Let Me Go, Mr. Harvey

“I want to go back, James,” said Angela as her voice couldn’t help trembling.

James took her hand and said, “Do you think it will be helpful if you go back now? If one wants to suicide, there are plenty of ways, including jumping off the building, drinking poison and slashing the wrist… if one really wants to die, no one can stop her. You should know it better than me.”

So Angela did.

She knew better than anyone the feeling of having nothing left to live for.

“But I still want to go back!” said Angela.

She feared that she would be regret for not going back now.

“I’ve invited a well-known psychologist and he’ll be here this afternoon. Take it easy. It’s just a few hours,” said James.

Angela kept silent.

“You have seen that your mom is playing happily with Taotao,” said James as he gently stroked her back, “when you came out. You are just too sensitive.”

After a hesitation, Angela said, “I’ll go back now and go out with you tomorrow.”

Angela and James went back to the house of the Chante family.

When they came back, Angela’s mom Elva was playing with the kid and asked with a surprise, “What’s wrong? Why do you come back?”

“Mom, Angela worries about you,” said Luna, “as you just had a quarrel with Mrs. Brown and looked upset.”

Elva sighed, “I just think that I have been too indecisive before. While I feared to hurt everyone, everyone was hurt in the end.”

“You can’t let everyone like you. So you don’t need to be too hard on yourself,” said Angela softly as she came to sit next to Elva.

While her eyes were still red, Elva looked in a good mood and said with a smile, “Thank you for your comfort, but I’ve got over it.”

“Yes, I can prove it,” said Luna while holding the kid, “as Mom has told me that she should have broken with Mrs. Brown early as Mrs. Brown is a woman with loose morals.”

“Did Mom really say that?” suspected Angela as it didn’t look like Elva’s style.

“Yes, I did,” sighed Elva, “as I suddenly realized that our contact was a mistake.”

After they chatted for a while, Angela was still worried and said euphemistically, “Mom, James knows a friend who likes things like flower arrangements too and he’s right here. Why not talk with him?”

“Really? He’s actually a psychologist, right?” said Elva as she ate a piece of fruit and looked lovingly at Angela.

With her heart skipping a beat, Angela feared that Elva would be disgusted with contacting with a psychologist as Dr. Roland had told her.

“As he is here, why not invite him to our house? And you can rest assured,” said Elva on her own.

Hearing that, Angela was relieved.

At around 1:30 in the afternoon, the psychologist came. Fearing that Elva would resist staying with him, he just sat and chatted with everyone in the living room in the beginning.

Later, it was Elva who took the initiative to ask him to talk with her alone and they went upstairs.

They talked for about one and half an hour, during which Angela glanced upstairs for 150 times and drank ten cups of tea.

Angela had complicated feelings about Elva as she respected, loved, sympathized and resented Elva. But anyway, Angela didn’t want anything to happen to Elva.

James went out this afternoon, so Luna was accompanying Angela in the living room.

“Angela, you are too nervous!” said Luna in puzzlement, “This isn’t the first day Mom has behaved like this and she looked in a good mood today. How are you still so worried?”

Angela was also strange why she was so worried, but she just felt worried for no reason.

She had a feeling that something bad was going to happen.

“Well, stop thinking too much. The psychologist is about to come downstairs and let’s hear what he will say,” said Luna as she patted Angela on the shoulder.

Angela nodded.

Not for a while, the psychologist came downstairs with Elva. They were laughing and talking and the atmosphere between them was good.

“Miss Chante, Mrs. Chante,” greeted the psychologist and concluded after talking briefly about the condition of Elva, “She has minor depression which is not a big deal as many stressed-out young people have this problem too.”

Hearing what the psychologist said, Angela was relieved.

They invited the psychologist to have dinner with them and he refused with a smile, “Thanks, but I have to go back now as there is something I need to deal with. I come here this time because I owed Mr. Harvey one.”

“Thank you for your trouble,” said Angela and asked two servants to send the psychologist to the airport.

After the dinner, Elva came to Angela and said, “How about sleeping with me tonight, Angela?”

“Why do you suddenly want to sleep with me, Mom?” asked Angela.ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

“I just suddenly remembered that we haven’t had any deep talks ever since you went to jail,” said Elva, “and you often slept with me before and used to talk about everything with me.”

What Elva said was true as Angela even told her how she pursued James before.

Hearing that, Angela’s father Lorenzo said with a frown, “What’s wrong with you? Angela will sleep with James tonight.”

Ignoring Lorenzo, Elva looked at James and asked, “Do you mind if I borrow Angela from you for one night, James?”

“How could you ask James this question?” shouted Lorenzo as he pounded the table.

Ignoring Lorenzo again, Elva just looked at James.

“Of course not. She’s your daughter. I should thank you for giving birth to her,” said James.

Elva smiled, “Thank you.”

Standing up, Elva reached out her hand to Angela and said, “Let’s go, Angela.”

They went upstairs to the room of Elva and Lorenzo.

Looking at her loving mother Elva, Angela went into a trance for a moment as she felt as if she had returned to the life two years ago.

After taking the shower, they lied on the bed.

After humming a few songs to Angela, Elva said, “Both your brother Greyson and you like listening to me singing before you slept when you were little.”

Angela had no memory of those things, so she just listened quietly.

“We were so close when you were young,” sighed Elva, “and I have no idea what you think when you grow up…”

Her voice was so small that Angela couldn’t hear her. So Angela asked, “What are you saying, Mom?”

“Nothing,” said Elva as she put her forehead against Angela’s with a smile, “I just said you were too naughty when you were little and are much sensible now. So I’m relieved.”

Angela felt that Elva didn’t tell the truth and wanted to ask her while Elva changed the topic by saying, “When you were little, you also liked to dance with a giggle while hearing me singing. I told your father that you had a talent in dancing and then he sent yo to learn dancing.”

“However, if I had known that he did it with impure motives, I wouldn’t have agreed…”