Into Your Arms Tonight

# Chapter 1 - The Weight of Home

Lia had spent her whole life calculating the cost of things not just in money, but in time, energy, and sacrifice. It was the kind of math you learned early when your mother worked double shifts, your school shoes came from the church box, and dinner sometimes meant toast with tea.

But this morning, something had come without cost.

Or so it seemed.

She sat at the chipped dining table, the morning heat already making the walls sweat. Her phone buzzed softly beside her, the screen still glowing.

> *We are pleased to inform you that you have been selected…*

She read it again. And again. Her heart pounded each time.

It was real.

The job—**her** job—was real.

Finance assistant. Multinational firm. Country K. Full relocation package. Visa included. Housing covered. A starting salary that could pay their rent five times over.

For a girl from Country Z, from this **street**, that kind of offer didn’t come by accident. Or luck. It came from years of relentless effort**and numbers that shattered every record** her university had seen in three decades.

Lia had graduated top of her class in Finance, a full scholarship kid at the best university in the country, her name whispered in classrooms and printed in the local papers. “The daughter of a nurse,” they said, “who outscored the minister’s son.”

And now she was leaving.

Probably.

Hopefully.

Maybe.

The front door creaked open. Lia’s hand snapped the phone screen off as her mother stepped into the kitchen, already dressed in her faded blue scrubs.

“You’re up early,” Teresa said, her voice thick with fatigue but her eyes alert.

“I couldn’t sleep.”

Teresa poured hot water into a steel mug and sat across from her, sighing as she rubbed her knees. She looked older than her forty-two years—labor aged faster than time.

“I thought you had a call with that company today,” she said casually.

Lia hesitated, then slid the phone across the table.

Teresa squinted at the screen. Her lips moved silently as she read.

Then she went still.

Her hand trembled slightly as she set the phone down. “You got it?”

Lia nodded.

“They want me to start in three weeks.”

For a moment, Teresa just stared at her. Then she let out a breath that seemed to carry decades with it.

“God is good,” she whispered, reaching across the table to squeeze her daughter’s hand. “You’ve done it, Lia.”

Pride, warm and wide, bloomed in Lia’s chest.

Then Teresa’s fingers tensed.

“But three weeks?” Her brows knit. “You’ll be alone. You’ve never been on a plane. What if they treat you like a nobody? What if, what if you get sick? Or lose the job?”

“Mom,” Lia said softly. “It’s a real company. A good one. They’re paying for everything.”

“That’s not what I’m worried about.” Teresa looked away. “I’m worried about *you.* You’re not... built for loneliness.”

Lia’s smile faded.

“I’ve been taking care of this family since I was seventeen.”

“That’s not the same.”

“But it’s enough.”

They fell into silence, the old ceiling fan whirring overhead.

“I don’t know...” Teresa said after a long pause. “Maybe you stay one more year. Save more. Prepare better.”

Lia’s heart sank. “Another year means another job missed. Another chance lost. Mom” her voice broke slightly, “I’ve earned this.”

Teresa’s expression wavered, torn between pride and fear. Between letting go and holding on.

A small voice interrupted them.

“Are you going to the sky?” Ariel had padded in silently, teddy bear in hand.

Teresa wiped her eyes and turned away.

Lia scooped her youngest sister into her arms, hugging her tight. “Yes,” she whispered into her hair. “A big metal bird.”

Talia stumbled in behind her, yawning. “Why is everyone up so early?” she muttered.

“She’s leaving,” Teresa said.

Lia looked at her. “I got the job.”

Talia blinked, eyes widening. “Wait—*what*?”

“In Country K,” Lia added. “In finance.”

Talia froze, then stepped forward. “That’s amazing!” she said—too quickly. Her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes.

Lia saw it. The spark of jealousy. The flicker of loss.

She pulled her into a hug anyway.

“We did it,” she whispered. “Not just me. All of us.”

From the doorway, Teresa watched in silence. She didn’t smile. But she didn’t argue again, either.

---

The news spread fast.

Sade, of course, was the first to blow up her phone.

> **YOU GOT THE JOB?! AND YOU TOLD ME LAST??**

Soon Lara, Eva, and Celine were texting too. Group chat chaos.

> **We’re celebrating.**

> **No arguments.**

> **I’m thinking beach day.**

Sade called ten minutes later, voice already full of mischief.

“You’re coming to the coast. One day. One night. That’s all we ask.”

“I don’t know,” Lia sighed. “I haven’t even—”

“Nope,” Sade cut her off. “I will personally drag you. You’ve worked your whole life. You’re not allowed to disappear quietly like a ghost.”

Lia smiled weakly. “But I’ve never even gone to a real party.”

“Perfect,” Sade said. “First time for everything. Bring that sky-blue crop top. You need to make memories before you go and become someone’s office girl.”

“I’m a finance major.”

“Exactly. That’s all the more reason to party before you become boring.”

Lia laughed. Maybe for the first time that day.

Maybe, she thought, just for a moment... she could let herself enjoy this.

---

That night, she stood quietly in the hallway outside the bedroom she shared with her sisters.

Talia was asleep, sprawled like a queen across the bed. Ariel lay curled beneath one thin blanket, her stuffed bunny tucked under her chin.

Lia leaned against the wall and watched them, her heart twisting.

She was doing this for them. For all of them.

But leaving them still hurt.

From behind her, Teresa’s voice came soft and tired.

“You always said you’d fly away.”