Keeping Fantasia: The Third Book of the Fantasia Series

Chapter 122: Mother Daughter Chat

Chapter 122: Mother Daughter Chat

Finally - finally - they left the bathroom.

Gwen sunk into her pillow. Michaleen snuggled into her like a stuffed animal. As her brain shifted gears, Gwen fell into a glorious sleep...

For fifteen minutes.

"Rot..."

She groped her alarm clock. The clock was an old fashion, tick-tock kind of timepiece that went bring! bring! bring! Rip Van Winkle couldn't have slept through that racket.

Gwen hauled out of bed. Easily cajoling Michaleen back to sleep, she tucked him between extra blankets. There was no way he could go to school. The poor little thing would be snoring before they took attendance.

But Gwen had to go.  It didn't matter that her brain was 1% charged and her legs felt like boulders. She had class, military training, and clinical work with Dr. Sweet after school. She also had her date with Jak which couldn't be missed because –

Not a date. Gwen suddenly thought. Just an old friend beating up on another old friend. Never mind that ONE of the friends had broad, sculpted shoulders and eyes like blue fire opals.

Yeah...so...not a date.

Gwen glanced at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. She looked (and felt) like reheated death.

"Poppycock." she murmured, tiredly switching on the shower. She set the temperature to cold, hoping the icy water would wake her up.

But it didn't. All it did was make her shiver.

Gwen leaned her forehead against the wall, water streaming between her eyes. She stared at the soap and toiletries, to exhausted to reach down and lather.

She was so tired. So, so tired.

"Just one more day." She pulled the shower handle. Painfully, she pressed a towel to her blood blister. "Come on Gwen. You can do one day."

Drying, dressing, and kissing Michaleen goodbye, Gwen headed for the living room.

Curiously, the living room was lit. A fuzzy glow was bleeding into the hallway.

Gwen thought back several hours. She was a stickler for saving electricity, and it was unlike her to leave on lights. However, since the light was definitely on, she turned the corner to correct the oversight.

Wendy was there.

She was sitting on the sofa, reading a strange map. She'd moved the empty pizza box to the coffee table, along with two cups of tea, and two plates of buttered toast.

Gwen's backpack was exactly where she'd left it: scrunched on the opposite end the sofa, as far away from Wendy as possible.

Gwen's chest constricted. She wanted to back away, but Wendy had already looked up, and if she moved, Wendy might chase after her shadow –

Wendy spoke plainly. "Your father and I owe you an apology."

Gwen stuttered. "W-what?"

"Your father and I owe you an apology. When you came home yesterday, you asked your father to help Micha – "

Wendy paused. She motioned to the tea and toast. "Please sit down, this won't take long."

Gwen edged to the doorframe. "I'm not hungry."

"Darling, you should eat something more substantial than cold pizza."

"I'm not hungry." Gwen repeated, embarrassed that she'd left the pizza box. "I already ate."