“Thanks for dinner. Angie and I had fun tonight,” Tina knew she needed to amass as many brownie points as she could.

“Why don’t you get Angelica? I’ll help you get the rest of your stuff.”

With fluidity belying their tumultuous current standing, the two women prepared for Tina’s departure. After extracting a promise from Tina that she would call as soon as they arrived home, Bette retreated to the kitchen. The turn of events had caught her by surprise, and they still were nowhere close to resolving their problems.

She busied herself with cleanup duty, mulling Tina’s words from earlier. The mundane task afforded Bette a sense of familiarity. The silence, however, was broken when her cell phone began to ring.

“Bette Porter.”

“It’s me,” Tina lingered a little while longer, remembering the timber of her voice. “We’re home.”

“Is my Boo still asleep?” Bette asked as she leaned against the kitchen counter.

“She woke up just as we got in and went back to sleep almost as soon as she came into contact with the bed.”

“That’s good. All this traveling can’t be good for her,” she said.

“She loves spending time with us, Bette. It’s just rare for her to spend time with both of us at the same time.”

“Somehow, that has to change,” Bette commented.

“We’re rectifying that, remember?” she took a deep breath. “I miss you already.”

The brunette’s silence fueled her frustration. Bette Porter was a stubborn woman. “We owe it to ourselves to do it right.”

“I’m not shutting you out intentionally, Tina. I just need some time,” Bette offered.

“Are you… are you free this weekend?” Tina added quickly, “I was thinking of taking Angelica to the beach.”

“That’s a great idea. I’m sure everyone would love that.”

Tina felt the words sapping her glimmer of joy. “Everyone?”

“It’s been a long time since we spent some time with our friends, Tina. They miss both of you,” Bette replied gently.

“I’m not sure,” Tina’s hesitance was evident.

“Trust me.”

“I do,” Tina told the woman simply. “How does 11 sound on Saturday?”

“I’ll let them know.” Bette could hear Tina trying to stifle a yawn on the other line. “You’ve had a long day. Why don’t we talk some other time?”

“OK,” the blonde answered. “I can’t wait for Saturday.”

“Good night, Tina,” Bette hung up in a flash. She didn’t want to think about their situation anymore.