— Eleanor, why are we doing this?
Eleanor sat down next to her husband and sighed deeply.
— Jack, to be honest, I don’t even know. Everything seems fine, but I don’t trust him, I don’t trust his sincerity. I know that Emily is in love, and she sees no faults.
— I understand. I have a strange feeling too. But I’m attributing it to the fact that we don’t want to let go of our Emily.
Eleanor shook her head stubbornly.
— Jack, if everything is okay, we can just say we were joking, make up something.
— Shall we go, Eleanor?
— Fine, let’s go. But I feel so uncomfortable in these cheap clothes. I hope no one sees us.
— Trust me, no one will recognize you. And no one will look at you. People in our circle rarely notice those who are below them.
Jack sighed, thinking about how Eleanor had spent many years helping those in need, restoring documents and finding jobs. But she hadn’t always been doing that.
Many years ago, having lost hope for motherhood, Eleanor had truly lost herself. Their family life was hanging by a thread; she often returned home late, falling into questionable company.
One day, she realized it was time to stop. She swore to herself that, if she made it out, she would never touch a drop of alcohol again.
In one such group, there was a pregnant girl who grabbed Eleanor’s hand and begged for help:
— Save me, save me and my baby!
As the ambulance was arriving, the woman explained that she was an orphan, had fallen in love, but her chosen one turned out to be a traitor. She died during childbirth, and that’s how their family got Emily.
Now Eleanor could not ignore someone else’s misfortune. Emily became their daughter, and they loved her as their own.
When Emily, now an adult, decided to marry an unknown man, her parents grew concerned. They had always kept track of her life, but now everything became a mystery. Andrew was polite, but Eleanor couldn’t help but suspect something wasn’t right.
They decided to take a train to the suburbs, like ordinary people, to see how the fiancé’s family would react when they found out they had no money. Soon, they met a little girl named Sarah, who explained how hard life was for her in a gypsy family, and Eleanor decided to help her.
At first, Eleanor and Jack wanted to help Sarah, but then they decided she should stay with them. They brought her into their home, where she found love and care.
Andrew, the same man who was with Emily, proved to be supportive and stood by them during this time.
A few months later, when Emily was already happy, Eleanor realized it was time to stop hiding the truth from her daughter.
— Mom, I’m so happy!
— For me, the most important thing is that you’re happy.
Emily smiled and said:
— Mom, I know that you love me more than anything in the world.
Eleanor sighed, and Emily continued:
— I always knew I was adopted. We will always be family.
Eleanor felt a sense of relief, realizing that all the secrets had been revealed, and now they could live happily, no longer hiding anything from each other.