CHAPTER TWO #2
“They follow my account,” Bee replied. “That’s not the same thing.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Maya said.
Bee looked at her. “You missed giving me a hard time, didn’t you?”
“I really did,” Maya replied.
Grandma spoke from the other end of the table. “Let her eat.”
Maya lifted both hands. “I’m done.”
Bee took another bite while the conversation moved on without her. Laughter traveled down the table as someone changed the subject. Strangers usually wanted explanations when they asked questions. Her family asked because they cared. Once Grandma told Maya to stop, everyone let Bee eat.
After dinner, several relatives stayed in the living room while the younger cousins went outside. Bee helped Grandma clear the table. She carried dishes to the sink while Grandma washed them.
For several minutes, neither of them spoke. Bee dried each plate and put it away. The silence between them felt comfortable instead of empty.
Grandma looked at her. “You’re thinking too much.”
Bee smiled. “How do you know?”
“I know you,” Grandma replied.
Bee dried another plate. “Everyone keeps asking if I’m staying.”
“Are you?” Grandma asked.
“I still don’t know,” Bee admitted.
Grandma nodded. “Then you don’t need to decide today.”
Bee leaned against the counter. “I thought coming home would make me feel certain.”
“Does it?” Grandma asked.
“No,” Bee replied.
Grandma studied her face. “Why should it?”
Bee lowered her attention to the plate in her hands. No answer came.
“You were gone for years,” Grandma said. “Of course you changed.”
Bee stayed quiet for a moment. “I think that’s what feels strange.”
“That’s not a problem,” Grandma replied.
“I thought everything would feel the same,” Bee said.
“Some things do,” Grandma replied.
“Some things don’t,” Bee said.
Grandma rinsed a plate. “Now you’re catching on.”
Bee looked toward the living room. Maya’s laughter carried into the kitchen. “I don’t want everyone to think I came back because I failed.”
Grandma’s expression changed. “Who said you failed?”
“No one,” Bee replied.
“Then stop listening to something nobody said,” Grandma told her. “You built a life somewhere else. You worked hard for it. You did what you wanted to do. Coming home doesn’t erase any of that.”
“I know,” Bee said.
Grandma raised an eyebrow. “Do you?”
Bee smiled. “I’m trying to.”
Grandma nodded and returned to the sink. “That’s enough for now.”
Bee picked up another plate and dried it slowly. She had spent years answering strangers who expected certainty from her. Grandma did not need an answer. Bee set the plate beside the others and reached for the next one without searching for anything to say.
Later that night, most of the family went home. Bee stepped onto the porch and sat in one of the old chairs. The air had cooled enough for her to pull her sweater closer.
The sky stretched above the dark road without city lights competing with it. The stars looked brighter than Bee remembered. She listened to the sounds of the house behind her and the distant movement of the night.
The front door opened. Grandma stepped outside in her own sweater. She lowered herself into the chair beside Bee and looked toward the road.
They sat together in silence for a while. Bee spoke first. “I really did miss this.”
Grandma nodded. “I know.”
“I didn’t realize how much,” Bee admitted.
“You were busy,” Grandma said.
Bee smiled. “That’s what everyone says.”
“Because it’s true,” Grandma replied.
Bee looked up at the sky. “I want to make good videos while I’m here.”
Grandma glanced at her. “You want to work?”
“I want to share what life is like here,” Bee explained.
“That’s different,” Grandma said.
Bee thought about it. “I think it is.”
Grandma looked toward the house. “Start with what you know.”
Bee smiled. “What do I know?”
“You know your family,” Grandma replied.
Bee laughed softly. “That might be dangerous.”
“It is,” Grandma agreed.
Bee looked toward the living room window. Maya and two cousins were still arguing about something inside. “They already embarrass me.”
“They do,” Grandma replied.
“What about you?” Bee asked.
Grandma looked at her calmly. “I keep you from being foolish.”
Bee laughed. “That sounds about right.”
Grandma stood and brushed off her sweater. “Come inside before you freeze.”
Bee stood and followed her toward the door. She looked back at the dark land before facing the house again. This time, she stepped inside without the hesitation she had felt the day before.
Maya looked up from the couch when Bee walked inside. “You’re finally back.”
Bee smiled. “I was outside for five minutes.”
“You disappeared,” Maya said.
“I was talking to Grandma,” Bee explained.
Maya narrowed her eyes. “Were you planning something?”
Bee laughed. “No.”
Grandma walked toward the hallway. “She was thinking too much.”
Maya looked at Bee. “Of course she was.”
Bee sat beside her cousin and shook her head. “You two talk about me like I’m not here.”
“That’s because you were gone too long,” Maya replied.
Maya began telling Bee another story about something that had happened while she was away. Within seconds, the story turned into an argument with their cousins. Bee leaned back against the couch and laughed with everyone else.