Mathilde put up a tough fight. She endured excruciating pain that wasn't numbed in the slightest by those pills she was taking, until one day her oncologist, Ms. Fletcher, came to me and in all honesty told me there was nothing else we could do for her. Mathilde was hospitalized for the last time that day and was kept in morphine induced coma for three long days. I spent those days by her side, mostly thanks to Ian, who helped me a lot taking care of Jeanne while I waited for the inevitable.

Few people attended Mathilde's funeral. There's Alan, Ms. Fletcher, a few nurses from the hospital, Ian, Jeanne and me. Meredith didn't show up, but I wasn't expecting her, anyway. I'll give that little bitch a piece of my mind if I ever find her again.

And all too quickly, it's over. After a small prayer, Ian drives Jeanne and me back to Mathilde's house.

"Do you want me to stay with you, Cynthia?" He offers, holding my hand.

"That's okay, Ian. I need to rest anyway." I tell him before kissing his lips. And this is true. I spent the last three nights sleeping in a hospital chair, and today was her funeral. It'll also be the first night I'll be able to sleep a whole night ever since Mathilde started chemo. It feels like it was so long ago even though it took only a few months.

Five minutes later, the elevator opens in Mathilde's foyer. In front of me, her wooden front door awaits. It's unsettling to know that when I open this door, I'll be greeted by her empty rocking chair. Jeanne squeezes my hand gently, looking up at me, and this brings me back to life and after shaking my head, I fish for the keys and push the door open.

And that's when the first tear falls. Jeanne walks straight to that empty rocking chair, looks out the window for a second, and then gives me one of Mathilde's signature frowns.

"If you start crying over me I swear I'll come back to life just to kick you with my leg stump!"

This brings a smile to my face, of course, but my tears won't stop. I swallow the lump in my throat and walk to Jeanne, hugging her close to me.

"What, are you going to become Granny now?"

"She told me you'd cry like this and asked me to shout at you when you did." Her hands run through my hair; pats me to let go. Then she wipes my tears with her little fingers. Her eyes are big and understanding, and it makes me wonder why my child is comforting me and not the other way around.

"Don't you miss Granny too?"

"I sure do." She says, easily. "But she explained me that she was too sick to stick around with us, and so we shouldn't be sad that she's gone."

"That's true." I tell her, stroking her hair and expecting her to budge a little, but her big owl eyes are still trained on mine. "But it's okay to feel sad for that too, you know?"

"I'm not sad." There's no hesitation in her voice at all. Whatever talk she had with Mathilde obviously prepared her for this day, and once again I can't thank her enough for it. "I just wish we had more time with her. That's all."

One deep, familiar yearning. That's for sure.

"Yes. I wish for that, too."

"Granny's gone ahead of us. She said she'd find a good plot of land next to a park and build a house for when it's our turn to join her up there." Jeanne pushes some loose strands of hair behind my ears. Her big, beautiful eyes still don't show the slightest hint of a tear, and I have to wonder if she's still too young to understand the concept of death. At any rate, I'm grateful I don't have to be strong for the two of us.

"Next to a park, huh?"

"Yeah, so we could go together every afternoon." Jeanne's smile is broad and beautiful as she explains me this. "She also said she'd get a good leg when she got there, so it would be a good deal. I'm actually glad for her."

That gets me laughing. I hug her tight, letting her warmth transport me back to the days when it was only the two of us, hoping for the void Mathilde left to get filled somehow. But it's no use. But Jeanne isn't done with Granny's messages.

"She also said..."

"What?"

"She said you and Ian would give me a little brother soon." Her eyes shine intensely as she says this, and her mouth curves in the prettiest smile.

"Oh, did she now?"

But somehow I know that's exactly what she said.