Till death do us part

Chapter 30: I (don't) understand - Age 31

Rose's POV

When you stay at home every day, you tend to feel more relaxed eventually. You've got chores to do but there's no deadline. You can take it easy or you can work hard, it's all up to you.

For the past years, I've been a stay-at-home mom. While Cora was working to earn money for us, I stayed home to take care of Hope. I taught her to walk, I taught her to talk, I taught her to read... I did everything with her. We spent hours together, every day of the week.
Today, that was going to change.

I laid awake in bed for the past couple of minutes. I had woken up by the sunlight that was trying to find its way through the blinds. I was watching the alarm clock and noticed how little time we had left in bed. I was really upset about it.

Cora snuggled more into me. She was still asleep. She was seemingly at peace. She told me how excited this day was going to be... Yet I couldn't see it that way.

When the alarm clock went off, Cora turned it off and looked at me. "Morning, Rose," She leaned in to kiss me. "How did you sleep?"

I sighed.

Even though she had just woken up, she saw something was wrong immediately. She sat up to give me all her attention. "Rose," She paused, making me look at her. "What's wrong?"

I looked away from her. I realized that what I was going to say, sounded stupid. "I'm upset about today."

She raised her eyebrows. "Why?" She crawled to me, only to sit down on top of me. "It's Hope's big day today, aren't you excited for that?" She smiled, she was clearly excited about it.

I shrugged.

She frowned a bit. "I don't get you, Rose," She got off me and got out of bed. "You've spent years teaching her everything she needed for this day," She walked to the closet and took her clothes for the day. "You should be the happiest of all of us," She then turned towards me. "But for some reason, you're choosing not to be." She then threw my clothes at me.

I took my clothes and looked at her. "I don't expect you to understand."

"Fine," She sighed deeply. She got dressed in an instant. "I'm going to prepare Hope for today," She looked at me. "I hope you can at least pretend to be happy for her." She then left the room.

I groaned and fell back in bed. Why was it so hard for her to understand my side too? Was it really that odd?

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When the time came for them to leave, Cora put on her jacket before putting on Hope's. She looked at me, hoping I'd wish Hope a good day.

I looked at Hope. She was standing proudly with her tiny backpack. "Look at me, mommy!"

I smiled a bit. "You look great, princess," I caressed her cheek before kissing her forehead. "Tonight, I want to hear everything," I said to which she nodded excitedly. "Promise?"

"Pwomise!"

I looked at Cora, who nodded. "I'll see you tonight, Cora," I leaned in closer and pecked her lips. "I love you."

"I love you too, Rose," She then looked at Hope. "Let's get you to school."

Hope clapped excitedly and started hopping to the car. She got in immediately, she was clearly eager for today.

I looked at her. I couldn't help but feel worried. I couldn't help but feel upset.

"She'll do well, Rose," Cora patted my shoulder. "Relax, ok?"

I nodded slowly.

"I'll see you tonight," She walked to her car but, before she got in, she looked at me again. "Don't forget to get Hope after school."

"I know."

She nodded and got in the car. I watched them drive away before I closed the front door. That's when I felt so sad. I felt lost. I felt useless. Hope would be at school, Cora would be at work, and I'm at home... What was I going to do now?

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Cora's POV

Hope was such a sweetheart. She was a dream child. When I dropped her off at school, she didn't cry, she didn't fight me to go, she just went. It was perfect.

And because of that, I had a great day. Things just seemed to go well today. And I couldn't wait to get back home, to my family. I was eager to hear Hope's stories for the day. I was sure she would have many things to say.

"It was her first day today, right?" Andrea asked as she watched me with a smile.

I smiled back. "Is it that obvious?"

She nodded. "I had the same look when my kids went to school for the first time," She smiled more. "What a wonderful time."

"It was," I sighed happily. "She was such a good girl, she couldn't wait to go," I chuckled a bit. "I don't know many kids who can't wait to go to school."

"It means she's eager to learn, that's good."

"I know..." I looked away, thinking about Rose's odd behavior this morning. "I wish everyone would see that."

"What do you mean?" She scooted closer to me. "Is something wrong?"

I sighed. "It's Rose," I looked at her. "She was sad this morning while Hope was so happy. I don't understand how she could almost ruin this big day for Hope."

Andrea smiled a bit. "You're right, you don't understand," She put her hand on mine, gaining my attention. "Rose has spent years at home with Hope, and now it's all gone. It's a huge change, it takes time."

"Yes, but she - "

"She was upset because of that change, but I'm sure she's also very happy for Hope," She gave me a look. "She just needs time."

I sighed. "I get it now."

"Good," She patted my hand before taking her hand back. "Talk to her about it tonight."

I nodded until my phone took my attention away from Andrea. I took it and frowned when I saw that Hope's school was calling. I watched the time and saw it was nearing 6 pm. Why were they calling me now? "Hello, you're speaking with Cora."

"Hello ma'am, we're calling because we want to know when someone will come and get Hope."

My eyes widened. "She's still at school?!"

"Yes," There was a small pause, as if they were looking for something. "She's the only one left, we were wondering how much longer it might take?"

I got up instantly. "I'll be there in 15 minutes," I took my jacket. "I'll hurry, I apologize for the inconvenience."

"Ok, thank you, ma'am." They hung up.

I cursed when I quickly took my stuff.

"What's wrong? Who was that?" Andrea asked as she seemed to understand how urgent the matter was.

"Hope's school," I looked at her. "Rose forgot to get Hope."

"What?" Andrea was clearly shocked. "How can she forget that?"

I shrugged. "I have to go, I'll see you tomorrow." I rushed out and got to my car. I hurried to get to Hope as soon as possible. On my way there, I was trying to come up with an explanation for Hope as to why her mom forgot about her...