When Kaija unlocked her phone before passing it over to Antony, seventy-nine missed calls from Mom were the first thing popping up on the screen.
Her gaze lingered on the notification for one dispassionate second, before she swiped it away and slid the phone over to Antony like nothing was amiss.
Now that she'd made it back to her flat, it was the first thing on her mind to deal with.
It was that time of the month again.
She was supposed to send money to her mom, now that she was a working adult. Her mom had made that clear the moment she sent her off to college.
Her finger hovered over the call button as she took one last deep breath, before tapping it.
The other end picked up immediately.
"Have you forgotten about this old woman who raised you?" a mature female voice came through, sweet and calm as always, edged with barely concealed disdain.
"No, Mom," Kaija replied, her voice the same flat tone she'd always used every time she spoke to the woman on the call.
