Chapter 8

Tina had left Kit and Alice at The Planet, she needed time alone to decide exactly what it was she was going to do next. They all knew what she had to do, she had to talk to Bette, only she didn’t know how. There were so many questions that she didn’t want the answers to but that she had to know. That’s why she was here now.

She had lived through enough of Bette’s gallery openings to know her schedule by now. Her first day back at work after a major opening, there was no way she would be home early regardless of what was happening at home. When she arrived at the house and saw that Bette wasn’t home it was comforting to her to know that some things hadn’t changed.

Tina hesitated as she took out her keys, an overwhelming feeling that this was no longer her home engulfing her. Afraid of what she might see there, who she might see. Kit had reassured her though that Bette was very much alone in the house.

She had thought about waiting on the porch, sitting on the step and waiting for Bette to come home the way she had done so many times before she had officially moved in when she had wanted to surprise Bette. Those days seemed so far away, when she would sit there imagining what it would be to not just be an overnight guest in this house. For Bette to open the door and smile at the sight of her there in their home, she’d wanted nothing more.

Perhaps seeing her there waiting would be a good thing, a reminder of how things were. She was about to sit down but then became worried that someone might see her, Tim or Jenny, and then she’d have to explain what she was doing there. They’d ask if she’d been locked out and ask her if she wanted to wait in their home. Another broken home, maybe this wasn’t such a good neighbourhood to live in after all, something in the water. If only it was that simple.

This was silly. It was still their home even if it hadn’t feel like much of one the last time she was there. Bette hadn’t changed the locks, always a good sign. Most of her belongings were still in there. Her picture still hung on the walls. The food from her last shopping trip was probably still in the refrigerator. Besides, she thought to herself if she stayed out here much longer she’d lose all her nerve and leave.