Hues Of Love

3

AN ANNOYING buzzing sound stung Rosalie's eardrums, and she noticed that it was Henry's phone—an incoming call. He answered with his tongue sticking out of his mouth, then handed the phone to her. Rosalie sighed, assuming that it was Beth. Placing the phone to her ear, she felt a chill run up her spine.

"Hello."

"Where's Alex? She's the one who had to pick him up, not you," Beth argued.

Rosalie ran her fingers through her hair, and fiddled with the straw inside of her cup. There were a lot of things that she could have said as an excuse—Alex ran to get more soda, or she had to use the bathroom. But it didn't make sense. Henry would have probably told his mother the truth anyway.

"She's busy at the restaurant, so I volunteered. We're riding go-carts right now. I'll drop him home after."

"I don't care if you volunteered. I asked Alex, not you. When is she going to ever take some responsibility? And it's 7:00, you were supposed to drop him off an hour ago!"

"I don't..."

"Look, I'm coming to pick him up."

"Beth, I'll drop him home. There's a reason you needed someone to babysit, right?"

"Oh, so spending some time with her son is babysitting now? Henry wanted to spend some time with his mother, not his mother's girlfriend."

Rosalie looked at the frown on Henry's face. Michelle nudged his shoulder, and his frown immediately turned into a grimace, as they began a battle of pushing.

"Beth, I know you don't like me, and I also know that Alex doesn't make enough of an effort..."

"Ha. She doesn't make any effort to spend time with him."

"Okay, well, do you want me to get her to spend time with him or not?"

"No. Don't bother with that. If she can't willingly spend time with her son, then there is no use forcing her. I'm heading out of the house now."

"I'll bring him home, Beth. You don't have to get him when I'm already here."

"Okay. Okay. He'll give you the directions."

The line went dead.

Rosalie looked around and sighed, "Henry, I'm going to take you home to your mum. She's not in a good mood."

Michelle and Henry were finally done with their childish behavior, and sat silently, as they ate their pizza.

"Which one?" He mumbled. He seemed a bit irritated, as he sipped on his soda.

"Beth."

He nodded, but was disappointed. Rosalie knew that she had to do something to resolve the issue. For what it was worth, Rosalie could relate to the situation. Her parents divorced when she was eighteen, and she never had a good relationship with her father—not when he'd never put in the effort.

Michelle studied Rosalie's face. It still wasn't the right time. But when would it be? Michelle couldn't just say—Rosalie, you know your girlfriend from high school? Well, she's my sister-in-law now. She'd have to wait for a better time, and also a proper icebreaker.

They headed out of the Go-Cart Arena, and Henry gave Rosalie the directions. Beth's house was nicer than Rosalie thought it would be. It was noticeably bigger on the inside, and everything was white and clean. The hallway into the living room had a lot of pictures of Henry as an adolescent and teenager. There were multiple pictures with Beth kissing his forehead. It was extremely sweet. The house gave a loving aura. It was commendable how much she loved her son. Everything Beth did showed that.