Eva reluctantly reaches out to her estranged father at her mother’s request, but he ignores her until years later…when the tables are turned.
Eva sat beside her mother’s hospital bed, observing the pale, frail figure beneath the starched sheets and thin red blanket. Her mother, Alma, wore a silk bonnet, her skin marked by the trials of chemotherapy.
“Eva?” Alma’s weak voice broke the silence.
“Sorry, Mom,” Eva replied, her eyes fixed on the blood transfusion drip.
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“What were you thinking about?” Alma asked, a magazine in her hands.
“Nothing. Everything,” Eva sighed. “How do you feel?”
“Like a bus or train ran over me,” Alma chuckled, then winced.
“Eva? Talk to me,” Alma urged, sensing her daughter’s discomfort with her usual death jokes.
“Do you think you’ll get better?” Eva asked.
“I’m going to try,” Alma reassured her, flipping through the magazine.
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Suddenly, Alma coughed, and Eva offered her water. “Why don’t you rest, and we can talk tomorrow?”
“No, let’s talk now,” Alma insisted, opening the magazine to a page with a fashion designer and a small photo of a man.
“Who is he?” Eva inquired, taking a closer look.
“That’s your father,” Alma revealed. “I have more photographs at home. He left me, Eva, but I don’t think he intended to leave you.”
“No, he left us both,” Eva replied stiffly.
“If I don’t make it, you need to find him, honey,” Alma told her. “You’re only sixteen, Eva. I need to know you’ll be safe.”
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Eva, though reluctant, agreed for her mother’s peace of mind. “Okay, we’ll try to connect with him,” she conceded, masking her reluctance. “You need to rest. We’ll talk more when we’re home.”
Alma smiled faintly. “But you look just like me, Eva. You’re only mine.”
Eva cherished these moments when she felt the depth of her mother’s love. She rarely thought about her father, Oscar, except for school projects when she was forced to include him in the family tree. Their life was complete with just the two of them.
The nurse entered, suggesting they let Alma rest after the transfusion. Eva, settled in a chair, looked at her mother, noticing a slight color returning to her cheeks. She picked up the magazine beside Alma and flipped through it.
There, Eva saw photos of Oscar with another woman, Nora, who was a famous designer. She pondered their life together, wondering if Nora knew about her existence. Oscar and Nora had married each other.
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Later at home, Eva sat beside Alma on the couch with her laptop.
“Do you want me to write the email?” Alma asked weakly.
Eva nodded. “Tell me what to say.”
“Just say who you are, and maybe give our home address for proof,” Alma suggested.
Eva hesitated, her fingers poised over the glowing keyboard. “Are you sure about this, Mom?”
Alma nodded. “It will give me peace.”
Eva began typing the email to Oscar. “Hi Oscar,” she wrote, following her mother’s narration, though she struggled with the formality of it all.
“Maybe we should just get to the point,” Eva suggested. “About why we’re reaching out and the urgency.”
Alma agreed, mentioning her health and the need for Oscar to understand their situation.
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Eva typed, her voice quivering slightly, “It’s urgent, but we’re not seeking pity. We’ll be fine regardless of his decision.”
After sending the email, Alma reassured Eva, “No matter what, you have me. Always.”
Months later, Eva stood alone in a foster home, feeling the absence of her mother. The only reply from Oscar had been brief, offering a number. But none of her calls were ever answered.
Eva recalled how she’d followed Oscar’s life through social media, sharing observations with her mother. “Do you think Oscar eats snails now?” she asked when they saw Oscar was in France.
Alma laughed. “The old Oscar wouldn’t, but who knows now.”
After Alma’s passing, Eva’s longing for a connection intensified. She wished for Oscar to reach out, to offer her a sense of belonging and a link to her mother.
In her new foster home, Eva unpacked, her movements automatic. The room was decent, a stark contrast to the transient hostel she’d first been placed in.
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Eva’s phone chimed, but it wasn’t Oscar. Disappointment washed over her.
Her foster mother, Mrs. Duncan, checked in on her. “Dinner’s ready. Come when you’re ready.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Duncan,” Eva replied, hoping she could call her ‘Mom.’ But most families didn’t adopt teenagers like her.
Eva had changed foster homes three times in two years. When she turned 18, she finally decided to take matters into her own hands and got herself an apartment with the inheritance Alma had left her. To make ends meet, she worked as a hotel maid. Eva was also preparing online for other exams so she could get a better job. Naturally, she didn’t have the money to attend college.
One day, her manager, Beth, informed her that the famous designer Nora had checked in. Eva was assigned to her room on the twelfth floor, along with the room next door.
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After grabbing breakfast in the staff dining room, Eva checked Nora’s Instagram and discovered that Oscar had accompanied her. The thought of seeing her father filled her with dread, but she knew she wouldn’t get a better opportunity to get back at the man.
Later, while preparing to take the service elevator, Eva spotted Nora and Oscar entering the hotel. She overheard their conversation as they walked by. Beth offered Eva the chance to go upstairs, which gave Eva an idea.
Once in Nora’s room, Eva contemplated how to mess with her father’s life. She decided to sabotage his and Nora’s relationship by placing her underpants under a pillow, ensuring a portion of fabric remained visible under the pillow.
As she finished her plan, she heard the door open and quickly hid under the bed. Oscar and Nora entered the room, exchanging affectionate words. Eva’s disgust grew as she listened to their intimate moments above her.
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“Oh, honey. You’re finally back. I missed you so much!” Oscar said, his voice filled with desire.
Eva could hear him kissing her. They were on the bed now.
Suddenly, Nora discovered the hidden underwear in the hotel room and confronted Oscar.
“What is this, Oscar?” Nora asked.
“I don’t know,” Oscar said, evading the question with kisses.
“These are not mine!” Nora yelled and jumped off the bed.
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“Give me a break, Nora!” Oscar said defensively. “I swear I’m not lying!”
Nora revealed that she had canceled a business trip to surprise him. She accused him of cheating on her, just as he had left his ex-wife for her. Eva watched from her hiding spot, hoping Nora wouldn’t forgive him too easily.
Nora continued to express her anger, throwing objects in the room. Oscar defended himself, claiming it was a coincidence.
Nora reminded him of all she had done for him, but her tone started to soften as Oscar reassured her that he would never cheat on her.
Eva couldn’t let Oscar off the hook, so she sent a scandalous message to his phone using an anonymous image from Pinterest. Her number was new, so Oscar would never get an idea it was her.
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When his phone pinged on the table behind Nora, the woman quickly grabbed it. She discovered the message and was furious. Oscar tried to explain, but Nora believed the message was proof of his infidelity.
Eva panicked when Nora dropped an earring while quarreling with Oscar. She feared they would find her under the bed.
Nora knelt, extending her arms under the bed to find her earring. Eva’s heart raced.
But thankfully, there was a knock on the door. Nora’s anger intensified at the voice, “HOUSEKEEPING!”
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“Oh great!” Nora said, opening the door. “Because we have some trash that we need to throw away.”
Eva watched as Oscar’s legs made their way out of the bedroom behind an angry Nora.
“Let’s just talk about this, Nora. There has got to be an explanation about it. Nora, please, come back!”
When Eva heard the door close, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. She got out from under the bed and left the room as quickly as possible. For all she knew, Nora and Oscar would return soon.
She removed her name tag and threw it away in the cleaning cart outside the room. She knew that if they did an investigation, everything would point to her – Beth would reveal that Eva was put in charge. Eva knew that she would need to find a new job, and for some reason, this was worth it.
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Oscar needed to get what he deserved. Eva was confident she would survive without this job, knowing she had enough savings to keep her going until she found a new one.
Eva was studying when Oscar, her long-lost father, showed up at her doorstep.
“What do you want?” she asked, keeping her distance. She looked at him from head to toe and knew why he was there.
“That day, at the hotel…I remember seeing you pass by and thinking how you looked like my Alma. And then I tracked you down…I’m sorry I wasn’t around to see you grow, but…look!”
Oscar handed her an old, worn photograph of them together, apologizing for his absence and suggesting they rebuild their relationship.
He also mentioned he was bankrupt, and he could really use her home to live in, offering to make up for everything he missed doing as a father.
“So basically, you’re here because you’re homeless!” Eva said stiffly.
“No, no, Eva. Where’s my Alma? Let me talk to her.”
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Eva revealed that she had gotten sick when he left, and then, one day, her sickness took her mother away. Frustrated, Eva told him she didn’t want to know his story and slammed the door.
Oscar caught the door, apologized again, and asked for money.
Eva went to the table in the hallway where she kept her wallet and took some money out, but as she put her wallet back, her eyes landed on something unexpected.
It was the earring she had pocketed months ago. Nora’s earring from the hotel. Eva picked it up.
Instead of money, she gave Oscar the earring. “Goodbye forever, Oscar!” she sneered at him and slammed the door shut in his face.
Behind the closed door, Eva felt a sense of peace. She was finally in control of her own life and away from the terrible things that had ruined her past.
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