Little Loving Lies

Participants:

joanna_icon.gif tasha_icon.gif

Scene Title Little Loving Lies
Synopsis Mother and daughter lie out of love while planning for the future and hiding past secrets.
Date August 31, 2010

Joanna's Office


Joanna's face is buried, in paperwork, files, folders, thick books which on their side are twice the thickness of her wrist. Deep in the throes of a case and Tasha knows well what this means. Late nights at the office, take out for dinner, three am creep in's and 6 am mad dashes for the office.

What Tasha doesn't know is that this is a result of Colette's visit and her mother has been throwing herself into her work with the energy and ardor that she hasn't really show since those early years. The years where Tasha had a babysitter after school and the weeknights were tuck in's done over the phone and sung in a soft voice so that her co-workers wouldn't hear her and make comments about whether she needs to be at home.

Reading glasses are pulled off her nose, blinking her eyes from staring too long at papers, the dark haired woman in her red lips, blush and heavy mascara pausing only to sip from a long cold cup of coffee in it's cardboard cup and screw up her face when it's potency and temperature screw with her tastebuds.

It's an unannounced visit on Tasha's part. She slips in just as the secretaries are leaving, getting hugs and kisses from those who have known her half her life, before heading down the hall to her mother's office. She carries a courier bag full of art supplies and books over one shoulder, her other hand holding a bag of deli takeout. She's dressed like a grown-up today, or at least a college student rather than a pre-teen boy, which she hopes her mother will appreciate: a brown skirt, knee-high brown boots, a purple sweater and a yellow scarf tied around her neck. She hopes the scarf looks cute and stylish and not like she's trying to hide something — which of course she is.

"Hey, Mom," Tasha says more brightly then she feels, before she arches a brow at the evidence that her mother's been working much too hard. "Uh oh, rough case?" She slides into one of the visitor seats, only too aware that the last time she sat here spelled disaster for the broken little family of Renard-Lazzaros.

"Natasha"

'Maybe, possibly, one that needs just a bit more attention. Have you decided whether we're going to actually go on a cruise with your girlfriend or not?" Not a peep spoken about Colette other than girlfriend but Joanna does lift her head from the stacks of work to carefully scour her daughter visually. The hazel eye's have something in common with her fathers, at least in this moment by the way she seems to be focusing on any little mark, bruise, bump, distortion out of place, you name it. "What did you bring?" Satisfied, giving not a hint otherwise that she may know something is up with the outfit and in particular the scarf, Jo turns her cheek just so. Indication that she wants a kiss from her daughter.

Tasha chuckles, and drops her book bag on the ground, the food on the desk, then leans across to kiss her mother's cheek. "Deli. It's day two of classes today at Parsons. It was pretty good. I think I'll like it a lot, and most people just think I'm a first-year freshman, so I don't feel like I need to explain anything, you know? They just think I'm advanced and smart or something." She smirks a little.

"I brought it up but I don't know if she can get it off work and I don't think she wants to leave Tamara behind. If we got in October, I can go, though." She won't go in November — she won't be that far away from Colette. She rummages in the bag, pulling out the sandwiches, pickles, chips, and bottles of Diet Coke.

"Can't her father take Tamara in for the week or so?" As if Tamara were some pet or some such to be sorted about and passed around when going on vacation. "If he can't, I don't see why I can't add another ticket. If she so desperately wants her with you" Space is cleared on her desk for the vittles, declinging to knock everything to the side with a grandiose sweep of her arm. That wouldn't be in keeping with Joanna's decorum. Instead things are plucked up and piled on the floor in neat piles to be put back up after the meal has ended.

Carbonation hisses when Joanna unscrews a cap, requiring the hit of caffeine to fortify her. "Other than classes, how are things with you and Colette. I haven't seen you in two weeks. I've left many messages. I hope that I didn't… offend, with the family lunch the other week"

"We're fine," Tasha says, reaching for her sandwich and busying herself with the task of unwrapping, eyes down until the sandwich is clear of paper. Her pickle is separated next, and she brings it to her lips to crunch a bite, chewing for a moment before speaking again.

"Everything's fine. I'm sorry I didn't return your calls. I lost my cell phone for a few days, but I found it again. It was in the laundry room," she offers, a rambling of words offered through a mouthful of cucumber. "I got the DVD you sent, too. That was nice of you."

The DVD of her father playing the bass in a rock band during his college years had been waiting at Gun Hill when Tasha made it back from Staten. She has yet to share it with Colette or anyone else, and has yet to really register much about it. That her mother wants her to realize Vincent was once human is clear — whether she believes it or not is not.
"Your father has yet to reply to it. I would bet the farm he thinks I'm trying to blackmail him or something" There's a twitch of a brow that suffices as evidence that she has thought of that at least. "Strange, what we do when we're young" And carefree, and childless and unhindered by the world and it's revelations that come day to day.

"Lost your phone in the laundry room?" Joanna's taking up half of her own sandwich, pausing to decimate half a pickle and a sip from the coke while fingers pry at a desk drawer to slap down some cruise pamphlets and flip to the appropriate month on her calendar. "Choose one, where you want to go. Colette seems the type of girl who might enjoy warmer climes as opposed to Norwegian or Alaskan cruises"

"I set it on the dryer and the dryer shook it off in the nether-regions between the washer and the dryer and someone found it just on Saturday," Tasha mutters through a mouthful of chicken salad. She reaches for the pamphlets. "God, no cold weather cruises. I don't want to see snow until at least December if we can help it, and preferably have spring thaw by early March and the shortest winter known to Manhattan if at all possible."

She flips through them, and shakes her head. "Where do you want to go? Jamaica, mon? Mejico?" She shrugs. "Wherever you want. I don't think Colette'll be picky. She hasn't really done anything like this before, so anything is good."
"Mexico I think" Is her daughter lying to her again? Colette's words from the previous week, of Tasha having gotten hurt, quite possibly seriously. Irritation shows on her face but over what and why, remains a mystery. "A short one, a week, not too far to fly to" Joanna murmurs, plucking out three of the pamphlets to draw attention to them. Second to last week of october?"

The irritation on Joanna's face pulls a frown from Tasha, but she takes another bite of her sandwich and chews slowly, nodding at the question. "I'll talk to my teachers on Wednesday and see if I can swing it," she says. "It should be fine … I mean, if I know it's coming up and work ahead of schedule so I'm not behind on any projects."

She opens her soda and takes a sip, her eyes darting down and then back up. "Have you talked to Dad at all? I mean… since the last time I saw him."
"No, he's been busy, like i've been busy. With the registration deadline tomorrow, I'm sure that he has been busy ensuring that everything is in place to begin enforcing the requirements" Another bite of the sandwich, thoughtfully chewing. "I'll book us, three of us, to the Mexican one for the… last week of October. More than enough time and if needs be, your father and I can surely lean on someone" Make it happen.

"Just… you know, I haven't told them they're going, so make sure they're not non-refundable, 'cause if Tamara or Colette don't want to go, I don't want you to be out of money for it, you know?" Tasha says, still uncertain about the Tamara aspect, and if Colette will want to go. "I'm not sure she can get work off, either, and you leaning on people doesn't help for jobs like courier services, you know?" She brings her thumb up to chew on the nail.

Regarding her father, Tasha shrugs. "I'm sure he'll be busy for a long time due to that stupid law," she mutters, unable to quite contain her political stance on the Registration.

"It's just a favor or two, it's not like I'd go down and threaten to call down who knows who in city council regarding ordinances and permits unless they let you or her, have time off." Joanna speaks around a mouthful of sandwich even as she's digging up the address of one of the cruise lines to check prices."I promise, that I will keep my nose out of it all, you have the dates, you know what they are and there is more than enough time to work around things. COnsider it my housewarming to the both of you" as if a credit card, A/C and furniture weren't

"Well, thank you. Maybe you should bring a friend, too, so you're not, like, bored with a bunch of teenagers," Tasha says with a warm smile for her mother. Joanna means well, and it's important to her, so the rush of love and affection that Tasha feels is sincere, and not at all necessary to hide as she beams at her mother. She also doesn't note that Tamara isn't a teenager technically. "Is there someone from work or anything that might wanna go with us? I don't want you to be bored and I know you'll insist I go spend time with the others, and you'll insist you're fine without us, even if the whole point is for me to spend time with you." She takes another bite of her sandwich, then frowns as a bit of chicken plops in her lap. "Dammit."

"I'll think on it, if there's someone who might want to go" Odds are, no, there's no one that she can think of to bring. "I don't have much tome tonight honey" finishing up her own sandwich with a voracity that nearly if not actually advertised the amount of hunger that mommy dearest was experiencing. "Are you going back to staten island or will you be staying at Solstice?"

"Staten?" Tasha says, glancing up with wide eyes, then blinking and shaking her head, as she reaches for a napkin to blot at the chicken on her skirt. "Crap, now I look like I peed my pants or something." An attempt at humor.

"I'm going back to the apartment, not Staten. I might help out there at the orphanage a couple of days a week, to teach art to the kids, maybe, if I can work it with my schedule at school," she babbles a bit, as she wads up the napkin and tosses it in a trash can. Her sandwich half done, she wraps the rest up. "I'll get out of your hair."

Caught her. Got her off kilter. Joanna watches her daughter babble and get a bit flustered. "I have a skirt, tucked away, you should be able to wear it till you get back home, just ask Justine, she'll dig it up from wherever she's hung it up. Make sure to drop it off so it can be cleaned again, if you take it" Joanna offers her daughter. "I love you bee bottom, you know that right?"

"It's okay. It's not so bad," Tasha says, glancing at the stain and shrugging. She grabs the wrapped sandwich and hops out of the chair, moving to hug her mother tightly. "I know." The term of endearment throws her back to Staten, recovering in the Nature Center, hearing it in a Russian accent of all things, from Sasha.

She kisses Joanna's cheek, and sighs. "I got homework. So weird to say that again. I better get. You have homework, too. Love you." One more kiss, for good measure, and Tasha's heading for the door.
'Yes indeed, homework" A gesture to the screen with the chosen dates on the screen, an ungodly calculation in cost for the three of them. "Get. Call if you need help, I'll be here until just before curfew" Murmured, dropping her arms from the hug and letting her daughter go. 'Give my regards to Colette and Tamara"

"Stupid curfew," Tasha says with a shake of her head. Another stupid law that might be well intending but oppresses in the end. "So early. Our economy isn't bad enough, right? You be careful, too. And thanks… for the cruise and since it started this week, again, for school. You're the best." Tasha wants her mother to know she's appreciated and loved, even when Tasha doesn't always say so. She pulls the door shut behind her, ready to go home to read her homework and get a good night's sleep.


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