Short story: Gentle September

1.

Her father-in-law was a martyr. He died shortly after his wife was six months pregnant. Her husband, Sy, often repeated the same sentence: “I was not even born yet, but my father died.” Every time he said that, she heard him sigh. And every time, he said it as if she were hearing it for the first time.

She hasn't been home for over a year. She decided to separate after a heated argument with her husband. He texted her apologetically a few times, but she didn't accept it. The root cause is always the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship. His mother loves her son, but sometimes she imposes outdated views on him. Sy indulges his mother. He says he knows she's a bit too much, but she's old and has had a hard life, so now he wants to pamper his mother to give her enough warmth in the last days of her life.

- That's not "warmth" - She raised her voice - That's taking advantage, being excessive, dominating, torturing others!

- Who did you say was "torturing"?

Then he used the word “torture” to nag her all day long. Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore. She took her 5-year-old son to the city to rent a house. Life changed a lot since that day. For the first time, she had to play the role of a manager, taking care of everything from office work to taking care of the children. “To tell the truth, my mother-in-law used to help me a lot,” she blurted out when thinking back to the afternoons when her mother-in-law went to the market and cooked when she came home late from work. She also often picked up Minh from kindergarten.

On July 27, she still decided to go to the martyrs cemetery to burn incense for her father-in-law, as she did every year. The only thing was that she was afraid of meeting Sy there, so she waited until almost evening to go. The mother and son bought incense sticks and a bouquet of flowers, parked their car, and walked inside the cemetery. As she was burning incense on the graves of her father and comrades, she heard a familiar voice from behind her:

- Minh! Come here!

The boy ran to his father and threw himself into his arms. She was embarrassed and avoided his gaze. After burning incense, Sy invited the mother and son to a nearby coffee shop for a drink, but she refused. He looked at his son hesitantly and said:

- Why don't you let Minh come home for a few days? Grandma misses him so much, she cries all the time.

She said nothing, turning to look at the thin wisps of smoke rising from the tombstones.

- Just come back for a day - Sy begged.

Finally, she decided to arrange for Minh to visit his grandparents' house for a few days.

- My child will be in first grade this September. From now until before he goes to school, I will let him go home for a few days - She said firmly.

That night, she couldn’t sleep. For some reason, her husband’s words, “Grandma misses him so much, she cries all the time,” kept echoing in her head. Did she miss him? Weren’t there days when she scolded her in front of her grandchild? And then, on the day she asked for a separation, packed up both mother and son’s belongings to leave the house, Grandma said, “If you can’t even take care of yourself, let’s see if you can take care of the boy.”

2.

Her current life is quite difficult. Having been pampered since childhood, it is true that she is not used to having to rush around taking care of everything in the house. She has to work overtime to have enough money to pay for the living expenses for the two of them, the rent, and a little extra to take care of Minh who is about to enter first grade. But she feels completely comfortable and at ease with her choice. In this tiny rented room, she can make her own decisions without depending on anyone. The room is small but has everything she needs. There is even a small balcony where she can sit and relax while watching the potted plants whenever she is tired.

She had planned to take Minh back to his parents' house several times as she had promised Sy, but she was so overwhelmed with work that she kept putting it off. Until she received a text message from him at midnight: "Aren't you going to take the baby home? Grandma is looking forward to it every day." She replied: "On September 2nd, that's when I'll have a day off."

Sy didn't text anything else, but early the next morning, when the alarm clock rang repeatedly, she picked up the phone to turn it off and read his message: "Looking forward to September 2nd."

One thing she did not expect was that Minh was also very excited to wait for that day to come. Before, he had never shown any signs of homesickness, never mentioned anything about his grandmother or the cat named Mun that had been with him for three years. Occasionally, he would ask about his father. But from the moment he learned that his mother would let him go home on September 2nd, he seemed happy and eager for that day to come soon.

- Would you rather stay home? - She asked.

- Anywhere is fine, as long as I have mom.

She bent down and kissed her son on the forehead. He rubbed his head against her chest and said softly:

- But I miss my grandma too. I like going to the market with her…

3.

September finally arrived. The gentle autumn weather, the sunlight became cool and pleasant. Entering the familiar alley, this time she saw everything was different. Flags and flowers were bright. During the day, someone's house still had the chandeliers on in the garden. Sy welcomed the mother and son at the door. He hugged Minh and carried him on his shoulder, walking into the house.

- Where is grandma, dad? - Cu Minh asked.

- I'm decorating your room, come in and see.

Cu Minh ran into his room and shouted with joy. He immediately went out to show his mother:

- Mom, my room is beautifully decorated. It's full of balloons and flashing lights. Come in!

She was dragged into her son’s room. His little room was neatly arranged and decorated with balloons and twinkling lights. Her mother-in-law was sitting there tying the last balloons to the string lights.

- Mom! - She greeted softly.

Her mother-in-law looked up and nodded slightly. She hugged Minh tightly and said through tears:

- Is the room nice, son? Come live with me. I've rearranged your parents' room. I've hung up your parents' wedding photo and our family photo. Come and see.

- Why are you suddenly redecorating your room, grandma? - Cu Minh asked.

Mother-in-law looked at her and smiled awkwardly:

- Well… because today is September 2nd - She replied.

Then she carried Minh to the next room. She stood silently in her son's room, surrounded by dozens of lit lamps and colorful balloons. All around was quiet, only Minh's giggling could be heard echoing back.