“Listen, Alice! You no longer have a mother or a father. You dont have a home either,” replied the mother.
Late in the evening, the silence was broken by the ringing phone. Pauline picked it up from the table and heard her daughters voice.
“Mum, its Alice. Ive got a problem My husbands kicked me out. Ill come to you with Dad first thing in the morning and stay with you.”
“Listen, Alice, you dont have a mother or a father anymore, nor do you have a home.”
“What?” the daughter shrieked, as if she hadnt heard. “What do you mean, no home? Im your daughter, your only one! I have every right to live in this flat!” Alice screamed hysterically.
“Thats just how it is, love,” Pauline answered calmly. “You dont have a flat anymore. Weve signed it over to Snowdropshe owns it now. And your father and I dont want anything to do with you. Youre no longer our daughter.”
The call dragged onarguments, accusations, demands.
“Dont call here again! Youve lost everything!” Pauline ended the conversation sharply. She believed that after what Alice had done, she had every right to say it.
Standing by the window, Pauline couldnt help but recall that another story had begun with a phone call.
A call that changed everything shattered the early morning quiet. Pauline jolted awake and snatched up the phone.
“Yes, hello?”
A muffled sob came through the line.
“Hello? Whos there?”
“Its Christina.”
“Christina, whats wrong? Why are you calling at this hour? Do you know what time it is?”
“I know. Theyre taking me to hospital today for surgery. Im terrified for little Clara. Please dont leave her aloneshes just a child. Dont send her to a care home.”
Paulines sister had always been unpredictable, full of wild ideas and sudden decisions. But this time, shed outdone herselfunless something was truly wrong.
Pauline clutched the phone, her hands damp, sensing something dreadful but unable to grasp it yet.
“Christina, why didnt you say anything sooner? Why now? Whats wrong? Which hospital are they taking you to?”
Christina had been unwell for years, ignoring her condition. The past month had been unbearableshed lost weight, her face had changed. The doctors verdict was grim: immediate surgery. Shed hesitated, unsure how to tell her sister, whod always supported her, financially and emotionally, even acting as a mother. Now, she had to ask her to take in her child too.
“Pauline, the doctors arent making promises. Theyre just hoping for a miracle. Im begging youlook after Clara.”
Within the hour, Pauline and her husband arrived at the hospital where Christina was waiting. The surgery hadnt begun, but they werent allowed to see her. In the corridor, curled in a corner, sat little Clara. Pauline knelt and hugged the girl.
“Will Mummy be alright?” the child sobbed.
“Yes, darling. Shell go to sleep, feel nothing, and when she wakes up, youll see her healthy and smiling.”
But four hours later, a doctor emerged with tragic news: Christina hadnt survived.
Pauline took her niece home. She led her to her daughters room to explain: Clara no longer had a mother, and Alice no longer had an aunt. The girls would live together now. Alice shot a furious glare but said nothing.
A week later, Claras belongings were left outside the door. Alice refused to share her space.
“Mum, this is my room! Why should I give up my wardrobe and space for her?”
To avoid scenes, Pauline and her husband gave Clara their own bedroom and moved to the living room. Clara grew even quietershed never known her father, and Christina had never named him. Now, her life depended entirely on Pauline and her husband, who tried to balance attention between their own daughter and their niece.
Time passed. Alice finished university and married a wealthy older man. She packed her things quickly and moved in with Daniel. A month later, she announced the wedding.
“Mum, Im only asking one thingdont bring your niece. I dont want her there.”
“Alice, thats not right. Shes practically your sister now. If we dont invite her, itll offend us all.”
“I dont want her there!” Alice shouted. “Mum, I warned you!”
“Then your father and I wont come either.”
“Fine. Suit yourselves!” Alice snapped.
Pauline fought back tears but, steeling herself, decided to book a holiday in Cornwall instead.
“What about Alices wedding?” her husband asked.
“Were not wanted. Clara, help me find a hotelyoure better at these things.”
“So were going away?” Clara asked.
“Yes, love. We can afford it.”
“Oh, thats wonderful!” the girl beamed.
Years rolled by. Clara finished school, excelled at university, just like her mother. On her eighteenth birthday, Paulines husband fell ill and was rushed to hospital.
The doctors explained: only an expensive drug could save him. Desperate, Pauline called Alice, knowing her husbands wealth.
“Alice, love, your fathers dying. We need a rare medicinethe cost is terrifying. Can you lend us the money?”
A long silence.
“Alright, Ill talk to Daniel and call back.”
Time passed. Finally, the phone rang.
“Mum, heres the thingDaniels promised me a car for ages, and nows the time. Either he buys it, or we give you the money.”
“Alice, forget the car! Your father needs this medicine or hell die!”
“How will you pay us back? Youd be scraping pennies for years. Ill never get that car otherwise.”
“Do you hear yourself? This is your fathers life!”
“Take out a loan. I cant help.”
Pauline nearly collapsed. Clara rushed to hold her.
“Auntie, sell Mums flat. I cant live there anymoreits too painful. The money will save Uncle.”
“Darling, we cant. Its your inheritance.”
“Right now, all that matters is his life!” Clara cried.
Touched, Pauline agreed. The flat sold quickly, covering the medicine. It arrived in time and workedPaulines husband recovered.
In gratitude, the couple signed their flat over to Clara. They lived together, cherishing each day.
Then, another call came. It was Alice. Her husband had left her for another woman. She begged to come home.
“We only have one daughter nowClara,” Pauline said firmly.
Later, Clara married Alex, a successful farmer with a spacious house. The young couple invited Pauline and her husband to live with them, but they only visited. A cozy room was always ready. Alex and his father-in-law bonded over fishing.
Alice was only mentioned on her birthday. Pauline often wonderedhow had her own daughter become so selfish, valuing possessions over family? Yet Clara, whod lost everything, had given all she had to save them.
