Theresa sniffled once, before grabbing a tissue to bury her face in, "It was so hard at first. When Jerry first left. I had no idea what to do! Three young boys aren"t the easiest thing to deal with. And the money. We never had enough money. There"s no worse feeling than looking into the upset face of a hungry child and not being able to help."Without words, Grace wrapped her hands around the delicate mother and let her sob for a moment against her. "It"s okay, it"s okay."
"Thank you, Grace," sobbed Theresa, before blowing her nose. "I"m sorry, I didn"t mean to let myself go like that."
"It happens sometimes, no worries," smiled Grace.
"It"s a lot better now than it used to be. With Stephen able to help out the family, and twins much older and independent now. I just know his father leaving had such an impact on Stephen. I think the bright-eyed child I knew died a little that day. It left such a hole, growing up without a real father, but Stephen did well. As well as any boy can do. Those dark days were finally over, but there"s been this lingering overcast for the last couple months. With another death in our family."
"You mean, Danny?" Grace asked.
Theresa sniffled, "He told you about him then?"
The young woman nodded silently.
"Our family has been struggling with that recently. Stephen more so, and probably as much as my sister, Linda. My sister, she"s just been a practical recluse since that night. I can"t say I blame her, and I"d probably do the same thing if it were one of my boys. But Stephen took it so hard. Blamed himself so much. And when it didn"t pa.s.s after a couple weeks, I really started to worry about him," she finished, looking at her son in the living room.
"We talked about it yesterday," replied Grace, quietly. "I think he"s finally giving himself the opportunity to move on from it."
"I sure hope so. It"s so nice seeing the old Stephen back. He was such a happy child. Always smiling, and laughing, and a bundle of energy. I hated seeing him as down as he"s been."
"He"ll pull through. He"s a tough man," smiled Grace.
"And he has you now. I know you"re a big portion of why he"s feeling better, and smiling more. You"re good for him, Grace."
Grace smiled gently, while beginning to dry off several of the dishes Theresa had already washed. "He"s good for me, too. He makes me happier than I"ve ever been."
Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.
"That"s one thing a mother always wants to see. Her children happy and thriving. It warms my heart to know that you two have found each other."
They both shared a knowing, and happy look together before returning their attention to the dishes. With an extra pair of hands, the dishes took less than half the normal time, and they were able to join the rest of the family in the living room a short time later. Grace, of course, sidled up next to Stephen, wrapping her arms around his chest and snuggling in close.