After Sue had finished talking, the awkwardness on Peggy's face was obvious. She looked at Sue and asked, "Sue, do you really need to speak to your mother in a such a hurtful manner? I know I haven't been a good mother. I realize now that I've made so, so many mistakes. If I could turn back time, I would never do any of those terrible things to you. I have truly realized the error of my ways. Could you please forgive me? Give your mother a second chance, would you?"
"Forgive you?" Sue scoffed. "Do you really think it's that simple? If 'sorry' could fix anything, we wouldn't need any policemen or any sort of justice system in the world!"
Peggy looked uneasy. She had known from the start that this visit was not going to go smoothly and already prepared herself mentally for every single situation she could imagine. No, she could not give up so easily. If she had to face these words from her daughter, she was willing to do it.
Sue looked at Peggy and asked coolly, "So, what do you want this time? Just get straight to the point, before I ask you to leave."
A look of viciousness flashed across Peggy's face as her daughter's words triggered her anger and hatred. Somehow, she managed to regain control of her emotions just in time. She faked a caring, motherly tone as she asked, "Sue, you've been on your own for the past few years. How have you been?"
"I'm sure you can see for yourself," Sue shot back. She then continued with a scornful look, "I've been surviving on my own ever since I moved out as a teen, remember? Everything that I have today is a result of my own blood, sweat and tears. I never once mentioned my miseries, sorrow and pain to you. I never even wanted you to find out. To be honest, I actually think my life would have been much better without you and Allen."
"I know, honey. I know life hasn't been easy for you." Peggy faked an understanding smile. "Sue, I believe that you've been living quite comfortably these past few years, right? You must have had the opportunity to save up some money, am I right?"
"What do you mean by that?" Sue asked sharply, recognizing the look of greed on her mother's face. "What in the world do you want from me exactly? Why are you even here?"
"Oh, calm down. I don't mean anything," Peggy chuckled. She tried to rephrase herself, "I couldn't help noticing that your house is well-furnished and you have designer clothes in your wardrobe. All those don't come cheap. So I just made an educated guess, that you're doing quite well for yourself. Aren't you?"
"So you turned my house upside down yesterday just to check if I've been living a decent life. Good to know," Sue answered sarcastically. Actually Peggy made a mental note to check everything in her house, to check if all her valuables were still in their hiding places.
"I'm so proud and happy to see my daughter surviving so well on her own." Peggy forced herself to feign another smile as she looked at her daughter.
Sue kept quiet and Peggy took it as an invitation to continue talking. "Here you've been living such a good life, but your brother hasn't been so fortunate After you ran away, he got beaten up so severely that his leg was badly injured. It never fully recovered and until today, he still can't walk properly..."
"Are you saying that's my fault?" Sue laughed disbelievingly. "I sent back so much of my hard-earned money every month, because you said that Allen couldn't work properly because of his leg. You told me that as the elder sibling, it was my duty to make life easier for him. Fine, I heeded your words. If I had saved up all the money that I sent back home to you, I would be having a much better life than this. Instead, I suffered. I rented a room so small I could hardly move around without knocking everything over. I bought the cheapest meals. I basically survived on salted vegetables. I wanted him to have some money so he can do some much needed upgrades at home. At least his potential bride won't run away when she sees his living conditions."
Sue gave a bitter laugh and continued, "I worked so hard all these years and finally managed to save some money. And guess how your stupid son repaid me? He lost all the money by gambling!"
"What the hell are you talking about?" Peggy shouted. She had finally reached her limit, triggered by Sue's criticism on her beloved son. Anger was etched in every line of her face.
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