Chapter 7: Reconciling with Christopher

The following days passed by quickly. My mother was more than happy; she went shopping and drag me with her. We had to buy warmer clothes and ski equipment. I had no idea of skiing or snowboarding, neither I was eager to learn. Surely, I’d have plenty of ideas to paint when we would return, and that was very relieving for me.

My grandparents came to our house two days before our departure. We decorated our Christmas tree and ate dinner together. They liked David a lot, but they had mixed feelings about Chris; his behavior was confusing. My mom tried to justify his actions, by saying that he wasn’t used to be a part of a big family. Nevertheless, that doesn’t excuse his lack of manners.

We packed our bags with all the necessities for our four days stay at the winter resort. We went to the airport in David’s car. We were going to travel with the airplane; another first time for me. Thankfully, the flight didn’t last long, and the weather was good, so we didn’t experience any turbulence. Chris was rather quiet listening to music with his headphones, David kept talking with my mom, while I tried to catch some sleep.

When we landed David rent an SUV so that we could continue our trip. The road was rather curvy, and the trip wasn't so comfortable, but the view outside the widow compensate us. Tall trees covered with a thin yet soft layer of white snow. The sun reflected on the white snow and made it shine like a million little diamonds. Stalactites were formed as the snow slowly melted on trees’ branches; they looked like crystals. Even my mom was staring out of her window, quiet for once.

Our hotel was enormous, built with wood, and screamed luxury. I have to admit that it was nowhere near what I expected. We walked into the reception hall, where a huge fireplace burnt, giving a cozy and welcoming vibe. We sat on the sofas while David went to take care of our reservations. Chris informed us that this resort was one of the best they had visited, and that’s why the kept coming back annually for the past five years.

“Okay, so we have two double rooms,” David exclaimed as soon as he came back.

Silence followed his words, and I couldn’t put my finger on it. For me, it was obvious that my mom and I were staying in one room, while the two men were going to share the other.

“Okay, Ophelia and I will take the one room, and you can stay in the other,” Chris said.

My eyes widened in surprise and horror, “Excuse me?” I mumbled under my breath.

“Oh, well… If Ophelia is okay with that?” my mom asked glancing me with concern, but at the same time, I was sure she’d like to spend these days with her lover.

Um, no, I was about to say but decided against it. “Sounds good to me,” I replied and faked a smile. My mom looked at me with disbelief, but once again she didn’t comment on my response.

“Perfect! I’ll arrange our suitcases to be delivered in our rooms,” David stated.

“Are you sure, angel?” my mom asked me, while we were walking towards our rooms. David and Chris were leading the way.

“About what, mom?”

“You know, about the rooms. If you’re uncomfortable, you don’t have to stay with Chris,” she said.

“I know, mom. It’s alright. Don’t worry. We’ll watch a couple of movies, or play a board game. Plus, we’re going to spend more time outside and altogether, than in the rooms,” I said with a reassuring tone.

“Okay, angel. Let me know if you need anything,” she said and kissed me lightly on my hair.

I nodded in agreement and glanced towards the men who were halted in front of a door.

“Ophelia, here's yours and Chris’ room. We are at the door at the end of the corridor,” David said while giving a key to his son.

We separated ways, and I watch mom and David heading to their room. Chris opened the door, and we walk into a rather big room. A huge king size bed was placed in the middle of the room, a big wardrobe on the side, and a sofa with two armchairs were on one corner. A door leads the way to the en suite bathroom. The furniture was made of wood, and earth tones completed the décor. I strolled to the lighted fireplace and stretched my hands to worm up. I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm down a bit.

I was awfully aware of the fact that I was alone in a room with Christopher. The last time, this happened all hell broke loose.

“I’ll sleep on the sofa,” I heard Chris murmur.

I looked around me once again and realized that it was impossible for us to share a bed, despite its size.

What a fine gentleman, my mind retorted. “Um, if you’re comfortable with that,” I muttered.

He just nodded and proceeded to take a spare blanket from the wardrobe and a few pillows from the bed.

“I think we should talk,” I said after a while, breaking once again the awkward silence.

“About what?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“We will be together for the next four days, and obviously we’ll have to tolerate each other for more, if our parents keep dating,” I stated, but he looked unfazed.

“If you think that I'm going to apologize for the last time, you’re very wrong,” he scoffed.

“I never said that. I think I was quick to judge you, and maybe I said some harsh words the other day. I didn’t want to hurt your feelings.”

“I can’t say the same thing,” he shrugged, and I was that close at snapping once again. How could he not feel regretful for acting like a complete moron the last time we met?

“I'm not gonna fight with you again. I just want to sort this out.”

“We will not be a happy family.”

“I don’t know how it is to be a part of a happy family, a nuclear happy family. My grandparents and my mom are the only ones I have as a family. My mom is happy with your dad, and I’d hate myself if I was the cause that ruined her happiness again,” I said truthfully.

“The other day you said that your dad didn’t want you. What do you mean by that?” he enquired, and I sighted.

I sat on one of the velvet armchairs and massaged my temples a bit. I didn’t expect a question like that. “My dad broke up with my mom the moment he found out that she was pregnant. He didn’t want me to be part of his life, and he even had the gut to threaten my mom to terminate the pregnancy,” I said while looking at the wooden coffee table in front of me.

“No offense, but he is a jerk,” Chris exclaimed after a few seconds of silence.

“Jerk is the least I would call him,” I chuckled.

“So, your mom raised you with your grandparents’ help?”

“That’s right. It was very difficult for her to be a single mother. People always looked down on her or call her names. They never let any of these affect me. I was brought up to believe that I'm normal and that I don’t differ from the other kids in any way; which is partially true. I mean, it would have been the same if my dad had died before I was born.”

His eyes suddenly darkened, and I realized my mistake as soon as my last words sunk in me. “Christopher, I'm sorry… I completely forget about your mother,” I muttered apologetically.

“It's been so many years since she’s left, that sometimes I think all my memories are just dreams,” he said, while he looked lost in his thoughts.

“At least there are happy memories, aren’t they?”

“Most of them are. We used to play together all day or watch TV, she cooked my favorite meals and took me for long strolls. We were happy until she fell ill. She tried different treatments, but none of them seemed to work. The doctors kept giving us false hope; she participated in clinical trials for new medicines, but nothing made her feel better.

"At last, she asked to be taken back home and to stop all the treatments. My dad was devastated, he couldn’t stop fighting. But that was her last wish. She wanted to die in her home with her family. And that was exactly what happened. She passed away in her sleep; she just didn’t wake up one morning. Thankfully, her doctors made sure she wouldn’t feel any pain,” he said, while his voice broke at the end.

I couldn’t stop my tears from rolling down at my cheeks. “I don’t know what to say, Christopher. I wish none of this had happened…” I whispered.

“We can’t change the past, nor alter our fate. All these years, I desperately tried to hold on to the good memories, and don’t leave the bad ones to consume me. You were right the other day, you know; I'm afraid to be happy. I'm afraid that if I make new happy memories, I will forget the ones that I have with my mother.”

“That’s not true; you will never forget her, Chris. She’s always with you, in your heart. I can’t do anything else to convince you, but I can promise you that every time we are going to meet, you’ll tell me something about your mother,” I told him and went to sit beside him on the sofa.

He looked at me with disbelief. “You can’t be serious…” he muttered after a few seconds.

“Oh, I am. Give me your hand, and tell me a good memory you have from her,” I instructed him and extended my hand for him to take.

After a few moments of hesitation, he took my hand and did as I said. He closed his eyes and let the memories overflow him. I wasn’t sure if it was his voice or my wild imagination, but I was pretty sure that I saw a beautiful woman, with long honey blonde hair and green eyes, baking cookies in a kitchen full of light. A toddler, around 3 years old, runs around giggling. The little boy looked a lot like a younger version of Chris and kept asking his mom when he was going to be able to taste the cookies.

A small smile formed in my lips, and when I opened my eyes, I saw Chris smiling, while a couple of stray tears were rolling down his cheeks. “It was her. I saw her, Ophelia. It seemed so true,” Christopher exclaimed with a small voice.

“It was real, Chris. It was one of your memories,” I replied.

“Oh my, your nose is bleeding. Are you okay?” he asked looking concerned.

I nodded, “Yeah, I just need to use the bathroom for a bit.”

Once in the bathroom, I splashed some fresh water on my face and stopped the bleeding. I wasn’t sure if that was another weird vision, neither I could explain how Chris was able to see it, too. I didn’t have much time to dwell on it, though. So, when I freshened up, I exited the bathroom, to find a worried Christopher passing at the room.

“Do you want to call your mom? Are you feeling dizzy?” he bombarded me with his questions.

“Don't worry, I'm fine. I have these nosebleeds quite often.”

“Oh, okay then. Thank you, for this. You’re different from what I’ve expected you to be. I promise I’ll stop acting like a nitwit. I really want to get to know you better- if that’s what you want, too,” he said, and I couldn’t help but smile at his proposition.

“Of course. I’d like that, too!”

The remaining of the day I spent it with my mom. David and Chris went skiing, while we preferred to explore the hotel. The resort was huge, it had different sitting rooms, restaurants, and gift shops. There was a spa, a gym, an inside pool, a movie theater, a room filled with pool tables and football tables, a bowling area… We needed at least two hours to make the tour of the whole resort and finally, we decided to enjoy a cup of hot chocolate in one of the cafeterias.

When David and Chris joined us, we went for dinner and they informed us about their skiing adventures. They were convinced to teach me and mom either skiing or snowboarding. I was very reluctant, but my mom agreed, and I left with no other choice.

That night I slept, wishing I won’t end up with a broken arm or leg, since I had agreed that Christopher was going to be my snowboard instructor for the next day…