The sun was high, and the couple were even later than Gigi thought they would be. At least she wasn’t returning home with any more visible fresh bruises. Her ankle still throbbed from being constricted. She imagined it looked grim under her boot. The bell chimed as they entered the bakery’s storefront. She thought there was less chance of a meltdown from her mother if people were around. To her chagrin, the store was virtually empty but for a handful of customers.

When the door shut, she was face-to-face with her mother, who had been rearranging the walk-in display of goods. A flash of relief was evident on Griselda’s face. However, it was quickly replaced with creases of frustration.

“Gigi, nice to see you are among the living,” her mother said tersely. Gigi averted her eyes from Griselda’s concerned gaze.

“I’m sorry,” Gigi said, looking at the floor. “I’ll help with whatever you need, and I won’t complain,” she offered.

Griselda sighed. “I assumed you were taking the day off…It’s fine,” she said in a way that Gigi knew meant it was anything but okay. “You can just sleep off whatever you did last night.” Griselda waved her hand, dismissing her daughter.

Gigi felt guilt compounding with every word. “You aren’t going to yell at me or punish me?” she asked in confusion.

“Why bother?” Griselda shrugged. “You don’t care. No matter what I do, you will do whatever you want.”

A tidal wave of shame crashed over Gigi. Seeing her mother so resigned was somehow worse than if she had been screaming at her—as if she had truly given up on her.

“Mom…I…,” she started.

“Save it, Gigi, I don’t have time. The festival is in less than thirty days. It’s one of the most important times for the bakery, again, not that you care,” she added dryly.

“I do care,” she protested. “I don’t know why I care, but I do.”

“Well, you have a funny way of showing it. What did you do last night? Get drunk? Pick a fight you shouldn’t have?” Griselda asked wearily.

Gigi frowned. How did she know? “How…” Gigi was cut off.

“Because I know you, Gigi. You won't let me into your life, but you aren’t subtle either,” Griselda said, folding her arms and beginning to walk away.

“Mom! Please, wait!” Gigi went after her mother. An awkward Drake slowly followed.

“If you cared, you wouldn’t just disappear to the old ones' know-where all night and half the day.” She turned and faced Gigi. “You wouldn’t let me worry that my daughter might be dead in the gutter because she got in some idiotic fight.” Gigi could see tears beginning to form in her mother’s eyes. “Honestly, Gigi, I feel like you’re a stranger some days, and it breaks my heart.”

Gigi felt each word hit her like physical blows. The goblin would have taken the bruises over the sadness her mother’s words held. She hated that she wanted to refute her accusations but knew she had no good faith to argue with. Her mother had stitched her back together more than one night after a bar fight became ugly.

Gigi’s ear’s sagged as she thought of all the times her mother had been there for her. The list was long, dragging her heart into a pit of shame with each recounted late night and early morning. Griselda had been there to listen sympathetically to Gigi badmouth, everyone who had ever broken her heart. Her mother had held her hair when she lost the fight to alcohol over a toilet seat. She had made Gigi food when she had been too hungover to do it herself. Her mother loved her.

A rush of regret welled within her for how poorly she had treated the woman who had been there her entire life, finally emerging as tears. Gigi loved her mother, even if she didn’t tell her like she knew she should have. Perhaps it was the night’s brushes with danger and learning of how empty Drake’s life had been without his family, but whatever the reason, she desperately wanted to mend the tear that was forming.

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“Mom, wait…I’m sorry…not just for being late,” Gigi swallowed hard, “but for everything.” Gigi started bawling and darted forward, capturing her mother in a fierce hug. Griselda’s eyes widened in surprise. The tight embrace almost knocked her into the display case of confections.

“I love you so much,” Gigi sobbed.

“Gigi…” Griselda said in shock.

The handful of customers in the bakery storefront were avidly watching the family drama. Drake gingerly approached Gigi and Griselda.

“Do you want me to kick out the customers?” he whispered. Gigi nodded, fat tears streaming down her face. Drake turned to the small crowd of onlookers and motioned toward the door. “Okay, folks, anything already in your hands is on the house. Please enjoy the rest of your day.” The crowd dispersed with their goods. Drake locked the door behind them. “I’ll let you two talk,” he said before quickly making haste to the kitchen.

Gigi finally pushed herself off Griselda and did her best to meet her gaze. “You’re the best mom I could have asked for, and I’m sorry I’ve been hiding things,” a lot of things.

“Gigi, what’s going on…you’re scaring me. Is everything okay?” Griselda asked with worry dripping from her words.

“I have something big to tell you, and I’m sorry I hid it for so long.”

“By the gods, you really are pregnant,” Griselda put her hand to her chest.

“What? No, I’m a fighter, like in the pit matches Dad used to take me to.”

“You’re a what?!” She covered her mouth in horror. Her fists dropped to her sides and trembled. “Damn that man, I always told him taking you was a bad idea.”

Gigi shook her head earnestly. “You can’t blame dad. He could just see me for who I really am. What I could be,” she pleaded.

“What is that Gigi?” Griselda asked tersely. “A barfly that just tries to fight every problem?”

“No, Mom,” Gigi wiped away her tears. “A champion,” she said, drawing to her full height.

“By the gods, not this again,” Griselda sighed. “You can’t be serious. It was a fine dream when you were ten. Gigi. Do you know how many people want that same thing? Everyone who’s been in a fight wants to be the strongest, the biggest, but,” Gigi cut her off.

“But what, Mom?” Gigi roared. “Just accept that I’m not good enough for my dreams? What kind of life is that?!” She staked her hands on her hips. “Is that what you and Dad did? Give up?” She asked accusatorily. “No, when Grandma told you you couldn’t be with him, did you listen? No. I wouldn’t even exist if you had followed your advice! You wanted to open a bakery with the man you loved and gave up your whole life to do it. Mom, you left an entire kingdom to do it. Well…being a champion is my bakery.” Gigi leaned in, hugged her mother tightly, and held it. “I want you to be in my corner more than anything. Even though I don’t show you how I should, I love you so much. I just want you to believe in me, not only protect me from failing.”

“Gigi…I’m sorry,” Griselda sighed. Gigi could feel her mother's posture soften, and she returned the hug in kind. “Thank you for telling me.” Her mother went silent momentarily and seemed to be processing how to respond to her daughter’s plea. Threads of anxiety pulled at her. Gigi’s throat hurt from holding back tears. She hoped she hadn’t made things worse than they were, but everything she said had been her truth.

The two women parted and locked eyes. “You’re so much like him…more every day it feels like. You just don’t know how to give up, no matter how crazy an idea is…I’ll admit I’m scared for you. This is not the path I would have picked for you.” She took her daughter by the hand.

“But I’ve always believed in you, Gigi. I'll be behind you every step if you’re as certain as you seem about this. I won’t give my opinion, but I’ll be there for you to stitch up your lip and help you find your teeth,” she gently squeezed her daughter's hand. “Can you please promise me something, though?” Her mother’s eyes filled with fire, and Gigi was slightly startled.

“Yeah, of course. What is it, Mom?”

“Don’t half-ass this. Be whoever your Dad thought you could be. By the old ones, be more than he ever imagined you could be,” her words smoked with conviction.

“I will,” she promised. Too many people believed in Gigi for her to fail, and she refused to let them down. She would rise to her dream or die trying.