CHAPTER 41: A MOTHER, A MOMENT,

Scene: Mek – Sitting Alone on the Balcony

The wind was calm.

Pete had gone out to make a call.

Mek was sipping tea, his mind drifting through the thunderclouds of the past.

Then—

A knock.

He turned.

And froze.

A woman in a jet-black coat stood in the doorway, umbrella folded in her gloved hands.

Pete's mother.

Elegant. Regal. Sharp as broken glass.

> "May I sit, Mek?"

Mek swallowed.

> "You… you came here alone?"

She smiled faintly. "I have a driver. Don't be too impressed."

She sat down, unbothered by his tension.

> "I didn't come to scold. Or bribe. Or threaten."

Mek blinked. "Then why?"

She looked out toward the garden.

> "Because I saw something I didn't expect."

She pulled a paper from her coat pocket.

The birthday note. The old, taped one. The insult that started it all.

> "You wrote this… yes?"

Mek nodded, confused.

> "Pete kept it. Even after all these years."

She traced the crumpled edge.

> "And when I read it, I realized something.

You weren't the poison in his life.

You were the antidote."

Mek's throat tightened. "I… I never wanted to come between your family and him—"

She raised a hand. "Our family… has always been a kingdom of shadows.

But Pete shines around you. And that light? It's not something I can deny forever."

> "So you accept us…?"

Her eyes flickered with something unspoken.

> "I'm trying."

A pause.

Then her voice softened—

> "Mek… take care of my son.

He won't ask for help. He won't beg for love. But he needs it more than anyone."

A single tear escaped her. Mek noticed she quickly turned her face away.

> "He's not his father.

And you're not the enemy."

She stood, composed again in seconds.

> "Don't tell Pete I came. Let him think I'm still cruel.

It'll make it easier if I have to be again."

And just like that—

She disappeared down the stairs, her heels clicking against tile like raindrops.

---

Scene Shift: Pete Returns

Mek stood at the door, silent.

Pete kissed his cheek.

> "You okay?"

Mek nodded.

> "Yeah. Just…

Your mother has prettier handwriting than I expected."

Pete blinked. "Huh?"

Mek smiled softly, eyes glassy.

> "Nothing. I'll tell you… someday."