From the other side

After few weeks, when Elizabeth was finally walking she got discharged.
When the day came and her daughter was finally discharged from the hospital, she was there waiting, a smile on her face. "Ready to go home, sweetheart?" she asked, her voice filled with relief and affection.

"You know I can drive myself right?"

She rolled her eyes at her daughter's stubbornness. "Of course I know you can drive yourself," she replied, her tone amused. "But I want to drive you. Do we always need to argue about everything?"

"Hey former vice president we are not fighting over everything" she laughed

She laughed too, shaking her head in mock despair. "Yes we are," she countered jokingly. "We do it all the time. We're stubborn and willful, and we can't stand to concede even the smallest point."

"So why am i spending so much time with you?"

She put an arm around her daughter's shoulders, gently steering her towards her car. "Because you love me," she teased. "Despite our many fights and argument, you can't resist my charm."

"Your charm? Go with it to Douglas not me."

She feigned offense, giving her daughter a playful swat. "Hey, I have plenty of charm left over for you too," she protested. "You don't think I've lost my touch, have you?"

She hugged her before getting into the car. The real hug by the neck, not just some gentle touch.

"Whoa, what's this for?" she asked, surprised but pleased. She returned the hug eagerly, her arms enclosing her daughter in a tight embrace.

"For everything. For taking care of me, when i don't even know i need it. We can argue and tease and disagree but i took a bullet for you and I would do that again."

She held her tighter, her heart swelling with a mixture of love and pain. "Don't say that sweetheart," she murmured hoarsely. "You scared me so much... I don't ever want to see you in that situation again. Promise me you won't."

"I love you"

"I love you too," she murmured, her voice thick with emotion. "More than anything in the world. You're my daughter, my baby girl, my everything. You understand that, right?"

They got in the car. "I admire you mum, you took somebody's child 20 years ago and made the child yours."

Her heart ached at her daughter's words, the emotions welling up inside her. "I didn't just take you, sweetheart," she said, her voice soft. "You gave me a family, a purpose, a love I never thought I'd have. You made me a mother, you made me more than just 'Kamala'. You made me 'Mum'."

"That's why you're amazing. You never take credit for what you did."

She smiled, her hand affectionately ruffling her daughter's hair. "I just did what any good mother would do," she said, her voice matter-of-fact. "I loved you, and I raised you, and I tried to do my best. That's all."

They were at home, watching some movie.

They were settled on the couch, a comfortable silence between them. The movie on television was an old favorite, something they'd watched together many times before. She couldn't help but steal glances at her daughter, the relief and gratitude washing over her every time she looked at her.They were settled on the couch, a comfortable silence between them. The movie on television was an old favorite, something they'd watched together many times before. She couldn't help but steal glances at her daughter, the relief and gratitude washing over her every time she looked at her.

It could be seen in Kamala's posture how hard the last couple weeks had been on her.

The faint circles beneath her eyes, the slight slump in her shoulders, the tension that lingered at the edges of her smile - the past weeks had taken a toll on her, and it was all too obvious to her perceptive daughter.