"Good morning!" Karen had a big smile on her face as she slipped into the kitchen, where the smell of homemade cinnamon rolls and coffee filled the air.
It was early, only a little after eight, which was usually far too early for her boss to be up moving around, let alone making breakfast. But the night before, like usual, Kim decided to drop their grandson off to her since he'd had a day of golfing planned with some friends and his wife was having brunch at the country club. And that happened often, being that Becks worked nights a lot of the time and Kim would have it all taken care of, until he didn't... many times, he just didn't.
"Good morning, miss Karen!" Silas welcomed her with a voice full of enthusiasm as he sat patiently at the kitchen island.
"Morning, Miss Karen." Stevie held up a cup of hot coffee, having poured her some as soon as she heard the lock on the front door click.
"Thank you." She moved in further, taking it gently from the blonde as her eyes fell to the picture that the boy was coloring. "That looks good, buddy." She mentioned, seeing how he was finally starting to keep the color more inside the lines than before.
He let out a soft laugh as he continued to scribble in the cartoon characters on the printed paper. "Me and grandma watched movies last night." He told her, excited to finally be back with Stevie.
She had him a lot- not all the time, but more than most grandparents and when she was away on the road, it was hard for them both.
"Oh, yeah?" Karen's eyes grew wide, trying to be as excited as he was. "She's the best grandma ever." She added, a small smile on her face when Silas agreed immediately.
Stevie chuckled, taking a quick sip of her drink as she began cutting the cinnamon rolls. "I-"
"Good morning." His voice rang through the kitchen, cutting her off as he ventured in from the living room.
Creasing a brow, Karen was slightly surprised to see George there so early... "Hey." She replied, watching him travel through the room, right towards Stevie.
Both of his hands met her shoulders, giving them a soft squeeze as he leaned in to kiss the side of her head. "Smells amazing." He mentioned before he leaned back into the counter next to her.
Stevie smiled lightly, handing him a plate. "Here." She motioned for him to take a seat, and then she slid two across the counter to the kids... Karen and Silas.
"What are you coloring?" George asked with a soft grin as he leaned into the counter to eat.
"Umm," Silas held it up, showing him. "It's just Scooby." He shrugged softly, suddenly not as enthused as he was when Karen asked.
"Well, nice job, kid." He nodded, eyes moving back to Stevie, who was right next to him, cradling her cup of coffee and staring off into space. "You alright?" He nudged her lightly as his slipped an arm around her waist.
Pulling herself back into reality, she nodded her head gently. "I should get around and go see Constance." She announced, patting his hand lightly.
It had been a couple of days since they'd all been kicked out of the hospital and since then, she'd moved in with her sister for awhile, just to keep herself accountable. She needed to be away from her three roommates, and with someone that would make sure she was alright... Stevie wished she'd come stay with her, of course, but you can't always get what you want.
"Maybe Silas and I will go to the park then?" Karen raised a brow playfully, chuckling softly when his face lit up.
"I'll get my shoes on!" He quickly finished up his breakfast and then pushed himself off the barstool to run into the foyer.
"Make sure they're on the right feet!" Karen teased, shaking her head lightly.
Stevie smiled, setting her cup down on the counter to wrap her arm around George's shoulders. "I'll see you later?" She wondered, leaning in slowly to be held.
He smirked, pushing some of her loose curls back in order to see her face a little better. "I'll see you later, honey." He pressed a soft kiss to her lips, patting the small of her back gently. "I love you." He told her, which caused a very faint sigh to escape her.
She paused for a moment, staring into his eyes as she nodded lightly. "Bye- bye." She pecked his cheek one last time and then she pushed herself away from the counter to follow Karen out of the kitchen.
~~~
Trailing up the walkway, she fumbled through her purse to find her keys, smiling lightly at all the plants that were growing beautifully right outside the door. And it took her moment because she decided to water a couple before she finally welcomed herself into Becks' home.
She lived in a three bedroom house less than twenty minutes from her mom, where she'd spent the last four years filling it with everything she loved. She had records on the walls, framed posters that had been signed by her favorite musicians and everything had a place, even if it felt slightly cluttered.
"Constance?" She shouted softly, stepping over the yellow cat to get through the door.
"In here." She replied from the living room, where she'd been camped out for two days by then.
Setting her purse down on the kitchen table, Stevie glanced over the mail, just to be nosey... her motherly right. "Karen and I stopped at the coffee shop and I brought donuts." She mentioned, grabbing some napkins off the counter before she started to trail through the small dining room to get to her.
And to her surprise, when she stepped into the small living room, she was met by two blue eyes and a smile that made her heart skip a beat.
"Hey, sunshine." He was sitting in the chair, guitar in his lap and cup of coffee in his hand.
She couldn't help up but smile, more than happy to see Lindsey. "Hi..." she replied, glancing over at Constance for a moment.
She was on the living room rug, her Gibson sitting right next to her and sheets of paper scattered out around her. "Join us?" She wondered, lightly motioning to the empty chair next to Lindsey.
"We need some help." He added, giving her the most subtle wink.
Nodding her head, she chuckled. "I would love to."
