“I’m looking at you now,” Bette said quietly.

“Are you? Or are you just here out of obligation to my parents?”

Bette was quiet for a long moment, studying Tina’s face. The woman in front of her was broken, vulnerable in a way that the old Tina never allowed herself to be. Despite everything, despite the hurt and the anger, Bette found herself wanting to comfort her.

“I’m here because Lauren said Carson was scared,” Bette said finally. “I’m here because no child should have to see their mother like this.”

“Just for Carson?”

“And maybe…” Bette hesitated. “Maybe because I needed to see for myself that you were okay. Even after everything, I couldn’t stand the thought of you in pain.”

Fresh tears spilled down Tina’s cheeks. “I’ve missed you so much, Bette. Every single day. I know I don’t deserve your forgiveness, but I’m asking for it anyway. I’m asking you to give me a chance to make this right.”

“I don’t know if you can make this right, Tina. I don’t know if I can trust you again.”

“I know. I know, and I don’t blame you. But I’m not the same person I was ten years ago. I’m not the scared little girl who chose the easy way out. I want to be brave now. I want to be the person you always believed I could be.”

“And what if it’s too late? What if we’ve both changed too much?”

“Then we figure it out,” Tina said, her voice a little stronger now.

Bette moved closer to the bed, close enough that she could see the exhaustion in Tina’s eyes, the way her hands shook slightly. “You need to eat something. You need to shower. You need to be a mother to your son.”

“I know. I just… I couldn’t. I couldn’t do anything. It was like I was paralyzed.”

“And now?”

“Now I want to try. If you’ll help me.” Tina says reaching out for Bette to take her hand

Bette studied her for a long moment, then sat down on the edge of the bed. She stared at Tina’s hand and with a slight shake of her head signaled Tina she was not ready for that.

The rejection stung but Tina lowered her hand placing it back in her lap. She couldn’t blame Bette. Their fractured relationship barely hanging by a single thread if she could call it that