Page 96 of The Fallback

‘I just needed somewhere to go…’ The rest of her sentence was lost in a sob. Chris, now quite clearly panicking, grabbed his sister by the arm and pulled her inside.

‘Jasmine!’ he shouted over his shoulder. ‘Could you please come here?’ By this time, Rosie had her face buried in his sweater, a damp patch spreading across his front. He patted her gently on the back and looked back in the hope that his wife was on her way to rescue him.

‘Rosie?’ said Jasmine with concern, peeling Rosie from Chris’s front with one hand and handing him his coat with the other.

Chris looked over Rosie’s head at Jasmine. ‘Should I stay?’ he asked.

Jasmine shook her head. ‘I’ll call you later, OK?’ She shooed him to the front door.

‘Erm right, OK.’ Chris tentatively patted Rosie on the back again, before heading out to work.

‘What’s happened?’ Jasmine asked in her usual, commanding tone. She took Rosie’s coat and bag and put them on the bottom stair and ushered Rosie into the kitchen. Susan was sat at the island with a mug of coffee looking shocked at the sudden, dramatic entrance of her daughter.

‘Hi, Mum,’ managed Rosie before she started sobbing again.

Susan pulled her in for a hug.

‘Did you have plans today?’ hiccupped Rosie into her mother’s shoulder.

‘Oh, just our Christmas shopping. We can postpone.’

‘I’m sorry!’ wailed Rosie. ‘I’ve ruined your day!’

‘Don’t be silly,’ Jasmine frowned at Susan. ‘I wanted to do it online anyway.’

‘Sweetheart,’ said Susan when Rosie had composed herself a little, ‘come and sit down.’ She led her to one of the stools and Jasmine smoothly slid a cup of coffee in front of her.

‘So,’ said Jasmine, leaning against the sink on the far side of the kitchen. ‘Let me guess: Mitch, right? What happened?’

‘Mitch?’ said Susan sharply. ‘What about Mitch?’

Rosie did a speedy evaluation of how much her mother knew and how much she might have guessed. Jasmine caught her eye and mouthed, ‘Does she know?’ Rosie shook her head imperceptibly and Jasmine grimaced in sympathy.

Rosie took a deep breath. ‘It’s OK, Jas, I think she needs to know.’

* * *

‘So let me get this straight,’ Susan said after Rosie had tried to explain everything, with a few clarifications and interruptions from Jasmine thrown in. ‘You and Mitch cooked up a plan to have a baby together?’ Rosie nodded. ‘Then Mitch went and got a new girlfriend?’ Rosie nodded again. ‘And you got jealous and told the girlfriend about your pact?’ Rosie said nothing but looked shamefacedly down at her coffee.

‘So, the two of you fell out. But then Mitch confessed he has feelings for you and then… Where are we now?’ Susan looked at Jasmine in confusion.

Rosie caught Jasmine’s eye again and realised that Jasmine had guessed exactly what had gone down last night. Rosie shook her head. Susan didnotneed to know that Rosie was wearing the same pair of pants as yesterday.

‘I’m guessing you didn’t take my advice about not seeing Mitch?’ Jasmine asked dryly, raising an eyebrow at Rosie. Rosie glared Jasmine into silence, allowing Susan the time to process the surprising information she had just been made a party to.

‘I didn’t think you wanted children?’ she eventually said.

Rosie’s head snapped up to look at her mother. ‘After everything I’ve just told you,that’sthe thing you focus on!’ she exclaimed. Susan looked surprised. ‘And why does everyone keep saying that!’ Rosie shouted.

Jasmine and Susan exchanged a look, which conveyed a silent ‘after you, no after you, I insist,’ conversation.

Rosie noticed and looked tearfully at both of them. ‘First,youpresume I don’t want kids,’ she said, pointing at Jasmine, ‘and now you’re doing the same.’ She turned to her mother. Neither of them said anything.

‘I’m not sure, OK?’ said Rosie eventually. ‘I’m not sure I do want kids but stupid Mitch started me thinking about it and now I can’t stop!’

Susan clapped her hands brightly. ‘Well that’s lovely, darling. I have to say I’m surprised but I think you and Mitch would make wonderful parents. He’s so kind and caring, I think he’ll be a great dad.’

Rosie stared at her mother. ‘Care to add anything about how I would make a great mother?’

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