6 months had passed. In those 6 months Ethan and Cal had finalized the adoption. Matilda was now officially theirs. Cal was her father and Ethan was her uncle. Matilda sat in Cal's lap as he and Ethan were visiting Emilie. Over these part 6 months the two brothers had become closer to their birth mum. Matilda flapped her arms about as Cal continued to jiggle her up and down on his lap.
"So this is little Matilda?" Emilie said as she sat in her wheelchair.
"Yes, this is Matilda." Cal said.
"Or Toad, Cal likes to call her." Ethan commented.
Cal gave his little brother a glare. Ethan just smiled in response.
"Toad?" Emilie asked. "Why does Cal call her that."
"Because she looked like a toad." Ethan replied.
"And she still does." Cal added with a smile as he tickled his daughter's tummy.
Emilie smiled at her sons. She was happy for them. And she was even more happy that both Cal and Ethan did not inherit Huntington's.
"May I hold her?" Emilie asked hesitantly.
"Course you can." Cal said handing her over. "There we are, Toad. Meet your grandma."
Emilie looked at Cal with a shocked expression.
"What did you just call me?"
"Grandma." Cal repeated. "Because that's who you are. You're Matilda's grandma."
Matilda gurgled as she sat in Emilie's lap playing with her hands. Cal looked at his brother and smiled. Ethan smiled back.
"You happy?" Ethan asked while Emilie was entertaining his niece.
"Yeah, I am." Cal replied.
And it was true. Cal had never felt happier in his life. He had the two people he loved the most. His brother and daughter. Not only that but, he and Ethan had found their birth mum. He couldn't be happier. Matilda continued to smile and gurgle as she sat in Emilie's lap. While Emilie was busy playing with her new grand-daughter she looked up and smiled at them.
"There's something I would like to show you." She said still holding Matilda.
"What is it?" Cal asked.
Emilie indicated for him to go over to the big dresser situated in the living-room. Going over the specified draw Cal pulled it open. Inside it was an old shoe box. He took it out and closed the draw. Coming over with the shoe box in hand Cal sat down beside Ethan.
"Go on. Open it." Emilie urged.
Cal gently took off the lid. Opening the box Cal and Ethan could see there were bundles of letters, photos and other small bits and bobs.
"What are these?" Ethan inquired looking back towards Emilie as he and Cal looked through them.
"Have a look."
The two of them did as they were told. Taking out the bundles of photos they soon saw they were photos of them as children. And the letters, they recognised the handwriting immediately. It was their mum's, well adopted mum's. Both Cal and Ethan were surprised to find these.
"You and mum, I mean Matilda kept in touch." Ethan asked holding a photo of him as a baby in 2 year old Cal's arms.
Emilie smiled and nodded.
"Yes. She'd always tell what you were like and what you got up to. She'd send a photo of you two every birthday and holiday."
"I wonder why she never told us." Ethan wondered.
"Because I told her not too."
Cal and Ethan looked at her.
"Why not?" Cal asked.
"You seemed so happy. I didn't want to spoil it by her telling you the truth and neither did she."
"So even after all these years. When you didn't know you would ever see us again you still kept on to these?" Cal continued.
"I'd hope that someday I would be able to track you down and give these to you. Now, that you're here I want you to have them."
"Emilie, we couldn't. You should keep them." Cal said.
"No, they're yours. I won't be needing them anymore."
Both brothers turned to face her with tears in their eyes. They knew what she meant by that. They just didn't want to accept it. they had already lost one mother and now they were about to lose another.
"Don't say that. You have years left." Ethan said.
"Don't brush over the inevitable." Emilie told him. "As doctors you should both know I don't have much long left now. It's only a matter of months before I die."
"And what about your grand-daughter? She's never going to know you and you're never going to watch her grow up." Cal responded, taking Matilda back from Emilie.
"She won't forget me. And I will be watching over her when I go." Emilie replied. "You'll have these memories to show her as she grows up."
For a few more hours the three of them sat going over the pictures and reading the letters. Matilda was now fast asleep in Ethan's arms. Looking down on her gently placed a kiss upon her little head. Soon Matilda began to stir so Ethan handed her to Cal.
"I'll just settle her down for a nap. I'll be right back." Cal excused himself.
Both Ethan and Emilie smiled as Cal walked off cradling Matilda in his arms.
"You know, your brother is a great dad. And she's very lucky to have a dad like him."
"Yeah, she is." Ethan agreed.
"And she's very lucky to have an uncle like you too, Ethan."
Ethan smiled at her weakly. Emilie noticed and sense something was wrong.
"Ethan, what is it?"
Ethan turned back to her and edged closer.
"Uh, there's something I need to tell you."