Red Herring ✔️

7. Second Base

18 Days to Halloween

Mazie awoke to a phone call from her mother. Her mother wasn't an early riser and definitely not a morning person. She guessed that her mom lived far enough away now that she must be several hours ahead of Oregon time. Perhaps on the East Coast.

The phone call put her in a sour mood. She had no intentions of calling her mom back. It's not that she hated her, but she didn't want to swallow down her tasteless cereal while her mom informed her of her new life.

She was reminded of the missed phone call the second her wool socked feet touched the landing at the bottom of the stairs. "Good morning, honey. Coffee?" Before she even replied, Felecia fit a creamy pumpkin spice flavor cup of coffee in her hands. "Sleep well?" She had that I'm-about-to-deliver-bad-news smile on her face.

Immediately, Mazie frowned even though a delicious cup of coffee warmed her hands. Felecia was trying to butter her up. "What?"

Jus then, Chandler screamed when he dropped his sippy cup of milk. Felecia hurried to his side to stop his incessant screaming. Baby Chandler wasn't a morning person either.

"What? What do you mean?" Felecia asked, her attention focused on the kids.

Mazie sat down the coffee mug to prepare her breakfast. "You look like you have bad news."

"Your dad called me. Said your mom was planning on getting in touch with you." Fe didn't skirt around the purpose of the conversation. She appreciated that.

Mazie rolled her eyes as she located the only clean bowl in the cupboard and filled it with frosted wheaties. "She already called early this morning."

As his only child, Mazie was a little peeved that her dad didn't call her to warn her himself. Because he didn't have the balls to deal with a teenage girl, he used a third party - Aunt Felecia. She expected better of him after they bonded over her mother's desertion. Her father admitted to feeling abandoned when Mazie's mother left even though they had just divorced. To reciprocate, Mazie told her father that she felt like her mother didn't love her at all and that her selfish motives were tearing them apart. Her father promised to protect her from her mother and swore to take her to court in a custody battle if that's what it meant.

On the verge of her eighteenth birthday, Mazie was pretty sure a court battle wasn't totally necessary especially since she lived with Fe and Rob now. But that didn't mean she forgave her mother for ditching.

"Did you talk?" Fe asked over the sound of the kids jabbering, fighting, and giggling.

Pouring milk over her cereal, Mazie carried her coffee and breakfast over to where the kids ate to lounge on the floor beside them to glean a little brightness from their natural exuberance. She needed a boost that morning besides the caffeine. "No, I wasn't awake yet."

"You going to call back?" Felecia perched on a stool at the counter to finish off her typical yogurt and granola breakfast before the kids lost their interest in their food.

Her aunt wasn't aiming to be obtrusive, but Mazie didn't want to discuss her mom anymore. "I don't know."

"You look pretty, Maze!" Winter hollered, adoring her outfit.

"Very pretty!" Willow added. The twins already loved clothes and showed a keen interest in fashion. Mazie loved that about them.

"Thanks, girls." Gingerly, she touched each of their faces. Their beautiful blue eyes still stunned her. Even as they grew older and changed every day, they were as identical as ever.

Baby Chandler kicked his legs and used his fists to shove food in his mouth. His highchair was a sticky mess and bits of waffles and syrup stuck to his chubby fingers. Mazie tickled his feet as he laughed, squirming away from her hands.