Seeing My Parents Ignored, I Knew This Don Wasn’t the One Chapter 05

Seeing My Parents Ignored, I Knew This Don Wasn’t the One Chapter 05

As the plane took off, my mom gripped my hand the entire time.

It was her first flight. The moment the wheels left the ground, her face went pale from nerves, but she still forced a smile for me.

“So this is what flying feels like.”

“It’s nice.”

My nose stung.

“Mom, I’m gonna take you flying all the time from now on.”

My dad sat by the window. He stared at the shrinking city below for a long time without saying anything.

Then, said quietly, “Lottie, am I dragging you down?”

I shook my head hard.

“No.”

“Dad, I’m the one who let you both get treated like that.”

My mom’s tears spilled over.

“Silly girl.”

“A little hardship for us old folks is nothing.”

“But you’re different.”

“If you really don’t marry him, what will people say about you?”

I looked at her.

“Mom.”

“What people say doesn’t matter more than you and Dad.”

“And it doesn’t matter more than me.”

My mom froze. The tears came faster. This time, she didn’t try to talk me into going back.

After we landed in Northgate, I took my dad straight to the hospital.

The doctor studied his scans with a deep frown.

“Post-lumbar surgery recovery, and you let him endure extended travel?”

“If this had gone on any longer, the nerve compression would’ve become much more serious.”

My mom’s face drained of color.

But my dad still tried to cover for Dominic.

“It was my own fault. I didn’t pay attention. It has nothing to do with the kids.”

I placed my hand over his.

“Dad.”

“You don’t have to make excuses for anyone anymore.”

“If it hurts, it hurts. If you were wronged, you were wronged.”

“Nobody gets to tell you to just take it.”

My dad looked at me, and his eyes slowly reddened.

Meanwhile, Dominic had landed in the Hamptons. He messaged me:

[Landed.]

[Where are you guys?]

I didn’t reply.

Ten minutes later, another message:

[Charlotte?]

[Don’t start this again.]

Then the calls started coming, one after another. I declined every single one.

It wasn’t until the wedding planner reached him that Dominic finally understood.

The wedding was off. My parents and I had never boarded that plane.

His next call wasn’t laced with irritation anymore. It was panic.

“Charlotte, where are you?”

“Don’t do this to me.”

“The venue’s all set up. All the guests are here.”

“You can still make it back. Just come back.”

I was sitting in the hospital corridor, watching a nurse wheel my dad into the exam room.

My voice was calm.

“Dominic.”

“I’m not coming back.”

Silence on the other end.

“What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said,” I said. “The wedding is off. We’re done.”

Dominic’s breathing turned ragged.

“Charlotte, all of this because of plane tickets?”

“I already rebooked them!”

“Your parents are on a plane right now! What more do you want?”

I laughed. I couldn’t help it.

“You still think this is about plane tickets?”

He went quiet.

I spoke each word clearly.

“Dominic, you gave my parents’ seats to Eleanor’s friends.”

“You bought them bad Greyhound tickets.”

“You told my mom her homemade jam wasn’t classy enough.”

“You put Eleanor’s whole crew in business class and sent my parents to wait in the economy line.”

“You know exactly how to take care of elders. You just never thought mine were worth it.”

Dominic’s voice turned urgent.

“Charlotte, I admit I messed up this time.”

“But you can’t throw away seven years over one mistake.”

“This time?”

I stared at the blindingly white hospital wall.

Suddenly, I remembered so many little things.

The first time I brought him home, my mom made a full dinner.

He took two bites and said the food was too heavy.

After that, every time my mom cooked, she’d ask me, “Does Dominic not like this dish?”

My dad brewed him coffee from beans he’d grown himself.

Dominic smiled and said, “Sir, these homegrown beans might have sanitation issues.”

My dad never offered him anything from our house again.

Back then, I’d made excuses for him. He was just blunt. He was a city guy with city standards.

Now I saw it for what it was. It wasn’t refinement. It was disdain. Deep in his bones, he’d looked down on them.

I said quietly, “Dominic.”

“It wasn’t only this time.”

“I just finally decided to stop tolerating it.”

I hung up. Then I blocked his number.