Chapter 4 - Camille’s backstory

“Hi, my name is Camille Weywards. My dad is a firefighter and my mom is a store clerk. My dad fights all sorts of crime, but mostly fire emergencies. He saves people when they burn their houses or when someone else burns their houses. He even saves their cats. And dogs too, if they have dogs. He saves all of them. He saved my cat Lucy once when she climbed on a tree and couldn’t get down. He takes me sometimes in his fire truck. It’s a big red fire truck. It has sirens and bells. It has big pipes and some hoses for blowing off fire. My mom is a store clerk. She works on an antique store. They sell really old stuff. Mom loves dad very much, just like I do. My dad is a hero” [Camille-9 years old].

I finished reading my assignment loud in front of my teacher and sat in my desk with a proud smile while everyone was clapping for me.

“That was very nice Camille. You should mention your parents’ name next time and may be talk about your mom more”, the teacher said clapping her hands for my presentation. She motioned for others to continue on with their presentations. Time flew by.

School bell finally rang and everyone started packing screaming and shouting to go home as soon as they can. “Remember children, next math assignment is due friday. Go safe. Don’t run and don’t push”.

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“Dad….d…y…….” and I ran screaming into him trying to catch him off guard. [Camille]

“Hello honeybear. How was your day? Daddy missed you too”, he held his arms wide open and took me swinging in the air. [Robert]

How does he do that? “I missed you too dad. I had my assignment today. I told my class, ‘My dad is a hero’ and they were all so jealous” [Camille]

“Is that so? Good good. Though, dad is not a hero. I just help people when they are in trouble. There are many others who work twice as hard as I in saving people, like doctors”, he winked at me and continued, ”and your mom” [Robert]

“Well, they are not you”, to me you are my only hero. [Camille]

“Enough both of you love birds. Go wash yourself Robert. You are drenched in sweat and you miss, go do your homework” [Lisa]

“Alright honeybear. Time for mommy and daddy for some ‘grown up’ talk” [Robert]

And he winked at me. Gross, mom and dad get some room. But I was too happy to say that and I ran to my room right away giving those two some space.

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Robert pulled Lisa into his embrace while lisa coyly tried to push him away.

“Lisa dear, I missed you very much. I was waiting for my day to end and be with you soon. How was your day my love?” [Robert]

“Always with the sweet talk”, she said with an excitement on her face, “My day was fine. I sold a couple of victorian lamps for a good price. Even got a 5% commission on my sales. I was hoping to save it for our anniversary this year”, she elbowed him a little and continued, “unlike someone who couldn’t remember it even once” [Lisa]

“Oh forgive me my dear”, pretending it hurts, robert continued, “This time, it will be a blast along with Camille’s birthday. Can’t believe we are both married for 10 years and camille is 10 this november” [Robert]

“Well, you did propose to me during her birth. You said she was the most beautiful person ever seen, even though I was right there screaming in labor” [Lisa]

Smiling gently, robert kissed Lisa’s forehead and continued, “She is my dear. You gave her to me. I had to give my everything to you. That is why I proposed. Although I should have done it quite sooner. Forgive me my love. May be I can make it up to you”. [Robert]

Robert started kissing her with passion while his hands wandered to Lisa’s butt and assertively expressed his interest to continue their ‘talk’ in the bedroom.

Lisa gently pushed him away with a smile and continued, “No amount of sweet talk is going to get you away with that sweat stinking uniform mister”. She lightly slapped his butt and motioned towards the bath, “Now go wash yourself while I prepare dinner”. Kissing him one final time, urging him to go soon, “wait after Camille’s asleep for your ‘grown up talk’” and she went to the kitchen moving her hips in a teasing manner.

Before going to the bath, he stopped as he remembered something and said to Lisa in a quiet voice, “I forgot to mention”, he pointed her to come closer, ”I got Camille a model of our fire truck with her initials on it. I had to call in some favors to get a 1:10 miniature custom build like the one I took her around, but I made it done. She will be surprised to finally have her own fire truck. I hope she stays the same and never grow up”. He thought to himself, I also have a surprise for you.

Lisa just waved her hand to bath quickly or else he wouldn’t be getting any pillow talk today. Robert thought to himself how lucky he was to have the two most beautiful, kind and caring women in his life and vowed to love them unconditionally as long as he lived.

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I was so proud of my dad being a hero that I didn’t understand how dangerous his job could be. It hit me the hardest when one day he didn’t come home. Mom said we lost dad when he tried to save some children from a hospital fire. Everyone praised him. Even the tv and news reporters said he died a hero. He somehow managed to save all but not himself? I hated my dad for leaving mom and me. Who was I kidding? He was the best dad I could ever hope for. But why did he have to die a hero?

In his wake, every one of our relatives, friends and even people we didn’t know came to pay their respects. They were all flocking towards mom and me trying their best to ‘act sympathetic’ for our loss. I may be 9, but i am not stupid. Mom might fall for their condolences, but i won’t. Everything they do and say is fake. They are not fooling me.

“Camille. You have to be strong for your mom now” [teacher]

“We are all with you Camille. You can talk to us if you need anything” [aunt]

Hmph, I don’t even know how I am related to this aunt. I have never seen her before, neither have ever heard mom or dad talk about her. “Yes Ms.Rosie and Aunt Elizabeth. I will stay strong”, I pretend like an obedient little girl. Dad always taught me to act courageously. I will stay strong for the both of us now.

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I didn’t go to school for the entire month. I wasn’t ready to move on just like that. I needed more time to mourn. Everywhere just reminded me of the time we spent together. My mom missed him more than I did. She put up this brave face urging me to continue my life because that is what dad would have wanted. But I knew she was hiding all her pain. She cried everyday alone in her bed. I could hear her sob herself to sleep. She didn’t drink or do drugs to forget the pain. She endured it. I will be strong for her. I promised to myself, I will be strong for the family.

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I started going to school after a week. I will be 10 next monday. I don’t know how I am going to react to my birthday with my dad gone. May be he is in a better place, but mom and me are definitely not. I hope I grow up soon and give my mom a shoulder to lean on.

All the adults around me act like they know me. They keep advising me and pretending to care for us. None of the relatives that came for the wake helped us after. I don’t know how mom is doing financially, but I can see she is struggling. Especially now that she is the only one making ends meet. I try to help her with the household chores, but she firmly denies me any opportunity when she is home and urges me to make ‘friends’. Like that is ever going to happen. All my classmates avoid me or bully me, calling me names. None of my age kids understand me. I am not inviting any of my friends for my birthday. I wish I can make friends with someone who understands what I go through.

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Today is my birthday. I am 10 now. I always loved my birthdays because my dad used to tell me the story of how he proposed to my mom. I enjoyed watching mom blush even though they were married for so long. To her, he was her everything. Same as me.

This year was the first time dad was not here to celebrate with us. I wonder if I will ever get over this dreadful feeling. I couldn’t fathom how we will ever get over his loss. Mom made me a small cake. She wanted to celebrate with at least my neighbors, but I urged her not to. I needed to spend time alone. Just me, mom and the memories of my dad. In retrospective, mom would have been comfortable around others.

As we were preparing our day, the fire chief visited us. He had a huge box and some envelopes.

“Hi Justin. Come in. Did you come for Camille’s birthday celebration? I am sorry I didn’t invite anyone and this is a pleasant surprise for us both” [Lisa]

Mom urged him to come in and he was reluctant at first. But agreed to come in for a quick visit as he needed to talk about something

“Lisa, I know this is not a good time for me to show up with something like this. But this is what Robert wanted” [Justin]

The chief handed one envelope to my mom and waited she was done reading while eyeing me and exchanging pleasantries with me.

I was curious about what the envelope contained and what my mom was reading more than telling Justin about my school life.

Mom’s hands started shaking and she cried so much that her knees gave up and she fell onto the sofa dropping the letter she was reading.

“Dear Lisa,

I wanted to surprise you. I quit my job today and will start my own ‘Lisa’s Bakery’ with you as the chef while I managing the counter. I enjoyed your cooking all my life and was selfish enough to not share it with the world. All that changes today. Today holds a special meaning for me. The very same day we brought an angel into this world. The very same day we agreed to share our life and be each other’s soul for life. You and I have talked about this job and I wanted to hold on to it since it provided us with everything we have now. However, the job is dangerous and I have seen you pray everyday for my safety. I want to lessen your burden a little and spend my time with our family. I will help around the shop doing menial jobs while you can keep an eye on me. I saved a part of my paycheck for something like this and it has now become a decent sum. Your dream will be my gift for our anniversary.

Your Dear

Robert Weywards “

“Robert had this written and wanted to mail it to you so it reached you before he came home. I am sorry things didn’t turn out as expected” [Justin]

The fire chief also handed a couple of envelopes that contained an anniversary greeting card for mom and a birthday card for me. The letter was a big shock for me. I cannot even imagine how big of a shock it would be to my mom. I never noticed how much mom worried for dad’s return everyday. I was too stupid. I was in my own world of fantasy of heroes and villains. Life is not as vivid and colorful as a fantasy setting. Mom pulled me out of my self loathing and smiled with a genuine and sincere expression of hope.

“Robert is always with us. In heart and memories, we hold him the dearest. Although we will miss him, we will be alright and we won’t ever forget him” [Lisa]

Mom seemed to have overcome her grief. She probably got the closure she was expecting. Knowing that dad cared for us deep enough to quit his job must have made mom happy. While mom and justin exchanged some more envelopes, I read my birthday card.

“Dear Honeybear,

You are 10 now and I expect many boys to flock around my angel. I am a protective dad and you should promise me to never have a boyfriend without my approval. With lots of love.

Honeybear’s PapaBear”

Guess dad never changed till the end. He was an over protective jerk to promise him to never have a boyfriend. I cried and started opening the box Justin gave me.

A fire truck. It had Camille’s initials on it. ‘Camille’s Fire Fighting Hero Agency’, dad used to joke about it. It proclaimed her to be some sort of hero. That is not who she was. She was a fraile little girl who lost her dad before she was even 10. She didn’t know how fragile she was till he was gone. His absence made her vulnerable.

“Your dad made this exact replica of the truck you and robert drove around before I caught him and reprimanded him”, justin said with a wry smile on his face. “He called in a lot of favors to get it exactly matched and added your initials. Said you wanted to be a hero”.

I couldn’t control my tears anymore. What a stupid dad did I have? Making me cry on my birthday with the best ever gift no less. The fire truck even had a small teddy bear on top of it. I was always my dad’s honeybear.

“Lisa, Robert not only saved his paycheck, he also had a couple of life insurances. Here are the details. I have spoken with the insurance agencies and made sure every formality and forms are completed before meeting with you. All you need to do is sign this form and you can take the cheque paid to your account. Robert also talked to a real estate agent in getting your bakery set up. The entire fire service men have contributed to fixing your place and it is waiting for you whenever you are done grieving” [Justin]

“Seems like Robert planned everything for us to continue knowing this would happen one day. I still cannot believe that my Robert did so much for his family even when he is gone”[Lisa]

Mom wiped the last of her tears and signaled me to come closer for a hug.

“We are both very grateful for what you have done for us Justin. Although Robert planned all this, you and everyone in his group helped us more than you think. We are done grieving. All our sorrows have melted away. Camille and I look forward to all the good things that life holds for us” [Lisa]

“I am glad lisa. I will leave you both now. Please don’t hesitate to ask anything of me. I owe Robert my life” [Justin] and he let himself out leaving me in my mom’s embrace.

I stayed in my mom’s loving embrace for a long time. She sobbed all her tears and we felt everything would be okay from this point. Dad didn’t leave us. He gave us his everything. Even after he was gone, he still took care of us in his own way. He is a hero. I hope I can be like him; be a hero even after death.

That was the last day me and my mom cried.

“Camille, Camille. Are you okay? You were in shock after that thing fell in front of us. We are okay now. We are inside the store. Allen is manning the door with other adults. He seems to know lot more than he is letting on. He carried you in and saved us both by warning ahead. I will go help with the situation and we can talk about it after everything is stable” [Alvin]

I see, I was out after something came crashing before our group. I had read somewhere that your life flashes before you when you are about to die. I probably had my most precious moments shown although not before death but from just the shock.

“Allen .. is he okay?”, I can barely hear myself speak and my vision goes dark in relief as alvin assured me that allen is okay. I don’t want to lose him too.

Dad, I am not strong enough. Please give me strength.