Sydney to the Max Season 5: Episode 7 - A Mother's Love
Written By: "Fun But Shy Girl", Based on Characters Created by: Mark Reisman
Eight Years Ago:
A young Sydney was brushing her teeth in her bathroom as she said, "Ugh. When am I gonna get rid of these annoying braces? They make brushing my teeth feel less fun." Then Sydney's mother Alisha suddenly stepped into the bathroom and smiled as she said, "Oh, I don't know. I think they add a little extra sparkle to that wonderful smile of yours." Sydney rolled her eyes and said, "Whatever. Hey mom. Can I go to Olive's house today?" Alisha then said, "Now Sydney. It may be winter break, but you can't take a break from your chores or family time. First, you have to clean your room." Then Sydney said, "Okay. I'll clean my room. Then can I go to Olive's house?" Alisha chuckled and said, "No. Then you and me are gonna get some frozen yogurt in the park. My treat." Sydney rolled her eyes and said, "But Olive's place has chocolate chunk ice cream and it tastes way better." Alisha then said, "Now Sydney, you know my schedule at work is crazy sometimes, so it's hard for me to have time off when you're out of school. So lets make the most of the next week." Sydney sighed and said, "But I really wanna play games with Olive." Alisha then said, "Well... how about you clean your room. Then we'll see what happens after that, okay?"
Present Day:
Angela was sitting on the couch of the Reynolds family living room reading a book. Suddenly, the very pregnant Angela felt a kick in her stomach. She looked uncomfortable for a second, but then smiled as she rubbed her belly. Suddenly Sophia and Emmy came down the stairs as Sophia said, "Hey mom. Me and Emmy are gonna do some work for our science project at the library." Angela smiled as she said, "Okay. Just remember to bundle up. It's very cold outside." Then as Sophia and Emmy grabbed their belongings, suddenly Sydney came down the stairs as she said, "Hey Angela. If my dad is looking for me, I'm gonna be taking a long walk." Then as Angela stood up she said, "Hey. Can I come with you? I could use some exercise, and we could talk a bit if that's okay." Then Sydney casually said, "Nah, I'm okay." Then Angela said, "Are you sure? I mean I've been living here for over four months now Sydney and we haven't talked too much one on one since I moved in. I mean, I'm kind of your mom now. So I thought we could..." Then suddenly Sydney got very angry as she said, "You're not my mom Angela! Now give me some space!" Then Sydney walked out of the door very angry. Angela looked confused as she said, "I'm sorry. I... I didn't realize that I... I mean... what did I do?" Then Sophia walked over to Angela and said, "Mom. I think there's something you should know..."
Eight Years Ago:
Sydney was doing the last organization in her room, as Alisha walked in. Sydney then jumped up and with an excited tone she said, "Done. Now can I go to Olive's house?" Alisha then said, "Sydney, are you sure you don't wanna get yogurt with me? We can even go see a movie after that if you want." Sydney groaned and said, "Mom. I wanna hang out with Olive. I'd rather do something fun with someone who is actually super cool." Then Alisha said, "Hey. You know I'm the coolest mom around." Then Sydney said, "Yeah, I know. But... my friends are just cooler. Can I please go to Olive's house. Pretty please!" Alisha sighed and said, "Well... I'm not gonna force you to spend all day with me so... I guess." Sydney jumped up and said, "Yay! Okay. I'm going to Olive's." Then Alisha said, "But come home early at four, okay? We're going still spend some time together." Sydney groaned and said, "Uggggggh. Fine. See ya later mom!" Then Sydney rushed down the stairs and out of the house as Alisha said, "Have a nice time Sydney. Love you."
Present Day:
Sydney was walking through the park wearing a long brown jacket as the cold air passed by her. Sydney then walked near the bike shop. She turned her head and saw Max and Harry inside the shop working. Harry then noticed Sydney through the window and waved to her. Sydney only made a quick glance at Harry, and then walked away quickly. Inside the shop, a confused looking Harry said, "Hey. What's up with Sydney? It's like she just ghosted me." Then Max who was standing near Harry said, "Well... she's just dealing with some stuff today." A confused Harry then said, "What kind of stuff?"
Eight Years Ago:
Sydney was walking down the sidewalk near a street as the early evening began. As Sydney looked at her watch she said to herself, "Shoot. It's already 5:00. Mom is gonna be so mad that I'm getting home late. Hopefully she won't be too mad when I..." Then Sydney saw on a street corner was an ambulance and a small crowd that had gathered near it. Sydney looked confused as she approached the crowd and said, "What's going on?" Then from nearby, Max ran over to Sydney and said, "Oh my God. Sydney, where were you!?" A more confused looking Sydney said, "At Olive's house. Mom knew I was there, and... dad, what's going on? Why is there an ambulance here and..." Then suddenly Sydney saw laying on a stretcher being put into the ambulance was Alisha. Sydney suddenly panicked as she yelled, "MOM!" Sydney tried to run forward as Max immediately grabbed Sydney and said, "Don't. Your mom is going right now to the hospital." As Sydney began to look incredibly confused along with feeling disoriented she said, "But... why? I don't understand." Then Max got on his knees to look at Sydney in the eyes as he said, "Sydney... your mom... she had a heart attack." Sydney suddenly looked shocked and sad as she said, "A heart attack!? But... mom is healthy. She isn't sick or..." Max then said, "Look, she's gonna get help from the doctors. We're gonna follow the ambulance to the hospital to stay near her, okay? Now lets go."
Present Day:
Sydney was sitting on a bench in a cemetery facing a tombstone that had the name: Alisha Reynolds before her. Tears appeared in Sydney's eyes as she cried. Suddenly Sydney heard Angela's voice say, "I thought I would find you here." Sydney turned her head and saw Angela walking towards her. As Angela sat down next to Sydney she said, "I am so sorry Sydney. I didn't realize today was the day your mother died. Sophia had to tell me. I mean Max told me about this day. I guess I should've asked him which day it was though." Sydney looking angry said, "I just want to be alone right now Angela." Angela then said, "But Sydney, you don't have to go through this alone. Why punish yourself?" Then tears began to fill Sydney's eyes as she yelled, "Because it's all my fault! I'M THE REASON MY MOTHER DIED!"
Eight Years Ago:
Sydney and Max were sitting in a hospital waiting room together. As they sat, Max looked at Sydney and said, "Sydney, look... a year ago your mom was diagnosed with a rare heart condition. The details are hard to explain but... basically, tons of stress and high physical activity like running around a lot is very hard for her." Then Sydney said, "Is this why mom stopped playing soccer with me, and stopped yelling at me when I didn't make my bed?" Max smirked as he said, "Well yelling can produce stress; so your mom has been working hard to control her anger." Then Sydney suddenly looked worried as she said, "But... today I was being rude to mom. Did... did my being rude cause her to..." Then Max put an arm around Sydney and said, "Don't say that Sydney. Look... your mom's heart condition is very complex. We only learned a year ago she's actually had it her whole life, but we didn't know for sure how it would affect her for the rest of her life. So there's no way to know for sure what caused her heart attack. But don't worry. The doctors here are doing everything they can for her." Then suddenly a tale male doctor walked over to the two and said, "Sir, can I speak to you?" Then Sydney stood up and said, "What is it? Is mom okay? Is she awake?" The doctor then said, "Hold on sweety. Let me talk to your father first." Then Sydney looking angry said, "Just tell me if my mom is okay!" The doctor looked at Max, and a reluctant Max said, "Just... give it to us both straight right now doc." The doctor then said, "I'm sorry but... there was a sudden blood clot we couldn't fix and... she passed away minutes after she arrived here." Sydney suddenly looked shocked, angry, sad, and traumatized as she said, "No. My mom can't be dead! NO!" Then Max got on his knees and said, "Sydney, I..." Then Sydney ran into Max's arms crying while hitting his chest with her closed fists as she yelled, "She can't be gone daddy! She can't!" Then Max said, "I'm sorry Sydney. I'm so sorry." Then Sydney began to sob loudly as streams of tears escaped her eyes as she yelled, "I want my mommy! I want my mommy!"
Present Day:
As Sydney sat on the bench next to Angela she said, "I had yelled at my mom and just been a brat that morning to her. She told me to come home from Olive's house at four. I lost track of time, and she must've been walking over to pick me up. That's when she had her heart attack. All the stress from that morning, and the stress from walking in the cold that afternoon... it was too much for her. I killed her Angela. I killed my mother!" Then as Sydney began to sob, Angela held Sydney's hand as she said, "Sydney, it wasn't your fault. You were seven years old, and were just acting like any seven year old that day. Also, your father told me your mother's heart condition was a puzzle to even the doctors. They only told her to avoid stress as a precaution. It wasn't a guarantee avoiding stress was going to prevent her heart attack. There are some things in life you can't prevent." Then Sydney said, "How can you be so certain though?" Then Angela pointed to another tombstone nearby and said, "Because I've been through this whole routine before. See that tombstone over there. That one belongs... to my mother." Sydney looked caught off guard as she said, "What?"
Angela nodded her head and said, "Yeah. I was actually around your age when it happened. My grades in school weren't the best, and my mom was lecturing me about studying harder in school. I was angry and I told her to stop nagging me and that I hated her. Then when I came home from partying with my friends... I learned my mother had died in a car accident while coming over to pick me up. I blamed myself for years. I told myself that my yelling had caused my mom to not be thinking straight, which probably caused the accident. Or she wouldn't have been driving if I had just stayed home. But the thing is Sydney... bad things out of our control are gonna happen whether we're on our best behavior or not. We both could've behaved better before our mothers died, but our behavior didn't cause their deaths. Because I know no matter what I did or said, my mom still loved me to the end; just as I know your mom loved you too. Both our mothers passed away loving us... and that's more than some people can say."
Sydney paused for a moment, but then nodded her head and said, "I know you're right. Honestly, I've always known that. But whenever this day comes around, all the bad feelings come back, and... I still miss her Angela. I... I miss her so much!" Then Sydney suddenly hugged Angela as she began to sob. Angela then hugged Sydney back as she said, "It's okay Sydney. It's okay to miss her. Because you wouldn't miss her this much if she didn't love you. I know she loved you so much." Sydney sniffled a bit, and then said, "Thank you Angela. I'm so sorry by the way for my behavior this morning." Then Angela ran her fingers through Sydney's hair and said, "Shh. It's okay. No matter what you do... I'll keep loving you too Sydney." Then Sydney made a small smile and said, "Thank you Angela. Love you too."
The End
Coming Soon:
*Episode 8 - Father Found - When Sophia decides to go on a quest to find her biological father, discoveries both terrible and good are made.
*Episode 9 - Just a Little More Time - Three stories set in three time periods that address the importance of family are told and become tied together in an extraordinary way.
*Episode 10 - THE TITLE IS SECRET - No summary for now. Just know, this story is going to be like no Sydney to the Max story ever told before.