Recently, I had made it a ritual to visit my parents’ graves, bringing fresh flowers each time. My heart ached as I knelt to place them, remembering the love and warmth they had given me throughout my life. Yet, I couldn’t shake the unsettling feeling that something was wrong. Each time I returned, the flowers on my mother’s grave had mysteriously vanished, while those on my father’s remained untouched.
This strange pattern gnawed at me. It couldn’t be mere coincidence. So one sunny afternoon, I resolved to arrive earlier than usual, determined to uncover the mystery behind my mother’s disappearing flowers.
As I approached the gravesite, my heart raced. A figure stood at my mother’s grave, her back turned to me. I felt a jolt of anger when I realized she was not there to pay her respects. Instead, she was carelessly tossing my carefully chosen flowers into a nearby trash can.
“EXCUSE ME, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” I shouted, my voice shaking with disbelief and fury.
The woman turned slowly to face me. Her eyes held a mix of defiance and sorrow that caught me off guard. “YOUR MOTHER,” she began, her voice steady, “was not the person you think she was.”
Confusion washed over me. “What do you mean?” I demanded, a part of me desperate to understand her reasoning.
She sighed, glancing back at the grave before looking at me with a pained expression. “I knew your mother. She was… different. We were close once. But she left me behind, and when she died, I couldn’t bear to see you honoring her like this.”
My heart raced, a mix of shock and disbelief coursing through my veins. “You’re saying you knew her? Who are you?”
“I’m Rachel,” she replied quietly. “Your mother and I were friends when we were younger. We had dreams, plans. But she chose a different life, and I was left behind. I struggled for years, always wondering what happened to her. When I saw you bringing flowers, it felt like a betrayal. I thought she had forgotten me completely.”
I took a step back, reeling from the revelation. “You think I’m honoring her when she didn’t even want to know you?”
“Maybe,” Rachel said, her voice cracking. “But she never tried to reach out to me either. She cut ties, and I lost her. I just couldn’t stand seeing you pretend everything was perfect when it wasn’t.”