“Please don’t take it to your heart, dear in-law,” she said sweetly. “Liam just has a bit of a temper. Look, he didn’t forget about you at all, he even brought you a souvenir.”
She shoved something into my mom’s hands. It was a cheap wooden comb, the kind sold three for $2 at the entrance of the scenic spot. The carving was crude and even had very sharp edges.
My mother froze, staring at the comb in her hand, not knowing whether to take it or not.
“Oh, come on, dear in-law, just take it. Don’t be shy. This is also a gift from Liam. My son may have his faults, but he’s actually a nice boy, you also know it.”
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, her tone shifted. Her fingers instinctively brushed her neck and pride instantly lit up her face.
“Look,” she said, deliberately straightening her silk scarf to reveal the gold necklace glittering around her neck. “He even bought me a gift too!”
She tilted her chin slightly, saying with full of satisfaction, “He told me I look best in gold, so he dragged me into the jewelry store just now to buy this necklace!”
She let out a theatrical sigh, still smiling. “Ah, it cost tens of thousands! I told him not to waste money, but this boy just wouldn’t listen! He said because it’s National Day and he has to make me happy!”
My mom stood silently beside me, her smile frozen in place. The sharp contrast between that cheap wooden comb and the gold necklace felt like a loud slap across my face. And that slap woke me up completely.
Fine.
For them, everything was about money and calculation, then let’s start counting properly. Including the dignity they owed my mom, I’d make sure they paid it back in full.
I took the wooden comb from my mom’s hand, running my fingers lightly over its rough splinters and suddenly gave a soft laugh.
“Liam, you really picked the perfect gift.”
He didn’t catch the irony in my tone. Instead, he smiled with relief, thinking I had finally given in.
“See? That’s better! Now everyone’s happy.”
I didn’t even look at him. I just took my mom’s arm. “Mom, let’s go back to the room and rest,” I said softly.
"What about the fireworks?" Liam asked, impatient.
“Watch them yourself.”
Without looking back, I led my mom straight toward the elevator. Behind us, I could still hear his mom grumbling under her breath, “Your wife… she’s good at ruining the mood.”
Back in the hotel room, my mom still looked uneasy. She kept turning the cheap comb over in her hands again and again.
“Anne,” she said quietly, “at least they gave me a gift. It’s nice. Don’t be mad at Liam over something like this.”
I looked at my mom, the woman who had endured everything all her life, always thinking of others, always swallowing her pain.
And for what?
For being abandoned on a highway. For getting this rough, splintered comb. For carrying endless hurt and humiliation.
“Mom.”
I took the comb from her hands and tossed it straight into the trash bin. “This cheap thing doesn’t deserve you. You deserve something much better.”
She glanced at the trash bin and sighed again. “But…”
“Let’s not talk about them anymore, Mom.”
I knelt down beside her, holding her rough hand. “Tell me, where do you want to go most? The seaside? Or somewhere with mountains and rivers?”
My question caught her off guard. She blinked, startled. “Anne, we’ve already spent so much on this trip. We can’t just waste more money going somewhere else. No, that’s too much!”
I smiled, squeezing her hand gently. “Don’t worry about the money, Mom. Your daughter has a house, a car, a job and some savings too. I can take care of you.”
I gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and flashed her a confident and mysterious look. “Besides, I have a way to pay for it. Just tell me, do you want to go?"
My mom looked at me, unsure if she should believe me or not. After a long pause, she said softly, “I used to see the beaches on TV. The sand looked so fine. It’s just that…”
