Chapter 137 Nothing But A Mistake
Mia’s POV
“Mia, what are you doing here? I told you before, you cannot just show up unannounced.” My mother’s voice cut through me the moment she stepped into the garden.
She came from the side pathway that led from the main house to the open garden veranda, a place meant for guests who were not important enough to be invited inside.
The guard had already told me she was the one who instructed them to make me wait in the garden, beside the trimmed hedges and the stone pathway, where I stood like a stranger waiting to be dismissed. I swallowed hard and forced myself to stand straight.
“Mom,” I said softly, holding on to what little courage I had left. “I have been texting you for weeks. You never replied. I did not know what else to do.”
She did not look surprised or look guilty. “I have been busy,” she said flatly. “You should have understood that.” Her answer made it more painful that she didn’t care about me
Still, I tried to smile, even if it already hurt.
“I just came to ask if you could attend my graduation,” I continued. “I am the class valedictorian.” I waited for her reply because I needed her to be proud of me. But instead, she sighed like I had become a burden.
“I cannot believe you, Mia,” she said, shaking her head. “You managed to live without me, without us, for two years. You do not need me now. I cannot attend your graduation, and I am not planning to.”
My chest tightened.
“My husband does not even know about you.” She added.
Everything inside me went still.
“What?” I whispered, my voice trembling.
“I could not tell him about you,” she continued, her tone calm, as if she was not breaking me. “I was too young when I had you. I do not want him to think I was that kind of girl.”
My fingers curled at my sides as I tried to keep myself from shaking.
“Mom… you were married to Dad,” I said, my voice trembling as I tried to hold myself together. “You loved him. How can you say that?”
For a moment, she looked at me, then let out a quiet breath as if she was tired of explaining.
“Leah is three years younger than you, Mia,” she said.
“That means I had her when I was twenty one,” she continued calmly. “And that makes a difference.”
I stared at her, unable to speak.
“At twenty one, I looked like I was ready,” she went on. “Like I made a proper decision. Like I chose that life.”
Her voice remained steady, but every word felt heavier than the last.
“But when I had you… I was eighteen.” My heart dropped.
“And that,” she said, looking straight at me, “is not the same.” I felt my hands slowly curl at my sides.
“At eighteen, people do not see it as a choice,” she continued. “They see it as a mistake. Like I had no future. Like I had no control over my life.”
Her words pierced straight through me.
“That is why I told my husband about Leah and Seth,” she added. “Because they were born when I was already at the right age. It made everything look… proper.”
My chest tightened painfully.
“But you…” she paused for a second, then continued, “you were different. I could not tell him about you.”
It felt like the ground beneath me disappeared. Not because I did not already know. But because hearing it from her made it real. It was her truth, her reason, and her decision, no matter how much it hurt me. And I was the part she chose to hide.
“You should leave now,” she said, her voice turning cold again. “I cannot risk you being seen by my husband. I do not want him asking questions about who you are or who that boy is with you.”
Her eyes briefly shifted to Liam, like he was something she did not want to deal with.
“And listen to me carefully, Mia,” she continued, her tone firm. “If you come here again without informing me, I will not come out to see you. This is the last time I will entertain you like this.”
My heart sank deeper.
“I will tell the guards not to let you inside the property next time,” she added without hesitation. “You are not allowed to come here again.”
Her words pierced my heart.
“Do not be like me, Mia,” she went on, as if nothing she said had just broken me. “Do not waste your youth. Do not get married early. Do not spend your life taking care of a husband and children.”
Something inside me shattered completely. Because the way she said it made it sound like her life with my father, with me, was nothing but a mistake she regretted.
“Mom…” My voice cracked, and I could no longer hold it in. “I am not asking for anything big. I just want you to be there. Even just for one day. Please come to my graduation.”
For a moment, I searched her face for even the smallest sign of hesitation, for something that would tell me she still cared, even just a little. I held on to that fragile hope, silently begging for her to soften. But there was nothing.
“I cannot, Mia. Do not be stubborn,” she said, her voice firm and unyielding. “I will send you money instead.”
Tears blurred my vision as her words sank deep into my chest. It felt like everything I had been holding on to was slipping away right in front of me.
“I do not need your money,” I whispered, my voice trembling despite my effort to stay strong. “I need you.”
That was all I ever wanted. Not her excuses, I did not want anything else. I just wanted her. But she only shook her head, as if what I was asking for was something impossible.
“Mia, I do not want to see you anymore. Please leave.”
And just like that, she turned her back on me. There was no hesitation, no second thought, no glance over her shoulder. She walked away as if I was nothing more than something she had already decided to leave behind.
She made her way through the veranda and back into the house where I was never allowed to step. The glass doors closed behind her, and in that moment, it felt like something inside me closed too.
I stood there in the garden, long after she disappeared from sight. My heart felt heavy, as if the world itself was reminding me I truly belonged outside my mother’s life.
I kept hoping she would come back. That she would open the door again, call my name, and tell me she did not mean any of it. That she would remember I was still her daughter. But she did not.
“Hey… do not be so sad, Mia.” Liam’s voice reached me, soft and careful, but I could not move. I could not even turn to him, because the truth had already settled deep inside me.
All this time, I thought my mother left me because she had no choice. I believed she was forced to choose between us, that somehow, it was not entirely her decision.
But now I understood. She did not take me with her not because she could not. But because she did not want to. Because she was ashamed of me. And that realization hurt more than being left behind.
“I told you not to come,” I said softly after I settled inside Liam’s car, closing the door behind me like I was trying to shut everything out. “You saw everything. You saw what kind of mother she is… and it was embarrassing.”
I kept my eyes down, unable to look at him. My chest still felt heavy, like every word my mother said was still echoing inside me.
Liam did not answer right away. I felt his gaze on me, steady and gentle, like he was trying to understand everything I was feeling without rushing me.
“Hey,” he said softly, his voice calm and reassuring. “You do not need to be embarrassed, Mia. Not in front of me.”
I slowly looked at him, and the way he was looking at me made my chest tighten again, but for a different reason.
“I am actually glad I came with you,” he continued. “Because now I know what you have been carrying all this time. And I want you to know that I am here for you.”
His words were simple, but they felt warm, like something trying to fill the emptiness inside me.
“Your mom does not even realize how amazing you are,” he added. “She cannot see what I see. But that does not change who you are, Mia.”
I swallowed hard as I tried to keep myself together.
“You are not alone,” he went on gently. “You have me. You have Josh, Daniel, and Dina. There are people who care about you. People who will stay.”
His words made my lips curve into a small, weak smile, but it quickly faded.
“Honestly…” I whispered, shaking my head slightly. “There are no amount of wonderful words that can make me feel better right now, Liam.”
My voice cracked despite my effort to stay calm.
“I thought… I thought my mom just had no choice,” I continued, my eyes starting to burn. “But today, I realized something else.”
I looked away, my hands tightening on my lap.
“She hated me,” I said, my voice barely steady. “She thinks I ruined her life. That I took her dreams away from her.”
The moment I said it out loud, I could not hold it in anymore. Tears slipped down my cheeks, one after another, no matter how hard I tried to stop them.
“I never thought she hated me that much,” I whispered, my voice breaking completely.
Before I knew it, Liam reached for me.
“You did not take anything from your mother, Mia,” he said firmly, his voice filled with certainty. “Do not ever think that.”
I slowly looked at him, my vision blurred with tears.
“She had a choice,” he continued. “Even if she was young back then, she still made her own decisions. Just like us.”
He held my gaze, making sure I understood every word.
“I chose you,” he said softly. “And I choose you again and again. I want to be with you, Mia. And no matter what happens in the future, I know I will never regret that.”
My heart clenched at his words.
“So please,” he added gently, his voice almost pleading, “do not listen to your mom. Do not let her words change what we have. Please do not break up with me.”
My breath caught as I stared at him. Liam reached out and gently cupped my face, wiping away my tears with his thumb.
“I love you,” he said. Something inside me softened, even through all the pain.
“I love you too, Liam,” I whispered, my voice still shaky but sincere. “And do not worry… I know what I want.”
I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself.
“I want to be with you too,” I continued. “But I need to finish my studies. I will work part time jobs if I have to. I do not care how many hours it takes. I just want to graduate.”
Before I could say anything else, Liam pulled me into his arms.
“I promise you, Mia,” he whispered against my hair. “I will do everything I can to help you graduate and make your dreams come true. You do not have to face this alone.”
I cried harder in his arms, not because of my mother’s hurtful words anymore, but because for the first time that day, I felt safe. And I felt I was no longer alone.