Chapter 117: Chapter one hundred and Seventeen

Diana

I just wanted to clarify everything. Thomas wasn’t leaving my side anymore, and I didn’t want to lie to him again. Telling him the truth about what Alessia and I were to each other felt like the only right decision.

Thomas’s face brightened. “So Aunt Alessia is my…?” He paused, clearly searching for the word.

I waited.

“…stepmom?”

My cheeks turned red. I glanced at Alessia. “Something like that.”

Thomas considered this carefully. Then he looked straight at Alessia. Completely serious, he reached forward and held my hand.

“Does that mean I can call you Mommy too?”

This time, the question was aimed directly at her.

\~~~~~~~~~

Alessia

The question landed heavier than it should have. Something unfamiliar tightened in my chest.

I glanced at Diana. She looked like she was uneasy, her posture tense, as she waited for my answer as if it might break something fragile between us.

I turned back to the small boy still holding both our hands.

“You can call me whatever makes you comfortable,” I said quietly.

He smiled, bright and uncomplicated, as if the answer had been the easiest thing in the world.

“Yeahhh, Mommy Alessia.”

He signaled for me to come low. I did. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to my cheek. I froze. His small arms tightened around my neck.

For a moment, I didn’t know what to do. No one had ever hugged me like this just because they wanted to. My arms slowly came around him.

Something I hadn’t known was still capable of softening.

And for the first time since the hospital attack, the tension in my chest eased.

Thomas pulled back. “But Mommy Alessia?”

He paused dramatically.

“Since you’re my mommy’s wife…”

He pointed at Diana.

“You should definitely give her more days off.”

I looked at Diana. She groaned.

“Thomas—”

“Your mommy doesn’t need to work at all.”

His eyes lit up.

“Really?”

I nodded. His face soon turned sad again.

“She still has to pay for my treatments. If she doesn’t work, how will she do that—”

“I will. Diana won’t lift a finger. You can take days off with her,” I said. It sounded like I was bragging right now, but I would do anything for Diana.

Her eyes were teary.

“Thank you,” she mouthed.

“Does that mean you have to work and I won’t take days off with you?” He blinked at me.

The question was so simple, yet it caught me off guard. I glanced at Diana again. She was watching me carefully, waiting.

I looked back at the little boy who was Diana’s replica, with the same eyes and blonde hair, his smile just as identical, his arms around my neck. I felt a feeling that was different from every other thing I had felt before.

“We’ll figure something out,” I said. “Maybe some days I stay home too.”

Thomas’s face brightened again. He looked between the two of us, satisfied for now, and then leaned against Diana’s side while still holding onto the edge of my sleeve.

My phone beeped in my pocket. It was a message from Kendrick.

“Diana, there’s someone here to see you.”

She frowned.

The door opened.

He carried himself with an ease that didn’t belong to someone his age. His turban was neatly tied, and his embroidered caftan made it obvious he came from wealth. There was something regal about him.

Diana’s eyes widened.

“Adam?” she called, unsure. She stepped forward.

“It’s you!” She rushed forward and hugged him.

“What are you doing in Horrixo?” She pulled back and held his cheeks between her palms. “I’m so happy to see you again.”

“You said you’d call.” His expression turned accusing. “But you didn’t.”

“You should greet first,” Thomas suddenly said.

Adam looked toward him. His head tilted slightly as he studied the boy.

“Tom, come over,” Diana called him.

He padded over.

“Adam, meet Thomas, my son.”

“Nice to meet you.” He stretched his hand out.

“Nice to meet you too.”

He looked at Diana.

“You’re very lucky to have a mother like her.”

Thomas shook his head.

“I’m doubly lucky.”

Then he pointed towards me.

“Because I have two.”

The word shouldn’t have affected me, but it did. A warm feeling settled in my chest. I looked at Thomas. He didn’t look like he was trying to flatter me or like he was saying it because he had been told to. To him, it was simply the truth.

He had two mothers.

And somehow, I had become one of them.

I didn’t know when that happened. I wasn’t sure I was ready for it because kids were something I had never thought about.

But I didn’t hate the feeling.

Adam’s eyes moved toward me.

“My father sends his warm regards.”

I nodded.

Diana gestured toward the couch.

“Come. Sit down.”

Adam followed her.

“I heard you were in danger,” he explained. “Father deployed some men to help. I came by myself to make sure you’re okay.”

“You came all the way from Pardi City?”

“Of course.”

Thomas’s eyes widened, and he looked genuinely impressed.

“You travelled that far?”

Adam nodded.

“I’m allowed to travel once a year. Usually with my aide.”

Thomas’s mouth dropped open.

“You’re so lucky. I’ve never travelled anywhere.”

Adam looked at him thoughtfully.

“You should come back with me.”

Thomas’s eyes widened.

“I wish I could.”

The two boys continued talking.

I watched them.

Thomas and Diana were smiling.

And for some reason, seeing her so happy made me happy. Nothing else mattered. Just at this moment, I would forget every other thing and leave at this moment.

“I’ll get you both something to eat,” Diana said as she stood.

I followed her out. The moment the door closed behind us, she turned to look at me.

It was quiet for the first few seconds.

“Thank you,” she muttered while playing with her fingers.

“For?” I asked.

She gestured at the door vaguely.

“For going along with Thomas…” Her words jabbed my heart. “It means a lot to me—”

“Going along?” I repeated her words. My expression shifted. “You think that’s what I was doing?”

“Alessia—”

“You think I was pretending?” My jaw tightened.

“No. That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean? Will you say the same for Kendrick?”

“Why are you mad? What does Kendrick have to do with this?” she asked, genuinely confused.

“Everything,” I said. “The fact that you trust her with him without hesitation… and with me, you think I’m just ‘playing along’?”

Diana’s expression shifted.

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean?” My voice stayed low, but the hurt under it was clear. “You handed him to Kendrick like it was the most natural thing in the world. You didn’t even hesitate. But when he calls me ‘Mommy,’ you thank me for pretending?”

She opened her mouth, then closed it.

“I didn’t think you would actually…” she started, then stopped, realizing how the words sounded.

“Actually what?” I stepped closer. “Actually accept him?”

Her silence answered for her.

Something cold and sharp settled under my ribs.

“You still don’t trust me with him. Not the way you trust her.”

“That’s not fair,” she said quietly.

“Isn’t it?” I let out a short, humorless breath. “When the hospital was under attack, you chose her to go after him. You didn’t even ask me. And just now… you thanked me for ‘going along’ like I’m a stranger being nice to your child.”

Diana’s eyes flashed with a mix of guilt and frustration.

“You’re injured. You almost died. How do you expect me to send you off like that?”

“I trust you with my life,” she finally said.

“And Thomas’s?” I asked.

She opened her mouth and hesitated.

I stared at her. Her silence hurt more than her words could.

\~~~~~~~~~

Diana

Alessia didn’t say another word. She just turned and started walking down the hallway, her steps measured. The set of her shoulders was rigid. She didn’t look back.

“Alessia.”

She kept walking.

“Alessia, wait—”

Still nothing. The only sound was the soft click of her shoes against the wooden floor. She reached the end of the corridor and was about to turn the corner when the words left my mouth before I could stop them.

“You said children were complications. How can I trust you with his life, Alessia?”

She stopped.