Page 109 of Eleanor & Grey
“Hey, Eleanor?”
“Yes?”
“What’s a little bitch?”
“It’s a person who isn’t very nice,” I said matter-of-factly. I glanced toward her in the rearview mirror and shook my head. “But don’t tell your father that. I’m pretty sure he’d fire me for that. OK?”
“OK.” She went back to staring out the window, and a fewseconds passed before I heard her whisper, “I know, Mom. I like Eleanor too.”
I swore my heart skipped five beats at those words.
We got back home, and in the pile of blankets on the living room floor was Karla watching the fourthWesley Petersmovie.
She looked back toward me with an Oreo in her mouth and her eyes widened. “Sorry, I couldn’t wait to start the movie.”
Lorelai’s mouth dropped open. “You’re eating sugar and we’re not at Grandma’s house!” she exclaimed, pointing a finger at her sister.
“Yeah, I know. I needed a mental health day,” she said, stuffing another cookie in her mouth.
“What’s a mental health day?” Lorelai asked.
“It’s when you eat junk food and watch movies all day,” Karla replied.
Lorelai raced over to her sister and lay down, grabbing a handful of cookies for herself. “I need a mental health day too!”
I smiled at seeing the girls cuddled up together, eating cookies and actually looking as though they were enjoying each other’s company.
“Maybe a different movie for Lorelai now, Karla,” I said.
She groaned. “But she just watchesFrozenall the time.”
“‘Let it goooo!’” Lorelai dragged out.
“Please. Anything but that,” Karla begged.
I raised an eyebrow, thinking deeply about what we could watch, and then I parted my lips. “Have you ever heard of a show calledMister Rogers’ Neighborhood?” I asked.
“Nope, and it sounds dumb,” Karla mentioned.
I didn’t take it personally. Teenagers were pretty closed off to the best parts of the world. I found the show on a streaming network and played an episode. Karla sighed right away. “Yup, I was right. It’s stupid,” she remarked.
Lorelai echoed her sister. “Yup, stupid,” she exclaimed.
But regardless, they sat there and watched an episode. Then another. And another.
By the fourth episode, the girls had fallen asleep on the floor with each other, snuggled up and completely knocked out from their sugar party.
I grabbed my phone quickly and snapped a few pictures of them, because it was one of those moments that shouldn’t be forgotten.
It was an important one.
Around seven, the front door opened, and I was stunned to see Greyson walking in with his briefcase. He looked over to me and then to the girls still resting in a pile on the floor.
He raised an eyebrow, then his eyes fell back to me. “Eleanor.”
“Oh, hey, Greyson. What’s up?”
His eyes darted back to the girls, then back to me. “Eleanor.”
