Tea time allowed Sierra to relax until she heard the front door slam.

"Mom, it's uncle Ishaan," Elise's son exclaimed.

Sierra's breath hitched. Why did she feel this way?

Perhaps it was because even Vincent adjusted his position and sat up as his older brother entered.

Ms. Patel grinned. The woman finally found relief with her ally's arrival. She almost wanted to run to her son to denounce the others as traitors to her cause.

Vincent got up to greet his brother. If it weren't for the height difference, one would think the two were twins, just as one would note the striking resemblance between Jai and Elise.

Ishaan was taller, but he also had a few grey stripes of hair that allowed one to differentiate the two.

His wife, like Sierra, was of small stature and as pregnant as one could be. From the looks of things, she was due sometime soon.

Couldn't the woman remain at home? Once more, Sierra didn't weigh traditions responsibility.

Despite that, Sierra didn't think twice when she got up to let her chair. Her gesture made Ishaa cock an inquisitive brow in her direction.

"Ishaan, this is Sierra," Vincent said.

"I guessed that," Ishaan replied in an aloof tone; all except Sierra knew.

If Sierra had the hang of things until then, she felt the control slipped through her fingers. The tingling sensation under her armpits alerted her of an imminent breakout of sweat.

Ms. Patel beamed at the sight of Sierra's expression of despair. This was how the woman was supposed to be from the beginning.

Everyone made Sierra too comfortable, in Ms. Patel's opinion. Thank goodness Ishaan mastered the art of whisking up the panic.

Everyone made space for the couple, who also got served some tea and snacks.

"So what did I miss?" Ishaan asked.

"Oh, Sierra was telling us about her job?"

"Ah, yeah, and what's that?"

Vincent threw a stare at Elise, who just shrugged. Every sibling reported their impression and what they knew about Sierra. The older brother had also done a background check on social media. The woman attended the schools on her Linkedin resume and also worked in all the places stated, still he asked.

Ms. Patel did the recap, and Ishaan picked up, "so what are you going to do once married?"

"Pardon?"

Sierra gave Vincent a slight glance, but the man was too busy glaring at his brother, who unaffected pursued, "I mean, you're job demands a lot of attention, but so does your foyer and husband. What will you do?"

"Well, it should not be a problem since we're already in the situation, and it's going pretty well."

Sierra avoided turning to smile at Vincent as she knew the man would not respond.

"How about when you have kids?"

Sierra smiled, "do you want me to quit my job? I mean, I already have a son, and I'm doing pretty good too with that."

At that instant, Vincent closed his eyes, the man had naively hoped it would come up later during their stay, but karma too seemed to want to have fun.

This time, it was Ishaan who did the car headlights repeated blinks.

If they were in a movie, it would be a moment where crows would fly by with their grating coo sounds going caw-caw. Vincent wished they could be a to-be-continued sign, and the scene would stop.

Ishaan lowered his gaze, and his voice deepened as he asked, "you have a son?"

"Yes, didn't Vincent tell you?"

Sierra's gaze swept the room. Everyone, even their grandmother, seemed shocked, "Vincent, didn't you tell them."

"I was going to-."

Sierra laughed nervously as she swiped a hand on her forehead, "when? When we were married?"

The woman already felt uncomfortable about the fact the man proposed without following the traditional obligation. Everyone knew no matter the culture, not respecting the stages linked to a multicultural marriage could cause frustrations or irreversible damage to the relationships one could have with their in-laws.

The woman found him careless and selfish as it was her who would reap most of the critics. Vincent had a considerable family, and it wasn't Jacob who was going to fight off everyone.

"Sierra."

"Why, Vincent?"

The man could not tell her he was afraid of the other man. Though gone, his presents lingered in Vincent's mind, and he could only imagine the impact on Sierra's and Leone's. Something told Vincent the Swedish man had not said his last words.

Though he and Sierra were together, Vincent preferred to secure their engagement just in case. Playing by customs would take too long. The man who wished to tie the knot risked having the noose of their wedding ribbon run loose.

The situation was unheard of for Sierra. Leone was not an extension but a part of her.

Sierra was not embarrassed or ashamed to be a mother. Her blood boiled; the woman wanted to howl and flip the table, but instead, she got up and left the room.

Ms. Patel almost was two steps from crying with joy. The instant was above all her expectations, as it seemed the engagement would end before dinner time. Perhaps it could even enter the Guinness book of records, as Ms. Patel was sure the moments they lived were record-breaking.

Vincent threw a glance at his sister, who chased after Sierra while he sat to sponge the critics.

"Vincent, when were you planning to tell us?" Asked his father.

The man sighed, "I knew you guys would fuss."

"Deepika, take the kids out to the pahk or somethin'," Ms. Patel asked.

The children and the kids moaned. Why did they always have to get thrown out when the fun began?

Vincent noted the peak of his mother's Indian accent, which meant the woman was mad.

"Fuss, the woman already played her first life. Why should you be the man to give her a second?" His mother asked with the legendary head shake from side to side.

"Tell us, Vincent, okay, the woman isn't Indian, that's one thing, but a mother," Ishaan added.

"Is she a Christian at least? His father added.

None had brought it up, but religion too was one of the Patels preoccupations. There were already enough hurdles in Vincent's situation.

"Yes, she's Christian. Her brother is even a pastor."

"How can a woman from a religious background have a child?"

Vincent sighed once more, "Leone isn't biologically hers."

"What?" Ishaan shook his head, "what is this mess, Vincent?"

"It isn't a mess. Sierra had a best friend who died and left her as the unique caregiver for her child."

"Doesn't the child have relatives?" Asked his grandmother, who spoke for the first time.

"He has his grandparents, but they're not recommendable. It's why Sierra has him."

"Why doesn't she give him back?" Jai asked carelessly.

"Are you serious?" Vincent asked his brother, "it's a baby, not a pair of shoes for which you can get a refund. Sierra is adopting him."

"And you're okay with that? Vincent's father asked, gaze peeping above his spectacles.

"I admit it. I wasn't a hundred percent on board with it, but I love Sierra. I can live with it."

Everyone shook their heads in disapproval.

In the meantime, Elise watched Sierra, who she managed to reel into garden pace.

"Sierra, please. Vincent did it for your sake."

"My sake, why? I mean Elise, you're nice and all, but it's my child we're talking about, my son. Vincent can't omit or occult him; he's my baby."

"Listen, Sierra, marrying a foreigner isn't routine for most Indian families. Most refuse such unions. I mean, even within it's complicated with the caste system. Can you imagine the shock it was to find out Vincent wished to marry someone from outside the Indian community?"

"Elise, I understand, but it doesn't make the deed right. He lied about me to your parents. Do you think they can appreciate me in some way now?"

"Sierra, calm down. Vincent wanted to give you two a chance."

Sierra stopped pacing, "a chance, tell me how your parents would feel to find out I had a son after?"

Elise sighed, "I'm sorry, Sierra, as a mother, I understand your outrage, but as a sibling who knows how Indian society portrays interracial couples or single mothers, I can only empathize with my brother's dilemma.

The woman's discussion was interrupted by yelling and rumbling sounds.

Great thought Sierra, as if things could not get worst.