Faith reached the elite private school the twins attended and went through the usual pickup procedure. It was routine now. As Eve had helpfully reminded her in the morning, Ethan had soccer practice in the afternoon, and Leah had a violin lesson.
Faith dropped Ethan off first. As she drove Leah to her violin tutor’s house, she glanced at Leah in the rearview mirror. Leah hadn’t said much the whole drive. She was a quiet kid, quieter than her brother, but this was unusual even for her.
“Leah?” Faith asked. “Is something the matter?”
Leah pouted. “We had a spelling test today. Ethan beat me.”
“Well, how did you do in the test?”
“I got two words wrong.”
“So you got all the rest right?” Faith asked. “You did amazingly. Just because Ethan did better doesn’t mean you didn’t do great too.” Both the twins were practically geniuses, which wasn’t surprising considering how hard their mother pushed them.
“But he’s going to tell Mom, and Mom is going to be upset at me,” Leah said.
“She’s not going to be upset. I’m sure she’ll be very proud of you. ”
Leah sighed. “She’s never happy when I don’t do as good as Ethan.”
Faith frowned. Now that Leah mentioned it, Eve did seem a little more critical of Leah than she was of Ethan. It was just one of the many things about Eve that Faith didn’t understand.
As they pulled out the front of Leah’s tutor’s house, Faith’s phone buzzed on the seat next to her. She parked the car and grabbed the phone. She had a message from Eve.
Leah’s tutor called to cancel. Take her home instead.
Faith sent Eve a reply and turned to Leah in the back seat. “No violin lesson for you today. Your tutor canceled.”
“Oh.” Leah’s shoulders slumped. Playing the violin was one of the few activities Eve made Leah do that she actually seemed to enjoy.
“You can practice at home instead,” Faith said. “I’ll help. Or better yet, you can put on a concert for me. I’d love to hear you play.”
“I guess,” Leah mumbled. She looked out the window toward a park just down the road. Her eyes lit up. “Can we go to the park instead?”
Faith shook her head. “Not today. It’s time to go home.”
“Please? Just for a little bit?”
Faith sighed. Leah looked like she could use some cheering up. “Okay,” she said. “Just ten minutes. Then we’re going home.”
Faith unlocked the front door and ushered Leah inside. “ Let’s go make a snack. Then you can put on that concert for me.”
“Okay.” Leah grinned and bounced down the hall.
Faith followed her into the kitchen. She opened the fridge. All the ingredients for Eve’s pre-approved healthy snacks were right there on the shelves. Perhaps Faith could mix things up a bit, make something a little more interesting-
“Mom!” Leah said. “You’re here!”
Faith turned. Eve was standing in the doorway, her eyes dark and her arms crossed.
She did not look happy.
“Eve,” Faith said. “You’re home.”
“I finished up at work early.” Eve looked down at Leah. “Why don’t you go upstairs, sweetie? I need to talk to Faith.”
“Okay.” Leah skipped out of the kitchen, oblivious to the displeasure radiating from her mother.
“Faith,” Eve said. “Come with me.” She turned on her heel and started down the hall.