Mary and Halley (sequel to When Mary Met Halley)

eight

"I'll take you to the children's museum with us if you promise to behave," I told Leif later that afternoon. Halley was there supervising a visit and the kids wanted to go, and I figured Paramjeet could use some time alone. She was currently in the shower after having slept until two.

"I'll do no such thing," he protested. He'd made smoothies and was drinking his from the blender. The bruises on his neck were fading, and he'd mostly covered them with makeup. "But I do want to come."

"No deal, I don't need four kids to watch." I rinsed out my cup, the taste of strawberries and bananas lingering on my tongue. 

He rolled his eyes at me over the blender before finishing it and putting it in the sink. "Fine," he said grudgingly, running water into it with a squeeze of dish soap. "Fine, I'll behave."

An hour later he was seated in the flightless helicopter in their outdoor yard, pretending to fly half a dozen kids around, complete with announcements and sound effects. Jasper sat in his lap, copiloting, and Shiloh had Hank in hers. He had a big "Yellow Kitty" bandaid on his forehead. 

The kids had made a beeline for the old aircraft, and we hadn't seen Halley on the way in. I sat on a bench, scanning the surrounding people for her. The outdoor area was fairly large, with several small exhibits and play areas. The museum was the perfect place to people-watch, and right then was mostly populated with toddlers and their mothers since the big kids were still at school. 

A little boy came up to me and held out a mess of paper and tape about an inch from my face. "I made dis truck!" he said proudly. 

"Wow, you did a really great job," I said earnestly.

"See dat? See dose wheels? I made dem. With Mommy." He looked around until he found her behind him, approaching with an amused look, and pointed. "That's my mommy, her name is Mommy. C'mon, Mommy!" He ran off, hollering "Bye!" over his shoulder at me.

"Thanks for showing me your truck!" I called after him as Mommy and I exchanged indulgent smiles. 

I heard Halley laughing then and my heart skipped as I stood, searching harder. Finally I spotted her by the large bubbles display, waving an oversized wand around to create a cloud of iridescent bubbles. The guy she was supervising played at the far end of the table with his kid, and she stood with Natasha, the employee Leif had been turned down by. 

My heart sank a little, which I knew was dumb. Just, this girl was so gorgeous and radiated self confidence, with warm brown skin and big anime eyes that were always friendly and all-inclusive. I mean, I was developing a harmless little crush on her myself, so why wouldn't Halley?

I wanted to go to her, but something stopped me. Her bun was unraveling and she handed the wand to Natasha, tugging out her hair band so it all fell heavily down her back. She caught it up and wrapped around and around, snapping the band back in place and patting it twice. 

I wasn't the only one watching, either.

They looked good together.

I mentally kicked myself for being so emo. My brain had been getting away from me lately, things seeming bigger and worse than they were, happiness a little more out of reach. Sadness a little more encompassing. Too sensitive about shit. I knew it was time to talk to Therapist Sarah about a med change, which I hated dealing with as it was never fun adjusting to it. 

"Auntie Mary! Can you take Hank?" Shiloh's little munchkin voice piped up, breaking me out of my ridiculousness. She held him at the edge of the helicopter door, which was three feet off the ground and had a little ramp for bigger kids to maneuver up and down.