One Missed Call

25: Kids and questions

"Are you the eldest?" Bella asks as she peaks from behind the desk while munching on the candy Hailee bought for her.

Hailee glances from the monitor and down to the little blue eyed golden haired girl staring at her in question.

She really isn't keeping her promise like she said she would in the car.

Ever since she came into the office with Hailee, it is almost as though she can't stop asking about her life and everyone around her.

Wanting to know more about the woman she feels connected to.

"Yes. I'm the oldest." She smiles at her charmingly and reaches for her phone on the desk before turning back to Bella who throws in another gummy bear into her mouth. "Look, Hailee needs to concentrate on work, so you can use my phone and play the games I made for you. How about that?"

She glances down at the phone Hailee extends to her and glances back at the phone before plopping another gummy bear into her mouth as she shrugs her shoulders.

"I want to talk to you." She giggles as she shoves the phone away before walking to the chair just in front of the desk. "Tell me about yourself."

Hailee chuckles out as she watches Bella push the swivel chair towards the spot beside Hailee who eventually helps her position it.

She watches as Bella struggles to climb onto the seat with her short legs that swing with every attempt.

Hailee eventually helps her and sits her down before handing her back the candy she left on the desk.

"How many sisters do you have?" Bella asks as she parts her legs and places the candy pack in the middle before glancing back up at Hailee.

"I have two sisters. One is twenty and the other is a teenager." She smiles as she turns back to her monitor, hoping to somehow balance talking to her and working at the same time.

"Do you have a boyfriend?" She asks as she glances down to her package, starting to only pick the red gummy bears. "Or is daddy your boyfriend."

"No. Nooo...." Hailee chuckles uncomfortablely as she glances down at Bella in shock, only to notice she is hardly paying attention to Hailee and fully immersed in her red bears. "Me and your daddy are just friends."

"Why can't he be your boyfriend?" Bella asks without really glancing at her as she notices her red bears are all  finished.

"Daddy is married. He can't have a girlfriend okay?" She smiles awkwardly as Bella slowly nods in understanding.

"But daddy and mummy always fight. You don't fight with daddy, so you should marry him if you don't want to be his girlfriend." Bella smiles out and glances at Hailee who tenses up at how the little kid is even talking.

For a four year old she really does have a loud mouth and good speech. Not that she's the first Hailee has seen with perfect English for a toddler, it is the fact she knows too much about her father that's concerning.

"Daddy and mummy don't hate each other." Hailee says as she reaches her hand up to little Bella's hair and gently pats her hair down. "They only fight because they love each other. Sometimes people fight, but they still like each other."

I can't believe I'm telling this to a four year old. Hailee cries out in her own mind as she hides her discomfort behind her smile.

"I don't like it." Bella says in a mummer and glances down at a green gummy bear, gently squeezing it between her plumpy little fingers. "I hate it when mummy always shouts at daddy. Makes me wanna cry."

"I'll tell daddy, okay?" She asks as she frowns slightly while watching Bella squeeze the bear until it deformed entirely before she slowly tosses it to the ground and picks another bear, eating it.

"Daddy is nice." Bella nods her head as she tilts the entire package onto the seat, dumping all the bears. Hailee sighs out with furrowing brows as she simply reminds herself that Bella is still young and pretty much thinks her age at times. "He doesn't like fighting with mummy. But mummy doesn't like daddy, so she always fights him with words."

Hailee nods slowly, unsure of what she should even be saying to her.

"But you like daddy. Don't you?" She asks as she glances up at Hailee while eating the bears she dumped on the seat she is sitting on.

"I should work, Bella." Hailee turns from her and turns to her screen the instant the table clock beeps to tell her that the time is still flying. "I'll talk to you after I'm done. Okay? Please be quiet."

"Okay. I'll count how many gummy bears I have left." She giggles and begins to count, which will give her a lot of time to get her work done.

Bella begins to count but messes up every time she gets to ten.

Which is still impressive enough to convince Hailee that the fancy school Bella is going to isn't just a school full of perfect uniforms and plastic grass.

Bella begins to hum the number song her teacher has taught her before, finally getting to higher numbers, only to stop when she can't count any more.

She pauses and presses her lips together before turning to Hailee and frowning when she can see she is immersed in her work.

Her fingers clench slightly as she itches to disturb her, though she knows she mustn't.

"Okay." Hailee sighs out as she turns her gaze down to Bella who she notices is looking at her. "What is it?"

"What comes after thirty nine?" She asks innocently and Hailee glances down in shock.

"You can count to thirty?" She asks and Bella nods with a smile.

"Mr Leavens teaches me how to count at home." She giggles at the look of admiration Hailee is giving her, feeling joyed to be stared at in that way.

"You're so smart Bella. Well done." She chuckles as she clasps her hands together in applaud, getting Bella to turn red and smile. "It's forty."

"Then forty one?" She asks and Hailee nods with a proud smile on her face.

Bella nods her head and begins to count the remaining bears.

"Oh. I have forty two bears remaining." Bella explains as she puts them back into the packet, this time, based on colour first. Starting with the blue.

Gosh kids give themselves a tough time. Hailee groans out mentally.