if you're willing to try, can you let me think for some time and call me when you have a chance?”
Aleta looked at Emma. Her lips were shaking and tears were flowing through her eyes. She shook her head.
”W-What if,” she suppressed a sob. ”What if I keep my hopes up. What if you say no?”
”I guess you'll need to call me as soon as you can, then. To end that suffering,” Emma said, smiling. She put her hand on Aleta's cheek. ”For now, how about a little more confidence in your own charms?”