Nina slowed her pace on the treadmill. Gyming was one of her routines since her college days. So, she created an indoor one for herself in her home. She pulled her airpods out, once she got to her bedroom, placing them next to her phone on the glass table.

"6:39" she mouthed, flicking her phone screen off. Nina went into her walk-in closet, picking out an outfit for the day. She settled with the white camisole, black office pants and a jacket, laying them on her bed.

Water from the shower dripped down her straight black hair, and onto her creamy skin. She let the heat warm her up before lathering and washing up.

Nina had a meeting with her late husband's lawyer that morning. The will still hadn't been read. For some weird unknown reasons, Mr. LeClaire wanted his will read a year after his death.

                       ***✴️***

Nina walked through the familiar doors of the LeClaire winery. She adored the company, but couldn't help how lonely she felt. She wanted to return to the Philippines, probably start a business there too. She missed her hometown.

Mr. Pierre was waiting for her in front of her office.

"Bonjour, Mr. Pierre"

"Bonjour, Nina"

"Pouvons-nous commencer la reunion?" Mr. Pierre asked
[Can we start the meeting?]

"Oui, s'il vous plait" Nina replied.
[Yes, please]

She sat on a swivel chair across Mr. Pierre who seemed so engrossed with the papers in his hands. His glasses hung low on his nose as he peered into some paper documents.

"It's over a year already" He started

"...I wanted to know when would be most convenient for you to have the will read"

"Hmm... Some people still need to be present, but they aren't at the moment." Nina replied.

"A month from now would be fine though, they should be down here for my birthday. We could have it there." She added.

"In a month, yeah? That's just fine, I'll schedule it." Mr. Pierre said pushing the documents into his suitcase.

"I would be on my way now. Do have a lovely day." He said while leaving her office.

"I hope!" Nina whispered, looking at her watch.

"7:20, the event planner would be here soon" she thought

                       ▪️▪️▪️

Leal combed Ashley's hair down her back, just like Aubrey's. Then she put identical hairbands on them to match their yellow sundresses.

The twins picked up their backpacks and skipped down the stairs, to the kitchen for breakfast. Leal walked behind them, smiling at how softly their hairs swished behind them.

They got to the kitchen and took seats around the granite-topped island. They preferred eating there on school days.

Leal had sliced the boiled eggs, tomatoes and lettuce before she went to help the twins prepare. She added the cream to the mixture and put some into each of the warmed baguettes for them. She placed the sandwiches in their plates along side their orange juices, while she made a cup of coffee for herself.

"7:36" she whispered to herself while rushing her breakfast.

"Drop them off before 8, then the shelter by 1, stop by the grocery store, get some books from the bookstore, ..." muttering to herself.

"Mum!! Let's go, we don't want to be late." Ashley whined while passing Aubrey the plates to dry

"How did you finish so... Ughh, give me a minute" Leal rinsed her cup in the sink, then arranged all the plates in the rack. She dried her hands with a serviette, tossing it into the dustbin.

"Now, I'm ready." She pulled out muffins and juice boxes from the cupboard for them.

"We can go" Leal said, straightening the creases on her white floral gown while picking her handbag from the counter.

The twins put their snacks in their bag before heading to the door.

"One more thing" Aubrey paused, halfway through the door.
She ran back to the kitchen, opened the fridge and took a handful of strawberries from the pack. She popped one into her mouth before getting back to them.

"Now, we can go" she mumbled making them laugh.

                       ***✴️***

Leal dropped the twins off at school and watched them run through the gates before she drove off. The shelter home was barely a mile away from their school.

She pulled up at the car park and walked into the white house. It seemed rowdier than normal.

"Oh, Leal... Thank God you are here" Mrs. Reneé gave her a warm hug, long enough for Leal to get the scent of her perfume.

"Umm... Is anything going on here?" Leal said taking in her surrounding.

"Oui, oui. In fact, you came in at the right time." She continued pulling her towards the hall.

"The new mayor's wife is coming here! Not like she hasn't been here, or doesn't visit or something... But we have to look presentable! Spectacular!" Mrs. Reneé sighed exasperatingly.

"Can someone get those ones that just arrived new clothes or something. They don't have to look tattered and hagged" She lamented, speaking to no one in particular.

"Okay... Relax... Let's breathe together, just like we always do" Leal held her shoulders assuringly.

"In" they inhaled together

"Out" exhaling

"In"

And out." She looked a lot calmer now.

"I'm sure the mayor's wife would love this place. I mean, of course, it's a shelter home, she doesn't expect them all dolled up in suits and ball dresses!"

"... And you're such an amazing shelter director, she would love you." Leal calmed her fixing a strand of her strayed grey hair back in place.

"Oh Leal, what would I ever do without you." Mrs. Reneé gave her a quick hug.

"And please, check the children section. They could be a handful sometimes. The mayor's wife would be here any minute" She said as she walked away, letting her grey hair bounce gracefully.

"Sure, I will." Leal said chuckling more to herself than her friend that was almost out of earshot.

She loved Mrs. Reneé, she gave her the homey feeling (the way she felt with her mum) though she could be histrionic most of the time. She was the only one who knew her in the shelter, her source of advice. Mrs. Reneé was in her late 50's. She lived in the next town with her husband and son, but she still managed to get to the shelter early every morning. She had been her friend since she came to the shelter, the closest thing to her best friend, Santana.

She missed the occasional sleepovers she had with Santana while in college. The coffee shop and muffin treats in nursing school too.

"Too bad she had to go back to Philippines after graduation. Oh well seems like everyone leaves me one way or the other" Leal thought with a sad smile.

~~~~~

Finallllllyyy🥺🥺 Another chapter of #TBC is out. Don't forget to click on that little star🤗