Page 72 of Unexpected

The backyard was flooding, and the rain hadn’t paused for even a second since I woke up that morning.

In the background, the news was on and there were reports of flooding throughout the city. The water standing in the backyard wasn’t nearly as bad as the video footage constantly looping on the local channel.

“And it doesn’t look like it’s going to be letting up anytime soon. These storms will be moving through the area until late into this evening…” The reporter was intently staring through the TV, asking that all city residents heed the warnings to stay off the roads.

Luckily, I had nowhere to be and a ton of writing to catch up on. It was inconvenient timing that I finally had the drive to write while trying to move. The two did not work well together.

I was trying not to worry about the couple of inches of water in the backyard that was creeping closer and closer to the back door and up the patio when someone knocked on my front door.

I hesitated, peeking my head around the corner to see through the glass on the door. Although partially obscured by the viscous rain beating down, I could make out the very identifiable bleach-blonde hair.

With a gust of cold November wind, I opened the door to reveal a soaking wet Becky and Emmy. A small, broken umbrella hung from Becky’s hand with her impeccably painted nails.

“Hazel!” Emmy squealed before she lunged toward me, her clothes hanging limply over her.

“Hi, Em. It’s so good to see you,” I said, letting her wrap her wet arms around my hips.

“Can I go get my coloring books?”

“Yeah, sure, honey. But grab a towel out of the laundry room first.”

She hurried toward the laundry room at the back of the house with a squeak of her wet tennis shoes against the clean wood floors.

“Be careful!” Becky warned as a peel of giggles erupted from around the corner.

“I am, Mom!” Emmy said back as I heard my office door open and quickly slam shut behind us.

Becky wrung her drenched hands in front of her but didn’t make a move to come inside. Her usually flawless eye makeup was dripping down her face in long black streaks, but it was her bloodshot eyes that clued me into the possibility that it wasn’t just the rain that had messed it up.

She scrubbed a hand through her unkempt hair and took a low, deep breath. “I’m so sorry to spring this on you, Hazel, but could you watch Emmy for a few hours?”

I nodded before she finished talking. “Of course. It’s no problem.”

She nodded and mumbled a thanks as she tucked a stray piece of blonde hair behind her ear. “I’ll pick her up around dinner. I should be done by then…” Her voice trailed off like she was lost in thought. Her eyes wouldn’t meet mine, and I was growing more and more worried as the seconds passed.

“I’ll just feed her tonight. I have some chicken nuggets in the freezer that I would love an excuse to eat,” I chuckled, and she gave me a sad smile in return.

I cautiously took a step forward and placed my hand on her forearm that was wrapped around her midsection.

“Is everything okay?”

Her eyes were wide and seemed extra blue as tears readied to fall. As I watched the emotion drift over her face, warping her sharp features, a knowing unease settled over me. It was even more intense when her facial expression quickly morphed again into an ungenuine lopsided grin.

“Oh, everything’s fine,” she said with a chuckle and patted my hand, which I took as a cue to remove it from her arm. “Just a lot going on at home, you know? It’s easier to not have to entertain my crazy child for a few hours.”

“I see…” I murmured. Everything about Becky—her demeanor, sloppy clothing, and overall disheveled appearance—was screaming the opposite of her words.

As I searched for the right words, hoping to make her talk, her eyes locked on something behind me. I turned just enough to see she had noticed the large stack of boxes behind me labeled with the respective rooms they would go in.

“Y’all are moving?” she asked in a flat tone.

“Actually,” I began after a much-needed calming breath, “I’m moving. I’m not sure what Michael’s plan is.”

Her eyes widened in surprise and her brows shot almost to her hairline. “You’ve broken up?”

I nodded.

She shook her head as her jaw hung open. “I’m so surprised.”

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