DONNA'S POINT OF VIEW

I sat alone on the steps leading to the Fountain of Aphrodite, Emma sleeping nearby in a hammock. I thought about Sophie and myself, now she is a single mother, but she has our support... she won't be alone. I won't throw her out of the house like my mother did me. My mother never told me about my father either. Why? I'll ask her sometime. Apparently, when she found out about her pregnancy, Sophie said that she had never felt so close to me... and now...

My mother-in-law sat next to me.

- Hi. Now Rosie is with Sophie… I have to tell you something…

- I have a feeling this won't be pleasant...

- Especially since Henry already knows about everything... and he's a terrible gossip... He knows because he told him.

- Tell me what's going on.

- Sophie, in despair, started to tell you everything that had happened since the beginning, when you met Sam. She said that she didn't know who her father was for a long time... that after Sam told you about his engagement, you didn't want to listen to him, I'm not surprised, and then you "met" Bill and Harry and... Sam returned to the island and they said him that you left with someone else. About Bill's aunt. About your diary.

Oh my God! What will she think of me?

- She said what your wedding was like and that only a few days ago you did DNA tests that confirmed Sam's paternity. And that she took the test because she was tired of wondering which one was the one and coming up with an official version for her father's family that wouldn't... ridicule you, that would overwhelm her, that she was afraid for you. Oh yeah… she would say she was Sam's stepdaughter if it turned out Sam wasn't her biological father. Fortunately, Sam is her father and he hopes you are even happier now with this knowledge.

- Yes, I'm happy that Sam is her father. I was dreaming about it. I feel so stupid that I didn't know this for so many years! God! Then I must have lost my mind! It was just one time with Bill and Harry! I'm afraid of what you think of me now. That I'm a whore? I wouldn't be surprised...

-Call you a whore? Donna, girl! Do you care about this? Youthful mistakes happen. Wait…? Haven't you done "that" since you broke up with Harry?

- Yes... until my wedding night with Sam.

- You haven't had sex for twenty-one years... you've had three men in your entire life... including your husband... you fell in love with Sam and he wanted to say "dot, dot, dot" that he would break off the engagement because he loved you... what did he tell us then... and in desperation you went with Bill and Harry...?

- Yes... and that's exactly what we didn't want to tell you. I was afraid that you would write me off immediately. And he wanted you to get to know me as I am, not through the prism of the mistake from twenty-six years ago. In fact, soon to be twenty-seven years old.

- Don't worry, neither me nor Henry will ever tell the whole family about this. We know how Sam and you may be feeling right now. And your daughter said that Ruby kicked you out of the house when you told her about your pregnancy... I admire you, girl! You raised Sophie on your own to be a wonderful girl, and now more of a woman, and you ran a hotel. You raise your adopted sons as your own... I know that you love and consider them your sons, just as they consider you their mother. You still have little Emma. None of us have ever seen Sam as happy as he is now. You can do it despite the accident. I know you and Sam are in this together.

- I… thank you… what about Sophie?

- Sophie then screamed that two days ago she sang "Super Trouper" with him and us and they both had a great time, and now she doesn't even want him in the audience. Soph has such mood swings, I know, her hormones are crazy after pregnancy, and her husband cheated on her, but it looks terrible. We have to give Donnie to her in bed so she can feed him. She ate only because she feeds her son with breast milk. I was with her when Sky was packing up to leave the house and he called you a whore, then she threw a vase at him with such fury in her eyes. The last time I saw such fury... from Sam was when we criticized him for his decision to divorce, now I know it was wrong and we should support him,

Loraine deserved a divorce. I'm worried about Soph, I've barely met her and I already love her, she's my granddaughter. Like you and Emma.

Oh my God!

- This is not how I imagined this reunion. I thought I'd just see Sam and the boys after all these years... don't think I'd want you and your girls gone. I like you very much. I don't know if I love you anymore? But I definitely like it a lot.

- I like you all too. Wait? Sky called me a whore?

- Yeah… I've never seen Sam so angry in my life. Even when Loraine beat Ben… that was the last time I saw him… we blamed him so much for what happened… I will never forgive myself for that…

All I could do was hug my mother-in-law. I didn't know that my mother, whom I had hugged once since I got home, much less, had seen it while we were singing the song. I have a long conversation with her ahead of me.

- I loved Sky like my own child... like Sophie, Ben, Emma and Todd...

- Mom! my younger son Todd called to me.

- I have to go.

- Mom!

- I'm coming, honey!

I went to him.

- What happened?

- Mom... will Sophie divorce Sky now?

- I... don't... know... it's possible... - what can I tell a ten-year-old whose father is divorced? And now his older sister…

- Because the aunts say that it will be like that... that Sophie is "daddy's girl", that like father, like daughter.

- Honey, I don't know what will happen next, but we will try to make the change as gentle as possible.

Not like a few years ago... moving to the other side of the world... not that any of us are complaining, me, Sam, or the boys, but it wasn't easy back then. And literally on our wedding night, I got pregnant. But every week it was better... I hope it will be the same now... I remembered when the boys started calling me "mom"... I guess I was more afraid of it than they were... I was afraid that they would think of me as a woman who He wants to replace their mother by force. …

Flashback…

Sam went to work at the hotel and I stayed with the boys, I was two months pregnant. Todd was sleeping in his room and Ben was in the kitchen with me, wanting to help me make dinner.

- What should I do now?

- You can cut the vegetables, just be careful not to cut yourself.

- Yes, m… Donna.

M…? I've heard this from him and Todd dozens of times.

- Donna... I have a question. – he said shyly.

I sat down next to him.

- I'm listening to you.

- Because we... Todd and I... don't know what to call you.

- If you want... for example by name.

- Oh... okay... - Ben looked very disappointed.

- Did I say something wrong?

Suddenly Ben started crying.

- Oh… what did I do? Why are you crying? – I asked as tenderly as I could.

- Don't you… don't you want to be our mother? You don't want us here?

- Why do you think so?

- Because… you… don't want… to… hug us… and… and… you don't let us call you "mom."

- Honey... I didn't know you wanted to... because if you didn't want to and I would have persuaded you...

- I guess that wouldn't be nice...

- True? – I smiled gently.

- But I'd like to... really... Todd told me he'd like to, too. We can?

- If you only want.

I hugged him and kissed his forehead. – Since I am your mother now, you are my son.

- You are so lovely... mom...

When Todd woke up, Ben ran to him and told him everything.

- Lunch soon...!

Since then, the boys have called me "mama" and I feel free to treat them like my sons, both in showing love and in punishing them. I also remember Sam's reaction to it. He was a little shocked, but very happy, and after two months I signed the adoption papers and legally became their mother. How much has happened since then! We have little Emma, we became grandparents, we came to an agreement with our parents... although it will always hurt me how my mother kicked me out of the house when I told her about the pregnancy.

SAM'S POINT OF VIEW

Well, in desperation, Sophie told my mother about what had happened twenty-seven years ago... everything. Fortunately, my mother must like Donna very much because she didn't get offended or worried about it, and just told her about it calmly. If it were someone else... some woman whose mother didn't like her, wouldn't know who the father of her child was for many years... she would be written off and called whores and other worst things. Donnie, however, also said how sorry she was that Donna had to go through something like that. I'm so happy about it. The only positive thing, apart from Donna coming home, from the last three days was how warmly my family welcomed the girls. Donna, Sophie and Emma – of course! Mom and Dad promised that the news about who Bill and Harry once were to Donna would not spread.

I didn't think something like this would happen, that Sophie would break up with Sky. For so many years I saw how happy she was with him, and now I should rather say... she was. I did something similar to her mom... so do I have the right to be mad at him? Even though I liked Sky very much, I couldn't quite treat him like family. And he us, the boys and me. I love Donna, Sophie, Emma, Ben, Todd... even Rosie, Tanya, Bill and Harry like family. But I couldn't love Skyler Zachary Rymand. But Donna loved Sky like her own child, like Sophie, Ben, Emma and Todd. However, my daughter was happy with him. I respected him. When he returned to the island a few months ago, I was happy for Sophie, I saw and knew how happy she was.

I wonder what else will go wrong at the family reunion? I feel like this isn't the end. I went to see Sophie.

- I know it's hard for you, but everyone would appreciate it if you came for dinner.

- Okay... I'll come... Dad, I have a request... remember how I sang with my aunts?

I nodded in agreement.

- You know what would cheer me up now? At that time I said that my dream was to perform as a member of the band Donny and The Dynamos.

- And this dream came true.

- Well, yes... but it wasn't "Donna and The Dynamos". True? Only "The Dynamos"…

-You mean it would be comforting if you performed not only with Tanya and Rose… but with Tanya, Rose and Donna? With mum?

- First of all, with my mother. And not like usual. I want to be next to her.

- I'll do whatever I can.

Donna, of course, agreed to this. Only Ben, Todd and Emma asked if they could perform like that when they grew up... Donna agreed to it too.

As for my dad, he swore not to talk about Donna's past, very short but very close relationship with Bill and Harry.

Donna and I asked my parents for something...

- Mom, dad... Donna and I wanted to ask you something...

- Should we leave immediately and never come back...? – my mother was sad.

- NO! – Donna said. – We really love you, we and our children. My parents, Rose, Tanya,. Bill and Harry like you too. We will be very pleased if you visit us several times a year... for example for Christmas and holidays, but... family reunions cannot take place here anymore. Please…

- I know... I know... it's getting stressful... we wanted to surprise Sam by inviting him here to make up with him, and we caused problems for you. And it's because of lack of contact and dispute.

- Mom... when it comes to consent, I think it already exists.

- True…

Then we heard Dad sigh. - Cool. There is agreement... love... but I feel that something else will go wrong during the reunion.

Unfortunately, as dad later turned out to be right... we didn't know yet that what was about to happen would sweep our entire immediate family off their feet…