Rose didn't understand why her Mum gave her such a sad look that night…she was five years old and very happy indeed to be eating her very favourite meal- beans on toast. In fact, her Mum loved her so much, this was the third time this week they'd been lucky enough to have beans on toast. If it were up to Rose, they would eat it every single day.
~OoO~
Jackie sighed and served up yet another meal of beans on toast. She'd just gotten back from her shift and didn't have the time or the energy to cook anything more. She glanced at the stack of bills on the table and averted her eyes, a sense of dread and foreboding filling her belly. She watched as Rose tucked in, happily eating the same thing they'd eaten the day before…and likely the day before that, although time was all beginning to run together these day, so she couldn't be sure.
She smiled at her little girl and Rose smiled back, a smudge of sauce splotched on the side of her cheek. Her heart broke a bit as she watched her- so happy and grateful for such a meager meal. She wanted to give her daughter so much more.
"I love you, Rose," she said softly, as she picked at the food in front of her.
Rose stopped eating for a moment and put a slightly sticky hand on top of her own.
"I love you too, Mummy. Thank you for making something so nice for me."
Jackie bit her lip and sighed. "You're welcome, love."
Because I don't feel like enough people give Jackie any love- this is my little contribution. It couldn't have been easy being a widow and single mum. 3
I hope you enjoyed this little story. Please tell me what you thought! I love hearing from you guys!