Sunbeam

49)

"You can understand why I'm skeptical, right? This woman shows up on our doorstep claiming to be Bea's long lost fucking sister. Don't get me wrong, they look too alike for it to be a coincidence, but I'm not willing to trust her as easily as Bea is," Kezia explains, reaching for her drink, and leaning against the back of the couch with a sigh, as Tommy and Tess share a look.

"I don't think it's wrong to be skeptical," Tess says, "however, don't rush into jeopardising a potential connection that could be good for Bea. Get to know her, if you still feel this way once you've spoken to her, then speak to Bea, but if she's happy about this and you rain on her parade it will only strain your relationship with her, not Edith's."

"I can do a little digging, I'm already looking into Michael and Anna. I can try and get some information on Edith as well," Tommy offers.

"Thank you," Kezia says, "so you're saying... wait?"

"Exactly," Tess nods.

"Kez, you're never good at meeting and connecting with new people, you're always skeptical, it takes a while for you to warm up to people, this could just be that," Tommy says.

"How long did it take for you to like me, eh?" Teresa teases.

Kez shrugs, "a day."

"What? Then why were you such a bitch," Tess gasps.

"Wasn't going to make it easy for you, was I?" Kezia laughs, "besides, as you've noticed, I can still be a knob, there's no point in getting close to someone who would not be able to handle that. And to be fair, I still got closer to you quicker than I have anyone."

"That's... sweet? I don't know, I still think you're a conniving idiot though," Teresa replies.

"Just give her some time, Kez, and definitely don't bring it up with Bea until you're certain this isn't just you being wary of a new person coming into your life," Tommy says.

"It's not just my life she'll be coming into," Kezia responds, "she'll be coming into all of our lives. It's not just me that has to get to know her."

"I'm sure we'll meet her eventually," Tess states.

-

"We're home," Bea sings through the apartment, skipping into the living room, Edith following in behind her, noticing Tommy and Tess sat on a sofa and greeting them, "hi, I'm Edith."

"Tommy," he states.

"Tess," she smiles, "how was your afternoon?"

"Oh it was great, lovely food, lovely drinks, lovely company," Edith responds.

"Edith was a nurse in the war too," Bea says, "and she used to do ballet, like performances and everything."

"Impressive," Kezia hums.

"Guess who else was at the restaurant?" Bea states, "Veronica, and it looked like she was on a date."

"With who? What did he look like?" Tess says, resting her hand on Tommys thigh as she leans further forwards, excited to hear whatever information Bea had.

"He was rather handsome," Bea responds, "he was dressed well - I'm guessing rich. They looked like they were having fun. Didn't they, Edith?"

"They did," Edith nods, gesturing to the space on the sofa beside Kez, "mind if I sit?"

"No, go ahead," Kezia says, removing her arm from the back of the sofa as Edith sits down.

-

"So what'd you think of Edith?" Bea asks as she lay beside Kez in their bed.

"She's nice," Kezia responds.

"Do we really look alike?" Beatrice queries, and Kez hums in agreement.

"So you think she's pretty," Bea teases.

"I should've known that was a trap," Kezia groans, smiling when she feels Bea drop a kiss to her shoulder.

"I like her, I want her to be apart of my life," Bea states, "I know I had Ada growing up, and she is like a sister to me, but I'll admit it did cross my mind what it'd be like to have a sister. I used to see you and your siblings and be so envious. I always felt included... but there was some subconscious part of me telling me I didn't belong."

"You were envious of all the arguing?" Kezia replies.

"But you all knew it didn't mean anything, even when you argued you still loved each other, that was evident," Bea says, "I was always worried that I'd say the wrong thing and the scenario would be different because I wasn't family."

"I dare you to say you're not family in front of them," Kezia laughs, "you'll get an uproar, and I'll get an earful because they'll assume I said to something."

"I know you're never comfortable around new people, but will you try with Edith?" Beatrice asks.

"No," Kez responds, "it matters to much to you for me to just try, whatever discomfort I feel, I'll deal with. As long as you want Edith in your life, I'll make her feel included in ours."

"Thank you, love," Bea says, yawning and nestling closer to Kez.

"Anything for you," Kezia replies, placing a kiss to Bea's temple, "sweet dreams, darling."

"Likewise," Bea teases, slowly closing her eyes, the beat of Kez's heart beneath her ear settling her into a peaceful slumber.