‘ we’ll take care of you. ’ (Bek/Phoenix)
Phoenix sobbed as Bek offered the assurance.
Earlier that morning, she’d received the news that her father had passed away. Now it was just her. No Mom or brothers or sisters, no grandparents or cousins even. Just Phoenix, the final member of her family.
At first, she had just sat and cried and cried until she had no more tears to shed. Her mind flitted from here to there, wondering what would happen now, what would happen to his house, his bills, his belongings. What would happen to her?
She had called Alex first, wanting his calm strong presence near her. He was in the middle of work though and didn’t answer his cell phone, so she’d just left a teary message, asking him to please, please come home because she needed him and Bek right now. Bek had answered almost straight away and only a few minutes later had arrived at Phee’s place.
They’d embraced and Pheonix had started crying all over again. Bek led her to the couch, sat her down and made some coffee, shoving the mismatched, chipped mug into her hands.
“I just can’t, Bek.” Her face was red from crying, her eyes bloodshot, her breathing uneven and hitched.
“You can’t what, sweetie?” Bek reached out and pushed a hand into her hair, calm on the surface. Phee turned her head into the touch.
“Anything.” She breathed, the thought hitting her again like a tonne of bricks. “I can’t arrange a funeral, or sell a house or anything. I’m not an adult. He did everything for me. Who’s gonna do my taxes? Who’s gonna buy me birthday presents? Who’s gonna take care of me?” Phoenix had always been a Daddy’s girl and she’d never been ashamed to admit it. Her father lived on the other side of town but she went to visit at least once a week.
That’s when Bek had said they would take care of her, sending Phee into another round of sobs, shoulders shaking, barely able to breathe because no one had ever wanted to take care of her before apart from her Dad. She’d had girlfriends and boyfriends but everything had been joint, everything had always been 50/50. Maybe that was because she’d never trusted anyone else to take care of her, but there it was and maybe, just maybe she trusted Bek and Alex to take care of her.
Bek drew her in for a hug and Phoenix breathed in the familiar scent of her hair, buried her damp face into Bek’s long flowing hair, she reaches around with one arm to embrace her, using the other to hold her hot cup of coffee on her lap.