Chapter 6

Regina was busy adjusting the colors in her series of paintings for the biennial when her phone vibrated on the art table.

Davy's name lit up the screen. She set down her brush and answered the call.

"Mommy..." Davy's voice was muffled, choked with sobs. "My stomach hurts."

Regina glanced at the clock. It was 9:40 PM.

"Where's your dad?" she asked.

Davy's sobs grew louder. "He says I'm faking it. Alma made spicy chicken for dinner. I said I don't want spicy food, but she insisted boys need to toughen up.

"I ate it, and now my stomach hurts. She poured me a glass of hot water and told me to just sleep it off."

Regina could hear the faint sound of a TV show and a woman's soft laughter in the background.

Regina paused for two seconds. "Is it safe for you to talk right now?"

Davy kept his voice low, barely holding back tears. "I'm in the bathroom. Mommy, I feel awful..."

Regina said calmly, "Open the voice recorder on your phone. Then go out and ask Alma for some stomach medicine.

"Make sure to tell her the pain started after dinner. If she refuses, say, 'Then I'll call Grandma and ask her what to do.'"

There was some shuffling on the other end, then Davy pleaded tearfully for some medicine, followed by Alma's impatient reply. "I told you, just drink some hot water. Why are you being such a baby..."

A few minutes later, Davy slipped back into the bathroom. "Mommy, I got the recording."

She said, "Send it to me, then go knock on your dad's study door and play the recording for him."

Regina paused. "If he tells you to tough it out, say, 'Then I'll just call 911. What if it's appendicitis and it bursts?'"

There was a long silence on the other end, then Davy's small, timid voice. "Mommy, aren't you coming to get me?"

Regina glanced at the painting of a cicada about to break free from its shell. "I'm on the west side of the city. It'll take me forty minutes to get there.

"Davy, there are some things you need to learn to handle on your own. But remember, your body belongs to you. Only you can feel your own pain."

After hanging up, Regina went back to mixing colors. She blended cobalt blue with a hint of ochre, capturing that restless, deep gray-blue of the sky right before dawn.

Half an hour later, her phone buzzed again. This time, it was Lara calling.

Lara's voice was sharp with her usual reproach. "Regina, what are you teaching your child?

"Alma's pregnant, and Davy's making a fuss in the middle of the night, crying over something so trivial. Is that how a boy should behave? Did you tell him to act like this?"

Regina put the call on speaker and set her phone aside, continuing to sketch the delicate veins of the cicada's wings. "Did you listen to the recording?"

"What recording? It's perfectly normal for kids to have stomachaches..." Lara scoffed.

"Let me send it to you so you can listen." Regina tapped on the audio file Davy had sent.

The TV's muffled noise slipping through the bathroom door, Davy's weak request, Alma's careless brush-off, all echoed in the silent studio, making it sting even more.

Lara's breathing grew heavier on the other end of the line.

Lara's tone softened a bit. "Alma is just inexperienced. But you really shouldn't have let Davy interrupt Walter while he's working. He's been busy with the company going public..."

Regina's voice remained steady. "If Davy really had appendicitis tonight, by the time Walter finished his work, his appendix could've burst, and he could've ended up with a serious infection.

"If you think I handled it wrong, just tell Walter to take Davy straight to the hospital next time. Send me the bill, I'll cover it."

There was an even longer silence on the other end.

Finally, Lara let out a sigh. "Alright, Walter's already taken Davy to the hospital. Just don't teach him these kinds of tricks in the future."

Regina said, "The first thing I teach him is to let people know when he's feeling sick. The second is, if others don't care about his pain, he needs to care about it himself.

"If you think that's being tricky, then I have nothing more to say."

As she hung up, she added the final silver highlight to the cicada's wings.

At one in the morning, the doorbell rang at the Hudson Manor. Regina threw on a robe and went downstairs.

Through the peephole, she saw Davy's small figure outside, with the Hudson family's driver, Orson Spencer, standing next to him.

Orson looked a bit nervous. "Mr. Walter asked me to bring Mr. Davy over. The hospital said it's acute gastroenteritis.

"He got an injection, and the doctor recommended he eat bland food for a few days. Alma said she can't handle the smell of medicine during her early pregnancy, so..."

Regina nodded. "Thanks. I'll take him back tomorrow."

After closing the door, she cradled Davy close. His face was still pale, and a strip of medical tape covered the spot on his hand where the IV had been.

Davy looked up at her, his eyes red and swollen like a little bunny. "Mommy. Dad just dropped me off at the hospital and left. He said he had work. Alma never showed up at all."

"Alright." Regina took him to the kitchen and ladled out some warm soup from the pot. "Have some soup, then get some rest."

Davy sat quietly at the table, taking small sips of soup. His gaze kept drifting around.

On the living room wall hung several framed miniatures, the bookshelves were packed with art books and ancient tomes, and the air carried the fragrance of ink and a hint of tea.

Davy whispered, "Mommy, did you paint all these?"

She replied, "Yes."

"Wow, you're amazing..." Davy set his spoon down and walked over to a painting of a dragonfly done in fine brushwork, standing on tiptoe to examine it closely.

The wings were quite thin, their veins nearly transparent under the light. He said, "These are so much prettier than the prints Alma buys."

Regina didn't say anything, just quietly tidied up the dishes.

Davy turned back, his fingers twisting nervously at the hem of his shirt. "Mommy, do you really not want me anymore?"

Her hands froze for a second.

"Alma said you left Dad because you didn't want me anymore, so you could have an easier life on your own..." Davy's voice was small and shaky.

Regina dried her hands, walked over, and crouched down so she was eye-level with him. She could clearly see the fear and grievance in his eyes.

She said softly, "Davy, you were the one who didn't want Mommy first."

Davy was stunned, unable to react for a moment.