Page 55 of Edging Obsession

I translate and the woman’s mouth drops open, eyes wide, and she says, “Das muss ein Fehler sein. Bitte gehen Sie!”(This must be a mistake. Please go!)

She’s about to close the door, but Elise’s foot slides forward, stopping it from shutting all the way. “I beg of you. Please hear us out.” I translate as Elise gestures to Jules to step forward. “This is our daughter Jules…” Elise’s voice cracks, yet she continues. “Through tragedy, we recently found out that she’s not our biological child. She was switched at birth.”

The woman’s eyes latch onto Jules, perusing her features, until something clicks. Her lower lip quivers. She lifts her hand to touch Jules’ hair, but Jules steps back.

Her hand drops, and she says, “Dein Haar…”(Your hair…)She methodically eyes the rest of us and opens the door wider, inviting us in.

Walking into a living room, she gestures to the couch and chair. I take the chair, closest to her, and explain who I am and what happened in 1996. Her head bobs in understanding all the while she stares at Jules, who is holding Elise’s hand.

Once done, she says, “My English not good.” I tell her it’s fine. I’ll translate for her and for them.

Speaking directly to Jules, she says, “Your eyes and hair are like your father’s.”

Jules smiles. “Is he here?”

She shakes her head. “No.” It dawns on her that she hasn’t introduced herself. “I’m Elisabeth.”

“Nice to meet you.”

They skim over each other, looking for similarities, absorbing the moment, and connecting the dots. Jules’ hands are shaky. Elisabeth asks Jules about her life, so she explains her happy childhood, her job, meeting me, but leaves out her attempted suicide, stating she had an accident. Elisabeth smiles as Jules talks, occasionally glancing at Elise and Elliott. Then Jules asks Elisabeth about what happened in the U.S. and her life.

“I fell in love with your father. Our backgrounds and beliefs were different, making it difficult to stay together, so we parted ways. Then I found out I was pregnant, but I didn’t tell him. I thought it best. As I grew bigger, I feared I’d run into him and he’d find out, so I flew to visit a cousin in the States. While there, I went into labor a few weeks early, gave birth, then fled the hospital because I didn’t have enough money to pay for my care. What monies I had left, I filed for an emergency temporary passport for the baby and flew home.” She stops, concentrating on her hands. “I’m ashamed to have left like that.”

Jules responds, “You didn’t have the money.”

Elisabeth’s head pops up, smiling at Jules. “You’re kind.” She says to Elise and Elliott, “You did a wonderful job raising her.” Elise presses her hand against her mouth, only able to nod a thank you. Elisabeth’s focus is back on Jules. “When I came back, I found a job and raised Anja.”

“Did your parents help?”

“No. They disowned me when they found out I was dating your father. I shamed them.”

“They shamed themselves.”

Elisabeth stands and asks, “Can I give you a hug?”

Jules rises and they embrace, their bodies vibrating as their tears fall.

Elisabeth puts Jules at arm’s length. “You are so beautiful.”

Jules lets out an embarrassed laugh. “So are you.”

They stand in the middle of the room, holding hands, and Elisabeth talks to everyone. “As Anja grew, I noticed differences in her compared to me. She didn’t look anything like me or your father. She has black hair.” She cocks her chin toward Elliott. “Like yours.” Then her head turns to Elise. “Her face resembles yours. Quite beautiful.” Elise thanks her and she continues, “Even her personality is different. She’s independent.”

“It sounds like you are too.”

“No. I’m more on the quiet side. I did what I had to do to survive and take care of my daughter, but I wanted to be married and have more babies. Anja figures everything out on her own. She rarely asks for anything. My Anja is fearless and funny.” She smiles at Jules. “I fear a lot of things, and I’m not so smart. Anja was top in her class, started making money in high school by dog walking, and gave me half her earnings. We fought about it, so I let her give me the money and opened a savings account for her.”

Elise asks, “Will she be coming home today?”

“Yes. She’s at university.” She glances at the clock. “She should be home in an hour.” Everyone grows quiet for a moment. “But I don’t want to upset Anja. I’ve never mentioned her birth or that I didn’t tell her father…” her eyes fall on Jules, “…excuse me. Your father.” Elisabeth purses her lips, shaking her head. “I can’t believe this happened.”

Elise approaches her. “We can’t either. We also don’t want to upset Anja.” She turns to me. “Miles, do you know how we can approach her?”

Just then, the front door opens with a woman saying, “Ich bin zurück, Mutter.”(I’m back, Mother.)

28

For as much as I wanted to continue talking to my mother, Anja’s arrival stole the opportunity from me. Everyone freezes when we hear Anja, and she turns to us. Well, mainly when she notices Miles. She screams, covering her mouth, jumping up and down, staring and basically eye-fucking him. In a different situation, I’d put an end to it, but I let her gush over her celebrity crush. Miles has women throwing themselves at him all the time, so it’s odd to see him blush. Maybe it has to do with my parents being present or him knowing he has to explain everything to Anja. Or worse yet, he’s attracted to her.

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