Nancy stood there and smiled, somewhat awkwardly.
"Mommy, I miss you so much." With that proclamation, Bobby threw himself into Nancy with no regard.
His arms wrapped around her knees and he sat on her feet.
Nancy picked him up, kissed him on each of his chubby cheeks, and whispered, "I miss you, too." She
was afraid to show to let on exactly how much, but her heart stung and she snuggled him in closer for a
second. Hopefully, he got the message in her extra tight hold.
"My daddy said that Grandma is going through menopause, and that we should be extra patient with
her. So, try to be nice, okay, Mommy?" Bobby looked up at Nancy with his big, round eyes and his
father looked down and coughed to hide a laugh. Bobby whispered more nonsense in Nancy's ear,
while she held him.
Nancy just smiled and humored him silently.
It was then that Angelina decided the interaction had lasted too long and become too intimate for her
taste, so she snorted to bring the attention back to her.
Nancy carefully placed Bobby back on the ground and patted his head before she turned and walked
towards Angelina. She spoke in a soft voice, like someone would speak if trying to calm a wild animal,
"Ma'am, can I have a look at your injury? I know my specialty is pediatrics, but I am still a surgeon."
Angelina stubbornly crossed her arms over her chest and looked away, murmuring under her breath, "I
have a perfectly good doctor at home, thank you." It was quite apparent that she meant she did not
want Nancy in particular to check her.
Nancy had expected this and said, with a tight smile, "Mrs. Fu, as a doctor, I just want to remind you
that your wound is serious and it is critical that you change the dressing as frequently as directed. Your
face is beautiful. If you'd like to keep it that way, listen to the advice of a doctor, or you may scar. That is
your choice. I can assure you that I am knowledgeable about wounds as a doctor and surgeon. I
graduated top of my class from Harvard. I think this makes me more qualified in dealing with your
wound than even your private doctor at home. Knowing all of this, I ask you one last time, would you
like me to have a look at your injury?"
Nancy purposely kept her tone throughout calm and detached, but assertive.
If there was anything she had learned over the years, it was that self-confidence came from an inner
poise and strength. She tried to pour that into this conversation instead of melting under the older
woman's glares.
"Mommy, you're the best!" Bobby chimed in, oblivious to the tension between the two women. Nancy
took solace in little Bobby's admiration. It stood in stark contrast to Angelina's opinion of her.
Charles, Bobby's father, had been mostly silent during this exchange and now cast a glance at her,
echoing his son's admiration.
He found Nancy's confidence and persistence alluring, even in this difficult exchange.
Angelina was stunned into silence. She was no longer focused on her wound, but the cold way Nancy
had addressed her. Mrs. Fu, instead of aunt.
Angelina worried that she was being too harsh on Nancy. Besides, even though she was in her fifties,
she was still afraid of a scar marring her beauty. This wound was large and in charge in the front of her
forehead.
Angelina finally turned around and looked at Nancy.
Besides, she didn't want to lose her imposing manner if it gave her the upper hand in this unwelcome
relationship. She declared coldly, "If this wound leaves a scar, I will blame you."
Nancy shrugged, knowing she'd won a minor battle, and smiled. She tried to keep the smugness out of
her voice as she clarified, "Mrs. Fu, I haven't even checked your wound yet. I cannot promise you
anything, but I do feel I am your best shot at this point." Nancy bent down and said in a very soft, kind
voice, "Mrs. Fu, don't be nervous. Please. Let me check it. I will be gentle."
Bobby was one step ahead and hurriedly brought the medicine box for her as she said this. "Here you
are, Mommy," he proudly announced as he handed the box over to her.
"Thank you, sweet boy," Nancy said with a genuine smile directed at Bobby. Nancy opened it, took out
disposable gloves and donned them before touching Angelina.
Seeing Bobby and Nancy speaking so intimately again made Angelina's forehead twitch inadvertently.
"Ouch!"
Nancy continued towards Angelina's forehead with another shrug, "Mrs. Fu, if you keep your face still,
you won't cause yourself so much pain."
Angelina's expression immediately froze. She was careful to not move her forehead at all as she finally
muttered, "Nancy, call me auntie. It's awkward when you call me Mrs. Fu and you know it." She was
quick to clarify, "That doesn't mean that I like you though. I just don't want things to be quite so
awkward. Understand?"
Nancy smiled, "Yes, I understand." She too tried to school her face into an expressionless mask as she
celebrated internally another small win.
Nancy slowly peeled the gauze back to assess the wound.
The delay in treatment had allowed the blood on Angelina's wound to coagulate and harden. There
was now a fine layer of scabs. Nancy took the alcohol and disinfected the cut again, hoping to soften
and clean the hard layer.
"I know this part stings a little, Auntie, but hang in there. Are you doing alright so far?" she said with a
slight smile.
"Yes," Angelina choked out, determined to remain stoic with Nancy touching her. Angelina closed her
eyes to hide the pain pulsing through them.
Nancy gently handled the bloodied wound. It was deeper than she had expected. "I'm not going to lie to
you. It is not well stitched. It may open, scar, or even get infected if we leave it how it is. Would you like
me to re-stitch it, Auntie?"
Angelina hesitated. It had been excruciating when the doctor stitched her wound the first time and she
was not excited to repeat that with Nancy. It was why she had held off thus far.
The old woman briefly considered if her looks or her pain were more important. Figuring the pain would
be a shorter punishment than a permanently scarred face, she nodded slowly.
She was a little scared.
"Are you going to take advantage of the situation as an opportunity to get revenge since I am mean to
you?" Angelina blurted this out before realizing what she had said, then shrugged because it was the
question she most needed the answer to in order to proceed.
"I am a doctor and I took an oath to do no harm. Besides, there is no hatred between us. Why should I
take revenge on you?" Nancy could see this did not calm the woman and tried a different tactic. She
sighed, "Never mind. Since you have your doubts, I won't re-stitch it for you. But I'm telling you now, I
believe there will be a scar if left as is, so please do not blame me later or say I didn't warn you."
Her words made Angelina's heart sink. She compromised, "Fine. I'll trust you this time. Please, help me
with the stitches."
However, they had forgotten that they were not alone in the room and the sudden power change
amused both Charles and Bobby who stifled chuckles at seeing Angelina asking Nancy for anything.
Maybe it was a weird sort of progress for the two women's strained relationship, they both hoped.
Nancy opened the box Bobby had brought her earlier and laid out the tools she needed. As carefully
and quickly as she could, Nancy stitched Angelina. It was obvious only to her that she was nervous
because her hands remained as steady as the trained surgeon she was.
Angelina tried to be a good sport. She never moved or made a sound, even when Nancy reached
points she knew should have hurt. However, Angelina kept her eyes firmly shut as well, which saved
both women from awkward eye contact in such proximity. For this, Nancy was grateful.
With the professional air of a doctor who knew she had done a job well, Nancy neatly recovered the
wound in fresh gauze. "All done, Auntie," she said with a small smile. "With any luck, it should not scar
at all now. I am glad you let me help."
"Well, I will say that that was not as painful as last time." It was as close to a compliment as Angelina
had ever given Nancy. There was even a hint of gentleness in her tone. The tone of someone Nancy
would have readily called Auntie.
"Grandma, Mommy is the best, isn't she?" Bobby said as he tried to embrace both women at once.
"She is the best doctor," Charles chimed in.
Bobby and Charles both complimented Nancy immediately.
Angelina didn't say anything more and lay back on the sofa, looking tired.
"Mrs. Fu, now that you want me to call you Auntie, and you have shown me kindness, I will continue to
call you auntie," Nancy said with a curt nod. Nancy's tone was no longer as distant, but she still spoke
as a doctor, "Auntie, night is the best time for your body to rest and heal, so you really should try to
have a good night's sleep. It would be best done in a bed, not an uncomfortable sofa, in my
professional opinion. How about I help you up to your room?"
Angelina was silent as she considered. She really was uncomfortable and wanted to give the wound its
best shot at healing. She sat up from the sofa with a start and said, "Fine, but do not take my absence
as an opportunity to fool around with my son."
Nancy raised her eyebrows. "Rest assured. I would never allow your son to take advantage of me like
that."
"You..." Angelina wanted to correct herself as Nancy switched things around on her, but she couldn't
find a way without being outright insulting, so she could only sulk.
"Auntie, we are both women. We know how men are and how foolishly women react. Women should
be more careful and preserve their dignity and honor. Many men nowadays are just irresponsible with
matters of the heart and body, aren't they?" Nancy said as she held Angelina up.
Angelina was very shrewd in her old age, but she still fell into the trap Nancy had laid with her dialogue.
"Precisely. I have known many men in my years and they never know how to be grateful. You know
Hardy, my husband, Bobby's grandpa... I have been his devoted wife for a longer time than I want to
admit, but you know what he did to me? He left as soon as he met a younger woman, because I had
gotten too old. He says he has just 'gone abroad'. I'm not so old that I don't realize the truth. So many
say that a woman's heart is as complex and swiftly changing as the ocean. But I think a man's heart is
the ocean in that you cannot see through its suspicious depths." Angelina took the opportunity to vent
to another woman all of the concern, sadness, and anger she had felt at her husband's departure.
It wasn't until after she let it out that she suddenly realized that her son and grandson were still there.
She didn't want them to hear her thoughts on her husband or to think she was grouping them with him.
She immediately amended her words and said, "But my Charles and Bobby aren't bad men. They are
the exception."
Nancy hurriedly agreed, "I know. Many men are like that, but not these men."
Hearing that, Bobby and Charles exchanged a look with each other and smiled.
The two men finally got rid of Angelina's torture and could do anything they wanted in the living room.
Nancy supported much of the woman's weight as she helped her to her room. After washing her face
and making sure there was no blood anywhere else on her, Nancy let Angelina rest.
When she entered the living room, Charles wanted to go up and give Nancy a hug, but Bobby was still
there and Charles didn't want to submit him to their public displays of affection.
He could only say it with his eyes and a smile, "Thanks for your help."
"No worries, Auntie is a nice person, deep down." Nancy said with a giggle and a wink.
"Mommy, come and sleep beside me tonight!" Hearing his happiness, Nancy was drawn towards
Bobby and finally hugged him with total abandon and a wide smile. Her heart was full in this moment.
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