Hana Hou Pt.2
Chapt. 9
A Visit to a Garden
Trent had to smile when he glanced out the kitchen window. "Hey, Daria,"
"Hm?"
"The treehouse looks pretty cool. I like the tie-dyed shades and the macramé planter things hanging underneath."
"Jane and Kimmy had a good time decorating it, that's for sure. There's a matching tie-dyed futon in there too."
"There's some kind of cable running down to it from the roof."
"Kyle put a solar panel up on the roof and ran the power line to the treehouse, so Kimmy can run her computer and Jane's lava lite in there."
"Is she at the beach with Kuulei?"
"Yeah. Jane's class picnic is today, remember? She and Kyle are there now too. We can go after I finish with these papers."
Turning away from the newly completed treehouse, Trent flashed her a roguish smile.
"Wanna play monkey first?"
"Oh, Daaaaaaria," Jane called sweetly.
Damn.
"Daria and Trent, sitting in a tree, b-a-l-l-i-"
"Shut up," Daria growled as best she could around a smile. She poked her head out the door. Thank God it was just Jane.
"Seriously, take it easy up there. You guys might break that branch," Jane laughed. "Maybe we should put a support under the floor. It wasn't supposed to hold up to that kind of abuse."
"Did you forget something?" Daria tried changing the subject.
"My camera." Jane grinned, bringing it up to her eye. "Smile, Amiga!"
"Stop that, you voyeur."
"What? You're not showing anything…well, bare shoulders, and…Trent'sbarebuttbehindyou!"
Daria turned to yell."Tren-!"
"Made you look!" Jane chimped her camera. "Oooh, got some boob in that one!"
"I can't believe I did that," Daria blushed.
"Kidding. Just more of your shoulder. Come on, you guys, finish up and get your butts to the beach."
Helen glanced over at her eldest as they drove north from the airport, the blue Pacific Ocean on their right. She missed seeing her, and the long intervals between their times together had made the changes in her daughter that much more evident.
Each time Daria seemed calmer, more elegant, and in ways difficult to pin down, wiser. The judgemental edge that had been so much of her character seemed muted, if not absent most of the time.
"This place seems to suit you, Sweetie," Helen murmured, the sweet ocean air tossing their hair. "It's incredibly beautiful here."
"Mom?" Kimmy called from the back seat. "Can we stop? I need to go to the bathroom."
"I could use a bathroom break myself," Helen agreed.
Daria scanned the roadside ahead, and pulled off into the parking lot of a small shopping area situated just before the descent into Hanalei valley. It would be a good half hour before they'd arrive at home.
They walked into a little restaurant with a patio. "I'll get a table. Kimmy, would you like a soda?"
"Sure. Thanks, Mom." She led Helen to the restrooms.
Daria ordered two colas and an appropriately touristy umbrella drink for her mother, as well as a few snacks. Dinner wasn't that far away, and Trent would be back from his studio session early enough to help with preparing the meal.
Helen arrived at the table before Kimmy did. "She's such a lovely girl," she said as she picked up her drink with a smile. "Thank you, Sweetie." She wiped off the stem of the little paper umbrella and slipped it into her purse. "I'm saving these for Quinn's girls."
Taking a sip of her Mai Tai, she tilted her head in the direction of the restrooms. "I like the way she calls you Mom. You two seem very close."
Daria smiled softly. "It just kind of happened over time. I told her she didn't have to do that, but it just started happening without either of us thinking too hard about it. Then she noticed herself doing that, and we both kind of smiled at each other, and it's just kind of normal for us now. She really is my daughter to me."
"So I'm not going to nag you about it or anything, but if you and Trent have a child you should think about getting married, if only for practical and bureaucratic reasons."
Helen waited for Daria's reaction- a slight and not entirely resigned nod. "You might want to do this before Kimiko turns eighteen, if you want to formally adopt her." After a moment, she smiled, waiting for Daria's answer.
"Whether or not I get pregnant, I'd like that so Kimmy knows exactly how I feel about her."
Daria looked up as the girl put her arms around her from behind. "I love you too, Mom. Just hurry up already, you're not getting any younger."
Helen couldn't help but to tear up a bit when she saw how Daria returned the girl's affection.
"Mom?" Kimmy was trying to suppress a laugh.
"Hm?"
"Gramma's in the treehouse. I think she's, like, stoned."
"WHAT?" Daria saved her file and managed to scatter a number of papers as she ran out the door.
"HELEN TEMPERANCE MORGENDORFFER, JUST WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING IN THERE?"
"Talking to your father, sweetie." A giggle was heard. "He says he's proud of everyone here, especially you."
"What's Daria yelling about?" Trent stuck his head out of the bedroom door, headphones around his neck.
Jane smirked. "I think she's reading her Mom the riot act for setting a bad example for her Granddaughter."
Kimmy giggled. "She's old. Mom should cut her some slack."
A few minutes later, Daria stalked back into the house. "Just because she's old she thinks she can get away with doing any damn thing she pleases," she muttered to herself.
Kimmy and Jane looked at each other, trying not to crack up.
"Mom, chill out," Kimmy managed to say calmly. "You don't have to worry about me like that. I know better than to partake while I live here. I can wait until after I'm in college to go nuts."
"Maybe I'll sell my loft even if you do go to school in Boston," Daria grumbled. "You are not going to get wasted with your Grandma."
Kimmy gave Daria a reassuring little hug. "Don't worry. If I do wind up in the same town as Grandma I'll ground her if she does stupid stuff." She smiled. "I'll go check on her."
"Maybe I should put a couple of air mattresses under the ladder in case your mom falls out of the tree," Jane suggested.
Daria slapped herself on the forehead. "Dammit! Trent, help me get her out of there."
Kimmy stuck her head back into the kitchen. "Gramma's asleep, Mom." The girl handed Daria her phone. On the screen was a picture of Helen, out cold. There was a smile on her face, and in her fingers was a small photograph of Jake. "I'll take care of her."
Trent took Daria's hand as the girl walked out with a book, climbed into the treehouse and lay down next to her Grandmother.
"Mom, did you know Gramma talks in her sleep?"
"Hm?"
"It's true. If you ask her stuff she answers you."
Daria looked up from her computer. "You can ask her things when she's awake and aware of what she's saying."
"Now where's the fun in that?" Kimmy flashed an impish grin. "Did you really try to give Auntie Quinn to the mailman when you were three?"
"No, I was merely asking how much it would cost to mail her to Australia. I didn't have enough money in my piggy bank, as it turned out."
"Too bad they couldn't come with.
"Maybe later this summer. Or maybe you could go and visit."
"By myself?"
"Why not? It would be an adventure for you. Besides, plane tickets are kind of expensive." Daria saved her files and shut down her laptop. "That's why Auntie Quinn and her family didn't come. Too much money for four tickets, and we don't have the room to accommodate five more people."
"The girls could stay in the treehouse. It's fun out there. Auntie and Uncle could have my room."
"Where would you sleep?"
"There's the daybed, or in Auntie Jane's studio. I could put a sleeping bag out in her office area, 'cause she never uses it."
"Well, that would help with the cost, since they wouldn't have to get a hotel room," Daria agreed. "Maybe we can work something out."