Wednesday and Thursday were Lily’s day-off. Whenever she had time to spare, she spent them with her children. Her duty at the hospital was taxing and demanded her attention. On critical days, she sometimes spent the night at work and would not come home until a day or two later. Her dedication was astounding, but she was also a responsible mother.

When Janus was lost, she was left with almost no time to mourn. She had initially given up her job to focus on raising Valeriana and Jareth, but the family needed a breadwinner. The money left by their father was not enough to sustain them for a lifetime, after all.

Right now, they were having a relaxing time in front of the television watching the Lord of the Rings. There was a pile of chips and ranch dressing for a sauce on the side. Times like these were times Valeriana treasured greatly. She didn’t know how much she took these moments for granted until her father passed away.

“I heard from your brother, Valery,” said her mother as she nibbled on a chip. “You haven’t left your room since Xandra left.”

She chugged down her cup of soda and uninterestedly hummed in reply. “I don’t feel like going out, anyway.”

“Honey, you can’t stay cooped up in there forever. I know it’s hard, but you’ll get used to it.”

She stayed silent.

Xandra wasn’t the only reason. She was approaching a week after meeting the demon, the lady, and the thief. She hadn’t seen that woman ever since they parted ways after that incident. Valeriana wasn’t set on meeting her once more, either. She learned her lesson. If ever, she even wanted to avoid it. This thought alone locked her up for days.

Luckily for her, when she had come home from the airport several days ago, her mother had gone to work and her brother was playing his video games in his room so no one noticed her arriving. She remembered grabbing the medicine kit from the kitchen, rushing to her bedroom, and attending to her wounds after throwing over a fresh set of clothes. Her shoes and clothes were discarded.

She was able to hide her injuries by avoiding company and they were mostly healed. The only one she talked with had been Xandra through chats and video calls. Her mother was tolerating her eating in her room alone, thinking it was because of the separation anxiety issues she was facing—which wasn’t entirely false.

People came and go. She knew that all too well.

Still, she held on. Hoping they would never leave.

When Thursday rolled in, she was dragged out of bed by her mother and forced to dress up for a day out. Jareth’s Xbox was torn from the socket and his personal TV turned off. He was complaining loudly while Valeriana reclined on the sofa with a bag of sour candies. The look on her face was contorted into an indiscernible frown of some sort. No one would be able to tell if it was their mother’s insistence on leaving the house or the junk food she was preoccupied with.

“Mom!” Jareth whined as he dragged his legs down the stairs. Their mother followed him, constantly pushing at his shoulders so that he would not stop.

“Mom!” Lily echoed, rolling her eyes as she laughed. “Stop complaining, Ruth. Don’t make me regret I put male on your birth certificate.”

Valeriana smiled as she chewed on the sour candy, her face turning sour. Ruth was supposed to be Jareth’s name should he have been a girl, but he wasn’t. The doctor was mistaken with his sex when he was in the womb only to correct himself later on.

“Don’t call me that. I don’t wanna go.” He stuck his head through the gap between the railings and cried out. “If you pull me, you’re gonna pull my head off too!”

“Come on, cookie monster. Such a drama queen,” Valeriana said, throwing the bag of sour candies on the table and standing to retrieve her brother. “You’ve been doing nothing but play your games ever since summer started.”

“Exactly my goal!” he yelled. “And you can’t stop me!”

Valeriana pulled his shoulders only for him to scream.

“Nooo! That hurts, that effin’ hurts. My head is stuck! My head is stuuuck!”

“Idiot.” Valeriana laughed with their mother at the dilemma he put himself in. She reached out and tried to guide his head out. “You did that to yourself.”

“Wait, be gentle.”

After getting Jareth out of his headlock situation, Lily drove to Mass-av. It wasn’t a short drive, but it wasn’t too long either. They stopped in front of their favorite restaurant which had a few renovations over the years. Valeriana stared at the establishment and felt the nostalgia as they entered. They did not come here as often as they did during her pre-teen days.

The waiter at the front immediately recognized them and opened the doors with a chime. His pleasant, mellow voice rang out softly.

“Mrs. Kerrigan, what a surprise! Welcome! It’s been a while.” Valeriana recognized the familiar, kind face of the man and smiled. “How’s it been going lately?”

“Oh, everything’s been fine, Rody,” Lily replied.

“Table for three?” he said, retrieving three copies of the menu from a rack against the wall beside him.

“Yes, please.”

He looked down at Jareth and ruffled his hair as he led them through the restaurant. There were a few diners, but it didn’t look too busy. “You’ve grown, young man! You too, Valeriana. You must be in college already.”

“Oh, um, I actually just graduated from high school,” she answered him politely.

“Very good, very good! Just like my daughter, Erika.” Rody chuckled, placing the menu on top of the table against the window. “She recently graduated from high school this year as well. I’m sure she’s as beautiful as you are now.”

Valeriana smiled up at him.

“That’s good news!” Lily said. “What a proud father you must be!”

“Yes, of course! Oh yes, I’ll be having my vacation a few days from now! I’m finally going home!” he said enthusiastically as he took out his notebook and pen for taking orders. “I’ve been looking forward to this for years now. I would have you taste the specialty of my country. I’m hoping you’ll want to try a few exotic treats.”

“Oh, you shouldn’t bother. Congratulations anyhow,” Lily told him, chuckling. “You’ve been raving about that ever since.”

“Of course! Will you have the usual?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Well then!” he clicked his pen. “I’m taking that’s a shrimp scampi in Alfredo sauce and fresh orange juice.” He looked knowingly at Lily who laughed and nodded. “Salmon with butterlemon sauce, a side of mashed potatoes, and roasted vegetables? Peach iced tea with less sugar?” His eyes met Valeriana for a moment and he was met with an approving smile. “And, lastly, herb-crusted parmesan chicken fillet with the same sides? Still Peach iced tea but with extra sugar.”

Jareth gave him a thumbs up. “Yep!”

“Oh, and Rody, get me that steak,” Lily said.

Valeriana glanced at her mother. That was the dish her father often got for himself. It seemed as though they would be holding up traditions, after all.

“Got it. Are you not getting the sweet pudding cake a la mode?” He gave Jareth a questioning glance.

“Of course!” answered her brother.

He sought the approval from Lily before writing it down. After all, she called the shots.

After Rody finished getting the orders, Valeriana found herself exchanging glances with Jareth and smiling ruefully.

“Alrighty, I’ll be back in ten minutes. For now, I have this for you.” He set down the kiddie crayons and the kiddie coloring and gaming paper with the tic-tac-toe and figure tracing activities which made them laugh.

“No, you didn’t,” Jareth told him.

“Yes, I did. You’re still kids in my eyes.”