"Auntie Lia." Aurelia snorted with laughter. "At least I'm somebody's aunt I guess." She continued laughing.
"I'd better go get some sleep or I'll be dead tired for this shoot in the morning. Text me if there are any problems, okay?"
"I will," Aurelia agreed. She watched her friend head down the front steps and over to her own house. "Alright, Ms. Bella, what should we do? Treat first or play outside? Hmmm?"
Bella yipped and ran into the kitchen, her little feet scrabbling on the flooring as she skidded to a stop in front of the counter where the cookie jar sat.
Aurelia laughed. "Treat it is." She pulled the jar over and grabbed a treat, making Bella sit before giving it to her, then took her outside for a little play session. "Listen, I have an appointment in about an hour, so I'm going to have to leave you for a bit, okay?" she told the dog as they re-entered the house. "Do you want to watch some tv while I'm gone?"
She grabbed the bag Bella had left and pulled the large dog pillow from it and set it on the floor in the living room, then turned the tv on to Animal Planet. Bella ran over and sat down, her attention on the screen.
Aurelia smiled. "Okay, be a good baby and I'll be back to make us dinner soon, okay?" She grabbed her purse and house keys then headed out.
Two hours later, after her therapy appointment, her fourth, she returned home and found Bella still seated on her pillow, her eyes fixed on the tv screen. She barked as the bear on the screen grabbed a fish out of a stream.
"Good show, Bella?" Aurelia laughed.
She made dinner and set Bella's in her bowl by the back door, while she ate at the table. She'd been really good about eating healthier meals and increasing her exercise to regain her strength. Later that night, with Bella tucked into the bed next to her, Aurelia opened her text messages from her mother. She'd taken to heart what Daniel had said about limiting her time talking to her mother. She didn't ignore her texts completely, she'd read the beginnings of each, just to make sure it wasn't a real emergency, but seeing they weren't, she shut them off to be dealt with later. Unfortunately, it was now 'later', so she opened them up completely and started reading them over.
Each text was more and more nagging, telling her she HAD to come back home to Portland, forget her job and come back home. The most recent though was the most concerning.
Aurelia Louise! Answer me, young lady! Even Marcus is getting concerned that you haven't been in contact with me in two weeks! ~ Mother
What the hell was she doing talking to Marcus? Had she told him where she was? Were they planning something behind her back? Aurelia bit her lip in worry. She could feel her heartbeat begin to speed up and she quickly did her breathing exercises to bring it back down.
Finally, she calmed down enough to send a return message to her mother.
I am fine, Mother. I've been busy trying to heal from the Pericarditis and with work. No need to be concerned. Do Not Tell Marcus where I am. ~ Aurelia
It is about time you messaged me back, Aurelia Louise, I could be lying dead at the bottom of the stairs for all you care. You need to come home. This little adventure of yours needs to end. Come back where you belong. Marcus misses you and I need you here. ~ Mother
Aurelia sighed. Once again, her mother wasn't listening.
If you were lying dead at the bottom of the stairs you wouldn't be blowing up my phone with messages. Of course, I would care if that actually happened, but it hasn't. No, I'm not coming back to Portland. I like it here. I like my job and my house. I have friends here. And I don't give a flying fig what Marcus misses. Under no circumstances are you allowed to give him my address. ~ Aurelia
And what about me? What am I supposed to do? I don't know why I even bother; you don't care. You just do whatever you want, and don't care that I'm sick in bed, worrying about where my next meal is going to come from. Marcus cares, he comes by, checks on me, makes sure I'm eating. But do you care? NO. You would let me starve! ~ Mother
Mother, you are a grown woman, fully capable of feeding yourself, and you aren't on your death bed. You aren't even sick! If Marcus is coming by, he's up to something. Do Not Tell Him Where I Am! I'm going to bed. Good night, Mother. ~ Aurelia
Aurelia quickly muted her mother's texts, so she'd no longer hear her phone ping as she attempted to engage her in a word war. She always felt so drained after talking to her mother. It didn't matter if it was on the phone, through texts or even in person, but thankfully her mother was thousands of miles away and that wasn't going to happen any time soon.