Author's Note: Once again, I'm very grateful and thankful to the readers out there who have read my story thus far. I can't wait to continue posting chapters on this story. I have a lot of ideas in store, and I cannot wait for all of you to read them. This is probably one of my favorite chapters that I've written so far. It caps off the season four finale and has a little surprise at the end. As usual, please read and review this! My lovely readers are what keeps me going!
Disclaimer: The Nanny show itself and canon characters are not mine, but I have full control over Miss Taylor.
A bright light shone through the penthouse, which indicated that it was already the next day. Sabrina was fully conscious, but also extremely hungover. As her eyes fluttered open, she immediately felt a screaming and painful headache. She groaned trying to take in the surrounding of where she was. The last thing she remembered was the fight that she had with Dominic outside the theater. She didn't know how she ended up back at CC's penthouse, but she was very thankful that she did. Sabrina stretched her body and tried her hardest to sit up on the couch. She was still a mess from last night: makeup was ruined, hair was messy, and wore the same clothes. As she sat up, she felt a wave of nausea come through her. Her eyes widened and she rushed to the bathroom immediately to throw up. It took her a good three to five minutes for her to get everything out of her system. When she stopped, she leaned against the wall and started to cry. She knew that after she drunk, she was on the verge of being fired from the production. After getting to know CC, she didn't want to leave. It seemed as if she was the only person who cared about her well-being here in New York. Sabrina curled up in a ball hugging her knees and laid on the floor weakly not wanting to get up.
The sounds of the young girl's crying woke up the older woman. She knew that from what happened the previous night that this would eventually happen. CC knew what it was like to be this hungover, but being hungover and depressed was a different story. She had gone through emotional trauma like this when she was Sabrina's age and didn't have any support through that, but now that she was caring for her, she needed to step up and be that emotional support. Hearing Sabrina's sobs get slightly louder, she got out of bed and threw on one of her silk robes from her closet. CC rushed to the bathroom and opened the door. She figured she could start out the morning with a little bit of joy trying to diffuse the situation. "Morning, sunshine!" She chimed. She watched the younger girl cover her ears and groan. "What's the matter? Are you pregnant?" CC couldn't help but laugh knowing what just happened.
Sabrina looked up at her, her body shaking from the ordeal of the morning so far. "Stop. You're so loud.." she said. When she was hungover, she had extreme sensitivity to sound and light, especially when someone's voice was booming in the morning.
"Well this is what you get when you enter Hangover Town!" CC shouted and continued to laugh. "Which by the way, is not intended for people of your age, may I add."
Sabrina shot her a glare, still shaking. "Please.. I'm not in the mood.." she pleaded feeling tears fall out of her eyes.
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," CC genuinely apologized seeing the girl's reaction. She took a towel and tossed it to the girl on the floor. "Get up, take a shower, and get dressed. I'll have coffee ready for you when you get back." With that, CC finally exited the bathroom and left the girl on her own.
Sabrina was a little surprised that CC was being a little compassionate towards her despite her drinking issue the night before. She gave herself a few more minutes to compose herself and clean everything up before taking a shower. She stood under the hot water and tried to ignore the headache that she had. It was clouding her consciousness and she couldn't bear it any longer. After washing up and getting herself clean, she walked back out to the guest room. She figured that CC was going to have a fit with her later, so it was best to start packing up to leave. She sniffled and grabbed her suitcase placing it on the bed and opening it up. She sighed and opened the first drawer of the nightstand next to her and started to take out the clothes that were in there.
CC was just about done making the coffee in the kitchen and wondered why Sabrina hadn't come out yet. The girl didn't take that long to get dressed, so she was confused as to what was taking her so long. "Sabrina?" She called out to her. She didn't get a response back, so CC put her coffee mug down and walked towards the guest room knocking on the door. "Sabrina, are you ready?" She asked her. All she could hear back was muffled sniffles which made her grow concerned. She opened the door to the guest room and found the girl folding some of her shirts and putting them in the suitcase. "What are you doing?" CC asked her standing by the doorframe.
Sabrina stopped what she was doing and sighed. "I figured I'd save you the trouble. You caught me drinking, so I know I'm fired.." she said quietly. She wiped her tears that were starting to form. "I'm so sorry. I let you down."
CC walked up to her and shook her head. "Honey.. did you think you were fired from the show? Is that why you're packing?" She asked her. Sabrina nodded her head silently confirming that this was the reason. "Oh my goodness. You're not going to be fired from the show. You're our Maria. We wouldn't trade you for the world," CC said leading the girl out of the room.
"I thought you said that if you caught me drinking alcohol, I was gonna be out of the show," Sabrina responded with concern. She stood by the counter as CC gave her a cup of coffee to help cure her hangover.
"You're right. I did say that," CC said to her. "But after what happened last night, I realized you were drunk because something was bothering you."
"W-What happened last night?" Sabrina asked her taking a sip of her coffee nervously.
CC pursed her lips together and brought Sabrina to sit on the couch next to her. "Well.. besides the fact that you were flirting with Maxwell's plant and walked up to me and directly told me you were wasted.." CC started out. "There were some things that you brought up about yourself that were very concerning to me. I-It just broke my heart," she admitted to the girl. She took a deep breath. "You called yourself a waste of air... a pathetic brat... a bastard child." She had vivid memories of the night before and how the girl had broken her heart being so depreciative of herself. "Why?"
Sabrina's fingers tapped nervously. She stayed silent for a while until she felt herself being pulled into a hug from CC. She didn't expect that gesture and just started to sob into the older woman's blazer. She embraced her tightly as CC rubbed her back. After a while, Sabrina sniffled and faced her again. "I had a fight with Dominic yesterday during rehearsals," she said taking a deep breath. "He's so annoyed with me wanting to change lines and stage directions. He claims that I don't care about anybody but myself and for that, he thinks I'm a bastard child!"
"Let me start off by saying this: first of all, I don't ever want you to call yourself any of those derogatory names ever again. Do you understand me?" CC asked as she helped Sabrina wipe her tears away. Sabrina nodded her head silently. "You're a beautiful, talented, and headstrong girl. You have a soaring career and you're super successful. Don't listen to Dominic. He's auditioned for us before and has always played backup. He's just jealous."
Sabrina found herself touched by those words. "Nobody's ever been this nice to me before," she said looking over at CC smiling. "Thank you."
CC found the girl's gratitude sweet. Again, she was tugging at her heartstrings. It was hard to get out of this predicament. "Well.. honey.." she started out. "I'm sure you've had fans send you a lot of gifts and mail. Surely this can't be the first time you've heard anything like this."
"Actually... it is," Sabrina told her straight up with no hesitation. "Dominic was right.. I was called a bastard child many times throughout my childhood. I guess I drank last night because of those memories that came back to me." She paused and ran her fingers through her hair.
CC tried her best to compose herself. She managed to not break her usual demeanor, but found herself getting weaker by the minute. "I.. kind of find it hard to believe that you haven't received genuine compliments from others. Doesn't Bernie tell you things like this?" She asked her.
"Bernie does compliment me, yes," Sabrina responded. "Most of the time, it just doesn't seem genuine though. I have control of her trust fund and her job, so if she were to get a rise out of me, she'd be back in Mexico."
Hearing that Sabrina had control of her agent's trust fund made CC almost laugh to herself. She covered her mouth tried so hard not to crack up. It reminded her so much of how she always quipped at being in charge of Niles' retirement fund. Why was this girl so much like her? Now she wanted to know her more. "I'm sorry.. I always tell Niles to watch his dirty domestic mouth because I have control of his retirement account," she said giggling a little bit. "When you said that about your agent, I just couldn't help but think about that."
Sabrina chuckled at the woman's response. For some reason, CC always knew what to say to make her feel better. "Looks like we have more in common than I thought. You're officially my new best friend," she responded.
Hearing that come out of the young woman's mouth almost made CC lose it. Who would've thought she'd bond with a kid? She hated kids, and she had a valid reason to. Why was this teenager suddenly changing her mind? The girl was intelligent and witty, just like her. "Maybe we should use this opportunity to get to know each other a bit more, yeah?" CC asked and Sabrina complied easily. "So... new best friend... not to kill the mood, but I still have another question about last night. You told me just now that you've been called a bastard child throughout your childhood. Why don't you tell me about your childhood? Why have people treated you so harshly?"
Sabrina hated talking about her childhood. In fact, it was the last thing she was hoping to talk about. However, now that CC had seen her drunk and slur her back-burner thoughts, she knew she had to be honest with her. The smile she had from earlier fell at that question. She took a moment to compose herself and then faced the older woman. "I didn't grow up with a family," she started out holding her coffee cup close to her chest. "I was born in upstate New York. When I was a baby, I was given away by my birth mother. I barely knew her, but the earliest memory I have is with her.. I can remember bits and pieces of our moments we shared together.. she told me she loved me.. even though she thought she would never see me again," Sabrina started off. Talking about her birth mother made her feel vulnerable. It was one thing to trust someone, but she trusted CC enough to talk about her dreadful past. That was huge for her. "After I was separated from her, I was surrendered to an orphanage by the hospital. I guess they take the unclaimed children from the hospital.. I don't know." Sabrina paused trying so hard not to sob. She had to stay strong for CC, who was intently listening. "Well... there was a married couple with a bunch of children that decided to adopt me right away. I don't remember much of that period of my life, but I was told that the couple who adopted me were hoarding these kids. They were on serious drugs and neglected us for a good majority of the time. I'm pretty sure I had older siblings that took care of me.." she stopped to take a deep breath before continuing. "After Child Protective Services heard about the neglect in the household, they separated all of us. I was alone.. a small little baby just.. needing that love.."
CC found herself extremely heartbroken. She never felt sensitive or sympathetic for any young child or adult, but she found herself wanting to care for Sabrina more than ever. She grabbed a tissue from the coffee table and started to dab her eyes lightly. She was hopeful that her own baby girl never went through that torture. Unfortunately for CC, she had no idea what her daughter's fate was.
Sabrina watched as CC reacted and she set her coffee mug down moving closer to her and wrapping an arm around her. "It's okay," she said reassuringly. "I'm fine now. It's all a part of my journey." She chuckled before she took a breath and continued. "Well.. the court unanimously agreed that my old siblings and I should be put in the foster care system. My gosh... I think I had to move to nine different households and attend ten different schools.. and they were literally all across the country. I lived in Chicago, Dallas, New Orleans, Boise.. and even Palm Beach," Sabrina started to sniffle. "Nobody wanted me.." She couldn't take it anymore. The tears uncontrollably flowed from her eyes. "I had foster parents tell me that I was good for nothing.. that I should've never been born.. that I was a waste of air and time.. that I shouldn't have existed.. I was called a bastard child.. and.. that nobody would ever love me."
"My god.." CC was seething on the inside. How could people be so cruel to this poor girl when all she needed was a family? Sabrina ended up having no family to love when she was a child. CC remembered her past and how her parents were divorced. Her father had full custody of her and her brother, Noel, but he was never around to show any love and affection towards his children. Her nannies tried to love her, but she wouldn't accept them. CC thought her past was bad, but after hearing Sabrina's story, her past looked like a world of rainbows and flowers compared to the one she was hearing about. She sympathized with Sabrina knowing how it was to grow up with a family who didn't love their children. "It's such a shame.. that CPS can rely on those monsters to take care of innocent little beings. Don't they conduct background checks at all?"
Sabrina sighed and shook her head. "After what I've experienced.. maybe they don't," she started off before continuing her story. "Well.. I had a bit of a silver lining. When I turned eight, I was taken out of the ninth foster home and brought to Bernie Gonzalez, who lived in Los Angeles. From the minute I entered her and her grandmother's home, they immediately accepted me as one of their own. This meant living in a Mexican household where discipline was pretty strict, and you could never have any privacy. Trust me, I had my moments where I was hit in the head with her abuelita's chanclas," She paused chuckling and shaking her head. "Even though moving in there had its cons, that was the best home I've ever stayed in.. Bernie's been like a big sister to me. She taught me everything that I needed to know in life. One of them was to count every lucky star in the sky and take nothing for granted. Life is precious.. even though there are mountains that will stand in your way.. find a way to walk around them or climb up."
CC smiled warmly at those words. She never had a nanny or motherly figure that taught her those things. In a way, she felt a little jealous of the way Sabrina was treated after moving in with Bernie.
"Well.. life was easy for a while. CPS never bothered me again, so I've lived with the Gonzalez family for a couple more years.. until Abuelita Gonzalez passed away," Sabrina said dabbing her eyes with a tissue. "Bernie was scared of taking care of me at first. She didn't really have enough independence in her life since it was harder on her to accept that our primary caretaker was gone. At that point, she started to act differently than she did. I'm sure it was due to the exhaustion and the finances, but I still was vulnerable." She then saw Chester jump up on the couch next to her, and she reached to pet the little dog. "When I was ten, I auditioned for my first commercial. Bernie was very reluctant to take me, because she wasn't sure if I'd make it or not.. sure enough, I did. I made the cut and then some. It was at that point where I became a star, and Bernie became my agent. She was very reliant on me as I grew older, because she knew I was making a net worth of almost 5 million. I'm pretty sure she's been trying to pry her way into my money and affection, because she always showered me with gifts and promises that were unkept." She sighed and then said, "I guess that's what happens when you get famous. People only love you for your money.. not for who you really are."
The older woman couldn't really attest to that. Even though CC did agree with her on certain things, nobody really showed an ounce of care for her throughout her life. She was in situations of neglect throughout her own childhood, but even when she had money, she didn't think anybody would love her at all. However, this moment wasn't about her, it was about the girl. "Come here," she said to Sabrina pulling her in for a hug. The younger girl embraced her tightly and closed her eyes. She felt so comfortable. This moment to her just felt so right, and she didn't know why. After a while, CC faced her once again and said, "You know you've gone through so many of those obstacles and mountains in your life.. yet here you are. This just goes to show that you're stronger than you believe. I could never live in any of those situations that you did." She moved a strand of hair away from the girl's face. "And for that, I admire you.. and your courage."
Sabrina smiled softly. Nobody ever told her that they admired her or looked up to her like this. Sure, she had fans send in letters saying how she was their hero, but this was a moment that was from something deep that she was telling a friend. "Thank you," she said softly.
"You know.. I'm admired by your courage so much that... I feel like we need to continue our discussion that we had at the Russian Tea Room," CC said to her. "We left off at telling a moment you most regret." She reminded the girl, who beamed at the fact that CC still remembered. "That discussion will continue when I get back. I promise.. I do have to go to work and visit Niles at the hospital later," CC said as she stood up to grab her purse and shoes.
"Niles is at the hospital? What happened to Niles?" Sabrina asked with concern.
"He had a heart attack yesterday," CC said sadly, missing him dearly. "He collapsed in front of me in the kitchen.. oh god, I was terrified." She composed herself before she could start breaking down. "Luckily, the doctors said that it was only a mild blockage and it was containable. He did end up in a coma, but he should be awake by today or tomorrow."
"Oh no.. I'm so sorry. I wish I could see him," Sabrina muttered as she grabbed the blanket on the couch. When she did, Chester climbed up to the girl's stomach, and she reached to pet him softly.
"I know, but you're hungover," CC reminded pointing at her. "You're not going anywhere. In fact, don't even bother going to rehearsals today. Get yourself an Advil from the medicine cabinet and take a nap. I'll be home late."
Sabrina nodded her head as she watched CC turn around and head towards the door. "Will you still have enough energy from the day to talk about the remainder of our discussion?" she asked hopefully.
CC stopped her tracks and turned around. She looked over at the girl on the couch. "Even if I am exhausted, I'll make time for you. Don't worry. I won't leave you hanging, honey," she responded winking at her.
The teenage girl saw that CC was a woman of her word. She then said, "Okay. I'll see you later." With that, CC exited her penthouse. Sabrina sat up on the couch to look around for the Advil. Once she found it, she took it with a cup of water and downed it quickly. Her locket dangled from her neck and she looked at it intently. The thought of finding her birth mother had slipped away from her for a while ever since Bernie told her not to worry, but she was curious about something. She opened up the locket, looking at the picture of her birth mother again before picking up the landline phone and dialing Bernie's number. Once Bernie picked up the phone, Sabrina said, "Bernie, it's me. Can you do me a favor? Can you find my birth certificate and tell me what my biological birth surname is?"
CC was on her way to the hospital's cardiac unit a bit later than everyone else. She had told Maxwell that she was going to be stopping by later, but didn't indicate the reason why. On her way there, she stopped at a nearby florist to buy a bouquet of flowers for Niles as a get-well-soon gift. When she arrived at the florist, she noticed that it was particularly busy. She was confused as to what the special occasion was, but at the same time, there was a long line to check out, and it was getting quite tiring to wait for all of the people before her to pay and leave. Her plan was to ask the cashier what in God's name was going on. She didn't want to be late before the visiting hours at the hospital closed for the night. CC groaned watching all the people in front of her have small talk with the cashier. When it was finally her turn, she set the flowers on the counter and said, "Make it snappy. I've waited too long to get a damn flower bouquet."
The cashier didn't make eye contact with her. He replied in a monotone voice, "Someone's got their panties too tight."
CC huffed and rolled her eyes. "And someone's not doing their job by making other people wait," she snapped back at him. "I have to get to the hospital. I'm not going to wait another 10 minutes for you to gab with the other pathetic domestics."
"Lady, you do realize that today is Mother's Day, right?" the cashier asked her finally looking back up at her. "It's the busiest day for any florist in the nation. People love to talk about their mothers." CC stood there grimacing at how he mentioned the infamous holiday. God, how she hated Mother's Day. Just another day to drink herself till she was blacked out. It was a repetitive cycle every year for her on this holiday. She'd wallow in her own self pity, cry about her long lost daughter, and drink bourbon until she had no physical functionality. "So.. are these for your mother?"
When he asked that question, CC chuckled to herself and passed over the cash for the flowers. "No, these are for my um... friend... who's in the hospital," she almost choked. "Besides, I'd rather gauge my eyes out than talk about my lousy excuse of a mother. Good day." She slid over a 50 bill for the cashier and walked away from the florist quickly. As CC walked back out to the New York streets, the thought of Mother's Day made her heart sink. She could've celebrated it for the past 19 years. She could've meant something to someone out there. Instead she was forced to watch him celebrate it with her and their children. She tried her hardest to just let her own trauma go, but it was very difficult to manage, especially when she was noticing people around her with their mothers. It was almost as if life was cursing her right back for what she did to that baby many years ago. She stopped to look around at all the happy families that were enjoying the holiday together. CC's hands were shaking out of fear. She felt trapped around her and felt a tear roll down her cheek. It took her a good few minutes to regain control of her emotions and finally make a mad dash to the nearest taxi. She had to get to the hospital quick before she saw more signs of this dreaded holiday.
At the hospital, she rushed to where Niles' room was and leaned against the wall, trying to catch her breath. She was finally away from all of the chaos that ensued outside of the hospital doors. Now she was able to finally concentrate on what she really came there for. Or so she thought..
"Hey Stacy, do you have any plans after work?" one nurse asked her fellow colleague as they walked down the hall.
"Yeah. I gotta tend to the patient in the radiation unit, then I'm gonna head out to dinner with my mom," the other nurse responded. CC's eyes widened as she immediately dashed away from the conversation.
After what seemed like a long travel by foot, she finally made it to Niles' room. She sighed happily looking around and finding nobody else around. It was just her and her butler boy. She walked into his room and smiled noticing he had just woken up from his coma. "Niles! Oh, I'm so glad you're awake! How are you feeling?" she asked him as she placed the flowers beside his bed. She sat beside him, making sure she didn't hurt him in any way. "Is there anything I can get for you?"
Niles weakly looked over at the curtain to his left. He raised his hand and pointed in that direction. "Well I... I would like another pillow," he responded tiredly.
CC placed her hand on her chest and complied with his request. "Of course," she said calmly. She stood up from the chair and then pulled back the curtain that was on the left side of the room. Once she did, she was horrified at the sight before her. She caught Maxwell and Fran making out on the hospital bed next to Niles which made her let out a bloodcurdling scream. The two pulled away from each other while CC stood there frozen in terror.
"CC, what on earth is the meaning of this!?" Maxwell asked her as he and Fran stood up from the bed.
"What.. what is the meaning of this, Maxwell!?" she screamed motioning to the two who were in a very intimate position. It took a while, but CC found composure. She was still angry at Niles for pulling that trick on her. "That... pathetic excuse for a man made me open the curtain!" she shouted pointing at him. When Maxwell and Fran looked over her, they noticed Niles had fallen asleep.
"Miss Babcock, what are you talking about? He's sleeping like a baby in a bris," Fran replied looking over at her friend who was resting.
"CC, be more compassionate towards the man. He just suffered a heart attack. He surely doesn't want to go through another one," Maxwell reminded her. They both were completely oblivious to what had happened.
"But, but Maxwell-" CC stammered in complete shock that they didn't believe her.
"My goodness, leave Niles alone. He deserves to have his rest," Maxwell said before wrapping his arm around Fran. "We should probably get back to the house anyway. We have a family dinner tonight."
"Yeah, Ma and Yetta will be stopping for Mother's Day. Wanna come over, Miss Babcock?" Fran asked cheerfully.
Upon hearing Nanny Fine mention Mother's Day, CC got extremely irate. "NO!" she blurted out, which caused the two to look at her with concern. She stood there for a moment and then looked back at Niles before looking back at them again. "That's it. I'm out of here. I'm going home," she muttered as she quickly exited the room leaving the three of them alone. She couldn't take another moment being surrounded by mentions of Mother's Day. She'd hope that the girl would still be available to talk to, because boy did she need to vent.
Back at the penthouse, Sabrina sat on the couch reading a book that she found on one of the shelves. She had gone deep into reading it that she at first didn't notice CC walk through the door. Her attention was finally brought up when CC leaned against the front door trying to catch her breath.
"Hi! Welcome home," Sabrina chimed. She noticed CC didn't respond right away and was still unstable from what happened earlier. She didn't know what was worse: the mentions of Mother's Day around her or catching Maxwell and Nanny Fine making out in the hospital. Sabrina waited for CC to respond, but she never did. She frowned and set her book down on the coffee table. "What's wrong?" She asked her with concern.
CC looked over at the teenage girl and sighed as she put away her coat in the closet. "Oh.. hi sweetie. Um.. Its n-nothing.." she stammered. "I just.. had a rough day. That's all."
Sabrina walked up to CC and noticed how flustered she was. "I'm sure you did, you know, because of Niles. Right?" She asked trying to comfort her.
Upon the mention of Niles, CC's blood boiled remembering what that stupid butler did to her. She thought about her answer aloud. "Uh... yeah." She immediately went to her kitchen and tried to get some alcohol for herself.
The girl followed her concerned about the woman's behavior around her. What had happened to her that made her so nervous? "Are you okay, Miss Babcock?" She asked her with concern. She watched as CC didn't respond and tried to pour herself a glass of whiskey, but Sabrina placed her hand on top of the woman's before she could move it further. "Hey.. you can tell me anything. You know that right?" She asked her. "I trust you enough to listen to my story.. so.. do you trust me enough to talk about what happened today?"
The Broadway produced bit her bottom lip nervously.. harshly.. near to the point where she wanted to bleed, but couldn't. She slowly let go of the alcohol in front of her, Sabrina's hand staying on top of hers for reassurance. After a long and tiring day, drinking would be her usual resort, but the girl found another way to calm her down while staying sober. She had a much better effect on her than any bottle of alcohol. She took a deep breath and looked at Sabrina, almost teary-eyed. "You're right. I'm sorry," CC apologized. "I-I do trust you.." CC and Sabrina walked back to the couch where CC fiddled with her fingers nervously, a gesture Sabrina did when she got nervous too.
Sabrina gently rubbed the woman's back as she noticed how scared and nervous she was. "It's okay," she said to her. "Just let it go."
With that, CC grabbed a tissue from her coffee table and covered her eyes with it for a moment. She felt ashamed being vulnerable in front of the younger girl. After a little while, CC removed the tissue and looked back up at Sabrina. "I think.. now is the right time to bring up our conversation from the other day," she started out. "About.. a moment you regret the most." CC sighed heavily and then said, "I'm not sure if you know this, but.. today is Mother's Day."
Sabrina grimaced the same way CC reacted at the florist earlier. "It is?" She asked before she scoffed. "Ugh. I hate Mother's Day! Seeing everyone around me talk about their moms and what they're getting for them. I get so jealous! I.. I don't have a mom to celebrate it with.. I wish I did.." her demeanor changed from angry to sad quickly talking about it. She placed her hand on her locket instinctively.
CC looked over at the girl solemnly. She was glad that she felt the same way about the holiday. "I um.. I hate Mother's Day too," she responded. "F-For my own reason."
"Okay. I get it," Sabrina answered understandably. Even though CC told her the truth, that didn't explain why she was so flustered coming in. "Well... why do you hate Mother's Day?"
That part was hard for CC to respond right away. This would easily deter to her moment she regretted most. She covered her face in her hands feeling extremely sensitive and vulnerable to the situation at hand. Having to remotely think about her past made her heart ache in every way, but she knew that she needed to tell the girl the truth. "I.. I was a mother once." There. She said it. Sabrina's eyebrows furrowed.
"What do you mean?" The teenage girl asked. "Did you have a miscarriage?"
CC shook her head at that question. She was lucky she didn't have one, but what she did was much worse than that. "No, I.." she paused feeling tears roll down her cheeks. She took a moment to dab her eyes lightly. "I had a baby girl.. back in 1978.. and.. I gave her away."
Sabrina thought about what she just said. She was born in 1978 and was given away by her birth mother. Those two had a lot more in common than they let on. However, she decided to put her own feelings on the back burner and listen to CC.
"I had an affair with a married man for a while. I found out I was pregnant about a couple of months later... I was going to tell him... but then I found out his wife got pregnant a little bit later after I did. She was a good friend of mine, so for me to tamper their relationship would've made me lose the only friends I had at the time," CC continued her story. She had never told anybody this story out loud, so it was very hard for her to let everything go at once. "He was.. so happy with her.. that they were finally starting a family together. I couldn't afford to make him known to my own situation. By the time I was five months pregnant, I moved away to upstate New York to continue my pregnancy, give birth, and recover. I told him I was going to Europe for business.. but obviously that was a big fat lie. To this day, he still doesn't know about our daughter.. actually.. nobody knows about my daughter."
"Nobody knows?" Sabrina asked feeling a little bit honored that CC could trust her with something as big as this story.
The older woman shook her head and tried to wipe the tears that were coming out of her eyes. "Consider yourself lucky, kid.. that I trust you with a bombshell like this," CC said to her intently before continuing. "When she was born.. she was the most beautiful baby I've ever seen. She had his dark hair.. his lips.. his broad shoulders.." she trailed off talking about the father's traits but then switched over to her own. "But.. she had my smile.. my eyes.. my soft hands.. every time I looked into her eyes.. I saw myself. It was like staring into the windows to her soul," she said looking up at Sabrina before covering her eyes again. "I only had her for two hours.. before I gave her away.. but those were the best two hours of my life. I.. I don't know where my baby is to this day.. the nurses picked her up and.. she was gone."
"I'm so sorry.." Sabrina mused with her feeling her own tears pour down her eyes. Knowing that CC had comforted her in the past, she decided to return the favor to the older woman and wipe her tears away gently with her thumbs.
CC chuckled sadly at Sabrina's kind gesture and placed her hand on top of the girl's and continued to tell her story. "There's not a day that goes by where I don't think about my daughter. I couldn't keep her.. I couldn't afford to let her father know and.. I wouldn't have been a good single mother to her. She deserved a happier life and.. I hope she's had a happier life.. somewhere out there." She paused and then shook her head hating herself even more for talking about this. "It's the reason why I hate kids. I envy other parents and children who have parents.. knowing I lost my own 19 years ago. I could've been a mother for the past 19 years-"
Before she could continue, Sabrina wrapped her arms around CC hugging her and trying to comfort her. She knew that she couldn't do much to fix the situation for her, but this was all she could offer. CC sobbed uncontrollably as she held the younger girl close to her. There was something about this girl's hugs that made every negative aura just disappear instantly. CC could feel her shaky breaths calm down slowly but surely.
After a while of just being in each other's arms, CC pulled away and sniffled. "So.. now you know why I hate Mother's Day. I was a mother and my baby is somewhere out there.. gosh I hope one day I can find her."
Sabrina pondered her thoughts for a moment. There was something CC said that sounded oddly familiar to her. "You know... you mentioned that you had your baby in upstate New York in 1978.. and she would've been 19 by now," Sabrina started off. "Well.. I was born in 1978 and in upstate New York too. I'm 19 years old."
CC was a little bit confused as to why Sabrina was bringing this up all of a sudden. She tried to follow along with her, but her mind was clouded with her past. "What are you saying?" She asked.
The younger girl paused and ran her fingers through her hair. "I uh... I'm looking for my birth mother too.. she gave me away when I was born and.. all of this kinda sounds familiar to me," Sabrina said. "I-I know pretty much everything about when I was born. Bernie told me everything since she has possession of my birth certificate copy."
CC was suddenly curious about what Sabrina had to say. Since she was desperate to find her daughter, she wanted to dig more information out of her. "Yeah? What do you know about your birth date?" She asked her curiously.
"I was born on June 12, 1978 in upstate New York at Oak Village Medical Center at 12:47pm. My mother was in room 1060A. I was 6 pounds, 14 ounces, 18 inches long. I guess one of the nurses decided to name me before I was sent off to the orphanage," Sabrina bantered a little bit about her past.
CC's heart started to race. If she was nervous before, she all of a sudden became a complete wreck hearing those words come out of Sabrina's mouth. "No way.." she muttered to herself. "I had my baby on June 12, 1978 at Oak Village Medical Center... same room... same time... same measurements.."
Sabrina was starting to grow just as nervous as CC was. Something was going on between them and she wanted to get to the bottom of this. "You know... I also found out something today.." the teenage girl said. "When you left, I called Bernie and she told me the most bizarre thing... my birth surname is Babcock."
CC was freaking out. She felt like she was going to hyperventilate. She covered her mouth and gasped hearing that. Could this be the moment where she actually found her..? No. It was too good to be true. She needed more evidence. "Interesting.." she muttered. "When my baby was born, I gave her a locket with my picture inside it.. so she could remember me forever."
"Kind of like this one..?" Sabrina asked as she removed the piece of jewelry from her neck. "I have a picture of my mom in here. I wear it every day knowing she's still with me." CC's heart was beating fast upon looking at Sabrina's locket. This was a complete dead ringer for the locket she gave her baby girl so many years ago.
"Yes... exactly like this one.." she said reaching out to touch it softly. She fidgeted with the locket nervously before she looked up at Sabrina and asked, "May I... see the picture?"
Sabrina nodded her head silently knowing that she too wanted to see if CC was able to recognize any other signs that they shared in common. After a moment of nervousness, CC slowly opened up the locket and gasped at what she saw. It was a picture of her back in the late 70's. Tears started to stream down her face. This was it. This was all the evidence she needed.
"What's wrong?" Sabrina asked completely oblivious to what CC had just realized.
"I - I'll be right back.." CC said as she hurriedly scurried away from the couch and into her room. Her hands were shaking and fumbling through the shelves containing her photo albums. It took her a while before she found what she was looking for and came back to where Sabrina was sitting, anxiously waiting to see what CC was about to show her. She placed the book on Sabrina's lap and said, "Flip to page ten."
Sabrina shakily went through the book and then finally landed on the page CC requested her to look at. Her eyes widened upon the sight before her. She quickly covered her mouth with her hands noticing that the picture on page ten of the photo album was the same picture inside her locket. She started to put two and two together. CC looked at her endearingly, tears pouring from her eyes. They both stood up and had a moment to take in what just happened. Sabrina choked on her tears and asked, "...Mom..?"
CC reached out to weakly wipe the tears coming down from the girl's eyes as tears fell from her own. She had absolutely no doubt in the world that this girl in front of her was her baby. "Sabrina.." she replied softly. "It's me.."
At that moment, they immediately threw their arms around one another and just sobbed profusely. Sabrina couldn't possibly let go of her. Her arms were completely locket around CC's embrace and she didn't want to let go. For the first time in 19 whole years, she was hugging her birth mother upon new knowledge. It was a moment she had dreamt about ever since she was a little girl. Her dreams were finally coming true.
In the back of her mind, CC thanked Maxwell silently for cancelling their dinner reservation and recruiting this young lady into the show. Who would've known that she ended up casting her own flesh and blood into their new production? She too had dreamt about holding her baby girl again, and sure enough, here she was. She took a moment to study Sabrina's features again. She most definitely had her eyes. They were just as beautiful as she remembered. "My baby," she choked on her tears smiling down at her daughter.
Sabrina smiled back at her through the tears that came down. "I knew it! I knew it was you," she cried before throwing herself at the older woman again.
CC gladly accepted her embrace again, this time placing a kiss on the top of her head. For someone who just emphasized on how much she hated Mother's Day, her opinion definitely changed at this very moment. This was life changing for the both of them. Now that her daughter was back in her life, CC didn't ever want to let her go again. She knew they needed to discuss their newfound relationship more, but for now, all she wanted was to bask in the moment they were sharing. Something so precious had capped off a miserable Mother's Day: a mother and daughter just being grateful that they had found each other again.