✅ My Cousin's Keeper [NaNoWriMo 2021]

12. My Baby's Plans

Tess came downstairs looking a little tired still, but she was smiling. I started to wonder if she wasn't sleeping well. She had certainly seemed happier when she'd had something to help her sleep, and I wondered if it was worth bringing that up with her. She needed to be properly rested if she hoped to do well at school, and it seemed she had only managed to get a good night's sleep twice since she moved in. Maybe I should have given her half of one of those sleeping pills again; but I knew that overusing them wouldn't be good for her health in the long term. Besides, I didn't want her to be all embarrassed the first time she met Ffrances.

I was already serving up a plate of bacon, eggs, fried bread, and mushrooms. A solid breakfast, to get both of us in a good mood ready for today. I quickly asked if she wanted the one I was putting out now; I hadn't asked yet if she liked mushrooms, but if not I could have served up another plate for her and kept that one for myself. She nodded and smiled, so I turned back to the grill while she started to eat.

"Did you sleep well?" I asked.

"Not too bad. Took me a while to get to sleep, but I'm ready to face the day."

"That's good. I'm happy you're settling in so well." I had my breakfast on a plate now, and walked over to the table. I still needed to tell her about Ffrances, but I figured it would be easier waiting until we were both sitting down. However, I was still squeezing ketchup onto my breakfast when she said something I hadn't even thought about.

"I'll be going to Ashfields today."

"Ashfields?" I answered, before I'd really had time to think about what she had said. There were three towns sharing the name in this area, but I guessed pretty quickly that she would mean Greater Ashfields. Still, I was momentarily drawing a blank on what could have caused this sudden change of plans. "Something with school?"

"No, just meeting up with friends. Is that a problem? Mum and Dad never complained."

"No, no problem. Just..." I took a second to collect my thoughts, and to swallow a piece of fried bread folded around a piece of scrambled egg. "I should have said earlier, really. You haven't had a chance to meet Ffrances yet. My girlfriend, I mean. She's going to be here pretty regularly, but she hasn't been over recently because she's been working late. I mean–"

"Well, I already said I'd be going, but..."

"No, don't worry about it. We'll still be here when you get back. I just wanted to make sure. You know, that you're not too shocked to find out it's not just the two of us. I think none of us mentioned like, relationship status before you got here. I was a little nervous you might be mad that I didn't say."

She carried on eating. We were both silent for a while, but she was still smiling and I thought that had to be a good sign. Then as she picked up a paper towel and dabbed a spot of stray sauce off her cheek, I wondered if she would say anything else before she left. Or if she would need money for the bus, or for entertainment. We hadn't discussed an allowance yet, and I didn't know if she would have enough cash on hand for a day out with her friends.

"Yeah, don't worry about it," she said. "I'll meet her later, right? And if she makes you smile so much, I'm sure we'll get on fine. I'll do my best not to embarrass you."

"Great, thanks. And I should ask... these friends you're meeting..."

"Kim, Chloe, and Annette," she said. "Mum and Dad know them, if you want to know they're not going to cause any problems. Just window shopping, spending some time together. It's harder to see anyone now, they all live between Raybridge and Ashfields, so it's not like two minutes walk anymore. I'm still getting used to being so far away."

"It's okay," I said. "No boys, then?" I could tell from her expression and sudden silence that she'd been lying then, so I felt I needed to comfort her. "I don't have a problem with that. A mixed group of friends doesn't necessarily mean you'll be getting into trouble, or at least it didn't when I was your age. But not mentioning him makes me worry a little. I'd like to think you can trust me. So, is there any reason you might lie to me?"

"No! No, I just... I don't know, he's not normally with us. Spike's his name. He said he'll buy me lunch, and he wants to spend more time together now he can't come round to hang out when his folks are being too loud. And I just... I don't know if that's like..."

"Is he your boyfriend?"

"No! I haven't got..."

"Then, is he asking you out? Doing something with friends doesn't sound like it means anything, unless everyone else has a date. But does he know that? I can see why you might be a little nervous. Perhaps you need to be a little more forward. Or get one of your friends to let him know where he stands. You don't want boys to be getting the wrong idea, I know a lot of them find it really easy to assume they've been promised something."

"No, Spike's not like that. He's just being a good friend."

"But you're still embarrassed. Maybe somebody else might take it the wrong way. Maybe he's got friends you don't get on so well with. Or maybe you're wishing he would be a little more forward. Okay, I get that. I'm sure you know how to talk to your friends, whatever the situation is, and that isn't my business until you say so. Just know that if you ever need advice, I've probably been through this stuff years ago. And I'm always here to listen, right?"

This time, Tess's response was only an embarrassed nod. I wanted to know what was going on, and I wanted to make life easier for my little one. But for now, I had to admit that she wouldn't tell me unless she wanted to. And I could probably trust her to make her own decisions.

"I wasn't going to ask who's going to be there," I explained. "I couldn't help worrying when you seemed so embarrassed to tell me. But please, be honest with me. It'll be so much easier if I know what's going on in your life, so I can help when you need it and let you get on with things without worrying if that's the most helpful response. But today, I was just gong to ask if you need any help with a day trip. Like, do you want a lift into town? If you'd rather get the bus, do you have enough money? Do you need money for lunch, or do you want to take a packed lunch? I want to be sure you're not struggling."

She paused before responding, giving me enough time to finish off my own breakfast. Then I sat with my elbows on the table, slowly sipping the mug of coffee in my hands.

"You sound like my mum," she said in the end. "Always wants to help out. But I don't need micromanaging, I've got enough money left for the bus. They left me a little bit. Thanks."

"If you think you're good, I'll take your word for it. Call me any time if you have problems."

Then she was rushing off to get dressed up before the day ahead. I assumed she would be going soon, so I would probably have half an hour to wait before Ffrances arrived. Well, that was a perfect excuse to make sure that I looked my best, and all the dishes were washed properly. I loaded the plates and pans into the sink and ran some hot, soapy water, and then headed upstairs myself.