The Stranger on the Train

Chapter 35: Gold digger

Pov y/n 

Rose currently tells us about the sleepover and how they were allowed to help cook dinner, when a woman with a child comes to our table. I'd say the child is around ten and looks super excited and nervous. Scarlett seems to notice them too and puts on a smile, familiar with this situation.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you, my daughter is a huge fan and I wanted to ask if you could give her an autograph?" The woman asks politely and points to her daughter.
The girl's eyes are big as she looks at Scarlett and she seems to shake a little in nervousness. Scarlett glances around us for a second before she looks back to the girl and her mom and nods with a smile.

"Of course. I just don't have a pen or paper with me." She explains and the woman quickly pulls out a pen and a napkin. I see amusement in Scarlett's eyes and continue to watch the interaction.

Rose noticed it as well and stopped to tell her story, waiting for her mom to be able to listen again. She swings her legs a little, careful not to kick me because she's still on my lap.
Scarlett asks the girl for her name and writes a few lines onto the napkin before she signs it and hands it to the girl. For a second it looks like she's gonna faint and Scarlett gives her a soft smile and stands up.

"Do you need a hug?" She asks and I can hear by the tone of her voice that her mom-instincts are going off.
The girl nods and Scarlett opens her arms and hugs the girl carefully.
This seems to really do it because now the girl starts crying out of happiness, clinging onto the hug a little bit.

Scar holds her and says a few soothing words until the girl stopps crying.
Suddenly I notice the mother looking at me and her face becomes a little condescending and she presses her lips together. I'm more than confused about her behavior but ignore it because I don't know what's it about.
Scar and the girl let go of each other and the woman thanks her before leading her daughter away. Scarlett sits down again and glances around us again before returning her attention back to Rose and me. I raise an eyebrow in question.

"I just checked if there were many people around. Even though I love meeting fans and signing stuff for them, I don't like it when one friendly gesture leads to a bunch of people coming up to me while I'm spending time somewhere privately. That's why I checked before and after I gave that autograph and it doesn't seem like anyone else noticed." She explains and I nod, understanding her action now.

I can imagine that it's annoying or stressful to never be left alone when you're out of your home, no mater how much you love your fans.

Rose continues to tell us about the sleepover while we sip on our coffees and listen to her, asking a few questions in between to show her we're really listening.
I want to concentrate on Rose's story but for some reason the look the woman gave me doesn't let me go and I start to wonder why she looked at me like that. I'm just sitting here with Scarlett and Rose, enjoying our day.

Since I don't come to a conclusion, I try to ignore that thought and concentrate back on the two blondes I'm here with.
When all of us are done, we stay seated for a bit longer because Rose is still telling us about what happened. Children really have a way of explicitly telling you everything.
I don't mind though, honestly it's cute.

Suddenly Scarlett's phone rings and after she looked at it, she excused herself to take the call.
Rose doesn't seem to mind this time and just turns around to look at me while telling her story. I smile at her and nod while she tells me about how they stayed up half an hour longer than allowed. It's adorable how excited she gets over it.
When she comes to an end, Scarlett comes back in, looking a tiny bit more stressed now. I make eye contact with her and try to silently ask her what's wrong but she waves it off and smiles.