Thank you for being my son

Melinda stands there in silence, brooding over the look in Kael's eyes. She feels responsible for tonight, thinking that fate is punishing her for her wishes so long ago in a cruel form of irony. She knows how Kael is feeling and worries about damage to his emotional state.

She is desperate, frantically trying to conceive a solution to this whole mess. She realizes she can't let things stand as they are tonight, so she rushes up to the room two doors down from Kael's on the left and rushes in.

It took Melinda five minutes of running around and barging into people's rooms to gather all the women staying in the house. They sat at the dining room table for an emergency meeting. Bella, Donna, Thea, Lara, and Cheryl are all yawning with heavily lidded eyes.

"Melinda, will you tell us what's wrong now? Did something happen at Kael's awakening?" Cheryl asks with concern.

"Surely this could have waited until morning," Bella says grumpily. She was in the middle of a fantasy of Kael in her sleep and is a little upset that she was interrupted.

"No, it couldn't have waited. There is something that I need to address right now." Melinda takes a deep breath before continuing. "Kael didn't awaken."

The other women all widen their eyes in surprise at Melinda's statement.

"What do you mean by that? Doesn't everyone awaken by sixteen?" Thea asks.

"Annette said that people who don't awaken by sixteen do not have a mana core. Kael won't ever awaken."

There is a group silence before Donna asks, "How is Kael taking it?"

"He was despondent. I've never seen him like that. He went straight to bed when we came home."

"What do you need us to do? You know we'll do anything we can to help Kael," Lara tells Melinda reassuringly.

"I'm worried that he won't recover from tonight's trauma. I need all of you to help me come up with some way to help him," Melinda pleads.

"I don't think we're the people you should ask if he can't awaken," Thea says.

"I know. There isn't much hope in helping him awaken anyway. Right now, I'm worried about his mentality."

"Are you sure you aren't overreacting a little? You know, Kael has always been resilient in the past. He might return to his old self in a few days," Donna says tentatively.

"It's not the same as before! I knew from the look in his eyes that he won't be the same Kael after tonight."

The other women all share a troubled look before thinking over Melinda's request.

"How about we throw a party? So we can show Kael how many people care about him." Lara asks.

"Who would we invite? You know how the other kids treat Kael. I feel a party with just the people he lives with will only make him more aware of his isolation," Melinda says.

"I'm sure Emi would be able to cheer up Kael. Unfortunately, she lives too far away to ask for help," Cheryl states.

"Should we maybe take a trip somewhere? Kael's probably a little tired from working so hard all the time," Donna suggests.

Melinda is a little uneasy at the suggestion. "I have some personal reservations about traveling. However, I'm willing to do anything to help Kael."

"Where would we even go? You do know we live in the middle of nowhere. It would take too long to get anywhere," Thea says.

"It's more about the journey than where we go, Thea," Lara says.

"That's a nice sentiment, but we need something more practical," Thea replies.

The table's discussion is abruptly interrupted by a loud yawn from Bella. Bella's eyes are on the verge of closing as she begins nodding off.

"Bella!" Donna smacks Bella across the back of her head in admonishment. "This is no time to doze off! We are talking about something important here."

Bella, a little peeved, reactively flips her head towards Donna on her right. However, her sleep-addled mind remembers where she is and nervously turns her head around to look at Melinda.

Melinda looks a little stunned. Bella flinches a little from a potential scolding when she opens her mouth to speak. Instead, Melinda lets out a sigh before resting her forehead on both her hands. Instead of anger, Bella only sees a teary-eyed Melinda.

"I know all of you are tired. I'm sorry I woke all of you to help me," Melinda says in a sorrowful tone.

Donna glares at Bella and whispers, "Look what you did now."

Bella's stomach twists in a knot. "Melinda, I'm so sorry. Don't you worry, I won't rest until we come up with some way to help Kael," Bella says to Melinda. She taps her chest to emphasize her commitment.

Melinda raises her head and says, "No. We probably won't get anything done tonight anyway. We can probably pick this all up in the morning."

"Melinda, none of us mind staying up all night. We would do anything for Kael," Cheryl reassures her.

"It's fine. Let's just go to bed." Melinda gets up and walks upstairs slouched over.

Thea just sighs before following Melinda upstairs. Lara looks a little conflicted but soon follows after. Bella feels very guilty and remains sitting. Donna can only roll her eyes at Bella before holding her head. Cheryl comes over next to Bella to console her.

"I bet Melinda's so mad at me."

"Melinda's just very worried about Kael. She won't blame you for being tired. Let's just go to bed."

"Alright."

Cheryl leads Bella upstairs with Donna in tow. In the end, all the women head to bed.

Still, the night is not over. Melinda lies awake on her bed while staring at her ceiling. She cannot get her mind off of Kael's eyes tonight.

Unable to go to sleep, Melinda gets up and walks out of her room. She walks down the hall. As Melinda's room is at the end of the hall, Melinda has to pass by everyone else's room.

In the middle of the hallway, she notices the door of a room on her right opened a crack. Near Donna's room, she hears Bella and Donna. With her head near the door, she listens in on their conversation.

"What is with you lately?" Donna asks Bella.

"I couldn't help it. I was just tired."

"It's not just that. You seem to be more distracted as of late."

Bella is silent for a moment. She hesitantly says, "You can't tell Melinda, okay?"

"Fine, spill it," Donna brusquely replies.

"I've been thinking about Kael lately."

"How have you been thinking about him?" Donna sounds a little uneasy when she asks.

"Well, you know."

"No," Donna gasps. "You can't be serious."

"Don't tell me you haven't thought about it."

"No! I do think he's attractive. But he's like a son to us. We helped raise him since he was a baby."

"He's more like a little brother to me."

"And you still think of him like that?" Donna says judgingly.

"Look, I know." Bella struggles with what to say next. "He's still family to me. It's just, you know what I'm like. I'm different from the rest of you. I didn't enter become a prostitute because of some extenuating circumstances. I can't help it."

Donna sighs. "I didn't mean to judge you."

"No, I deserve it. Honestly, I… I rely on you to keep me straight. Recently, I've been hot and bothered from fantasizing about Kael. I feel so confused. I keep finding myself trying to seduce him."

Melinda tightens her fists and holds back from barging in. Donna exclaims quietly, "You what! I thought these were just fantasies?"

"Heehee, did I forget to mention that?"

"Yes! Seducing how?"

"It's no big deal. I sometimes show off my body a little after a massage."

"I can't believe you. Melinda will kill you if she finds out."

"Nothing came of it. Honestly, Kael is too innocent for it to work anyway. He has no clue about the matters between men and women. I think it's a shame."

"Oh, I wonder why you think that," Donna says sarcastically.

"It's not like that. Some sex would do the boy some good right now. Think about it. We've all seen how hard he's been preparing to awaken these past years. All of a sudden, he finds out his work is for naught. It's no surprise that he feels terrible."

"And sex would fix all that?"

"It's like how we describe our job to Kael. He has stress that needs relieving. Sometimes the best remedy for feeling terrible is just a moment of feeling good."

"What a wise sage you are." Again, Donna's sarcasm comes out. "Just don't say this to Melinda, alright?"

"I'm not stupid." Bella sighs. "I'll temper my behavior and squash these thoughts I've been having. In the beginning, I rationalized that it would be alright if Kael initiated. Lately, it feels like I'm betraying Melinda's trust. I feel terrible. She's like a mother to me."

"Yeah, she has been good to us. I couldn't believe it when she first took me off the streets. I thought she was an angel."

"Yeah," Bella says while reminiscing. "It's our fault the townspeople are distant with her. They just lump her together with us. If it wasn't for us, Kael might have some friends right now."

"Don't blame yourself. We'll find some way to make it up to those two."

"Yeah. I'm still feeling a little down. Mind if I sleep with you tonight?"

"Fine, but your fat ass only gets half of the bed. I'm not going to let it go this time if I end up on the floor again."

"You just wish you had my fat ass."

"In your dreams."

Melinda stops listening in on the two as they begin to banter with each other. She feels anger towards Bella for having inclinations toward her son, but she doesn't blame her. Melinda also knows Bella's personality and finds it natural that Bella was attracted to Kael.

Melinda feels reassured by Bella's decision to have a more chaste relationship with Kael. Also, she feels warm from Bella's later statements regarding herself.

Early on in their relationship, Melinda knew that Bella was openly sexual compared to the other women. She still helped Bella out of her poor environment because she could not stand people preying on her. Melinda's actions appeared motherly with how she looked after Bella.

Melinda continues down the hall and opens the door to Kael's room. She enters and sees Kael still up. He sits on the edge of the bed with his back is facing her. He stares outside his window at the night sky.

Melinda walks around his bed to sit down next to him. The pale moonlight illuminates Kale's face. Despite the warm glow of the moon shining down on him, his eyes still have the dull luster he wore earlier that night. The two sit in silence for a moment before Kael speaks up.

"Mama."

It had been years since Kael last addressed her as Mama. He started referring to her as Mother ever since the day he nearly died.

"Was I abandoned because I have no talent?"

Melinda immediately sits behind Kael and wraps her arms around his chest. She leans her chin on his shoulder and presses her whole body into the hug. "Don't ever think that. I can't say anything about your circumstances because I don't know but don't ever think you are worthless just because of your talent."

"But I am a failure."

"No, you aren't, dear. I've seen how hard you've worked all your life. Every day you endeavor to improve yourself both physically and mentally. You've made great bounds in eight years. All of this is something to be proud of and something I'm proud of."

"But in the end, I didn't awaken. In the end, all my work is worthless because I'm defective."

"You don't need to awaken to mean something in this world. To mean something to me."

Kael turns his head to look at Melinda's eyes. "What meaning is that?"

"You're my son, my precious son." Melinda's embrace tightens around Kael.

"You're my Mama. You'll always be my Mama," Kael enunciates as if trying to ground himself in those words. Light tries to find its way back into his eyes.

"And… what should I do as someone too weak to protect the people close to me?"

"Do what makes you happy, enjoy life. Cook those delicious meals you always make, play with your animal friends. Live and grow old. Mama will always protect you."

"So… I would just be a burden for you?" The light in Kael's eyes dulls.

"What? No, never!"

"Soon, everyone will know I didn't awaken," Kael continues despite Melinda's interjection. "Everyone will associate the aunties and you with me. I'll end up hurting all of you."

Kael's words sound a little absurd to Melinda, but they worry her greatly. "We wouldn't care about their opinion!" Melinda's words fall on deaf ears.

"Who would I have after you're gone? Even if there is someone, I would be a burden to them too."

Kael's rant almost sounds like babbling. It's like Kael is dangling from a rope over a cliff. She tries to grab the rope, but it keeps slipping through her fingers.

Melinda makes another attempt to grab ahold of Kael's figurative drop. "Think about Emi. She will be there for you."

"Emi," Kael says wistfully. "She would. In the end, I would bring loneliness to her life too. No one would want to hang out with the friend of an unawakened."

Melinda feels like slapping herself. Kael's vortex of despair and self-loathing suck in all her words.

Then Melinda hears Kael say something dreadful. "Maybe I should leave. What good am I here?" Her heart clenches at his thoughts of escaping it all. She hates the awful words coming out of his mouth.

Desperate to shut him up, she pushes him down on the bed and covers his mouth with hers to stem the tide. Her lips press hard against his to keep his mouth closed. Kael's eyes go wide at his mother's abrupt action.

He remains stunned when Melinda lifts herself off Kael. He has no strange thoughts about what just happened. However, the soft sensation of Melinda's lips lingers on his.

Melinda is panting heavily with anxiety as she looks down on Kael. She remembers a part of the conversation she overheard earlier that night.

'Sometimes the best remedy for feeling terrible is just a moment of feeling good.'

She realizes her efforts as a mother could not pull Kael from his despair. She decides to help Kael as a woman, even though it would tarnish their relationship as mother and son.

She takes a deep breath and locks eyes with Kael. She wears a determined expression as she says the only words that Kael genuinely registers that night. The words sound like a fond farewell. "Thank you for being my son."