Page 90 of House of Bass

“Oh, I’m sorry. I must have the wrong house.” Harley said hurriedly, pausing for a bit before continuing as the woman assesses her, “I’ll be going, then.”

The woman’s next words stopped her just as she was slowly moving away, “Scarlett will be home soon, come inside.” Not giving her any time to protest, “It’s too dire for a girl to be lurking out in this weather.”

Harley paused once again, more nervous than she had before, picking up at once she was meeting Scarlett’s mother. She followed the woman into her home, immediately embraced the warmth that enveloped her as she stepped inside.

The house felt a lot bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside, but it still felt lived in. Harley could tell immediately it was a home that held a lot of memories. The soft brown and green decor was wholly endearing; from the walls, to the wooden staircase that led upstairs and even the mantle atop a tiny faux fireplace. There were a multitude of framed images of Scarlett and her mother from varying ages. Seeing pictures of them side by side, it was much more telling now that she was her mother; she had her heart shaped face, brown eyes, nose and lips even if not the hair nor dark brown skin.

She picked up one of it, Scarlett couldn't have been any older than eight, hair slightly redder than it was currently, holding ice cream twice the size of her head with such abject concentration that she still possesses till today.

“Honestly wonder where she got such a sweet tooth from, it definitely wasn't from me,” Scarlett’s mum said, a fondness in her eyes and voice.

She handed Harley a steaming hot cuppa, she couldn't be more grateful and proceeded to say that. “You have a lovely home, Miss Argent.” As she led her to the couches in the living room and implored her to sit.

“How long have you and my daughter known one another?” Getting straight to the point, it seemed.

“A few months.”

“The university, I’m assuming?”

“Yeah, I just started.” Awkwardness exuded out of her every second she sat there cradling her cup, focused on trying to give off the right first impression.

“Excuse my prying but I know all the people my daughter calls her friends, even the ones I don’t like, and I have never heard of you before,” she explained, taking a pointed sip out of her own cup of tea. Harley felt a little funny, maybe sad that Scarlett had never spoken to her mother about her.

“No, it’s okay. I understand that entirely, I wish my own mother cared enough to do that,” Harley spilled out rapidly, she felt her cheeks heat up at the oversharing. She said nothing in response and Harley knew she had fucked it already.

The sound of a key jiggling with lock led her attention to the door, a convenient interruption to the staggering conversation that Harley was certain would replay in her mind over and over again, hauntingly. She stood up immediately.

“Mum! Je suis de retour,” Scarlett yelled as soon as she entered. I’m back.

“In here,” her mum yelled back in response.

Scar took off her boots at the entrance and bounced inside. She shrugged off her leather coat and hung it upon the rail behind the door. Her hair a little curlier than usual and being held together by a headband, “The line was genuinely a piss take–” she started rambling without looking up from her phone and Harley coughed a little to get her attention.

Scarlett did a double take, shock marring her face at Harley’s appearance. Instantly, she ran up and locked Harley into a hug that had her struggling to breathe for a second but she hugged her back once she managed to free her arms. Scarlett’s mum watched the both of them in silence and a look in her eye.

“Pourquoi tu ne m'as pas appelé ? Je serais arrivé plus vite.” She whipped her head at her mum, glaring. Why didn't you call me? I would’ve gotten here faster.

Her mother simply shrugged and rolled her eyes. “Et pourquoi enfaîte ? La meuf n'est là que depuis 5 minutes.” What the fuck for? The girl has been here a grand total of five minutes.

Harley watched the whole situation in marvel because she knew if she spoke to her mother in that way, it would've likely ended with a completely different result. She immediately recognised where Scar got her sparkling personality from. She grabbed her by the head and turned it in her direction. “She’s right, I only just got here.”

Scarlett’s smile returned and they shared one together, the rest of the world fading away as they gazed into the eyes of one another. Just seeing her again meant all was right in the world .

“Let me leave you both alone,” Scarlett’s mum said, getting up from the couch.

“I’m not talking to you ever again,” her daughter said to her. Her mum simply laughed and gave her a kiss on the head.

Before she exited the living room, Harley called her back, “Thanks for the tea, Miss Argent.”

“Harley, call me Anaïs,” she responded, giving her a wink as she left for the kitchen. Which was when she realised she had never given her her name so she was aware of who she was the entire time.

Scarlett yelled that she’ll come down to help make dinner later.

“Come with .” Scarlett pulled her up the wooden staircase and once they got to her room she locked the door.

For some reason despite how much time they'd spent together over the last couple months, as she entered Scarlett’s room she felt like she was peeling off another hidden layer of her. It was so different from what she had been expecting. It was startlingly pink. There were some film posters on the wall, her desk filled with makeup neatly on one side of the desk. A small wardrobe that was opened just a little and Harley could see a peak of some of the outfit in there. There was a part of the wall that marked Scarlett at different heights, it stopped at age fourteen which showed the height she was now. Make no mistake, the room was quite small, very in fact, but she made it work to the best of her ability and Harley couldn't help but feel a sense of kinship and pride in that.

“This is…bright,” Harley said, a laugh almost spills out of her.