A confrontation

“Hi,” Natasha was clad in a pair of tight, faded denims and a baby-blue tee shirt when she appeared in the entrance to the kitchen a few minutes later, and she had obviously run a comb through her blonde, wet hair.

“Hello,” Henry said, and then made Natasha feel a lot happier by actually lifting his gaze from the floor to look at her.

“Sarah got to school okay?” Natasha felt nervous as she moved into the kitchen.

“Yes,” Henry again thought back to the question that his daughter had asked him. He’d be hearing it again and again later on as he tried to fall asleep, that much he was certain of.

“Good,” Natasha bit her lip and nodded her head, feeling like an idiot.

“Yes,” Henry said again, his mind racing as he tried to come up with something to say.

“I’ll change the sheets before I leave.” Natasha said, not exactly having an easy time keeping their conversation going herself.

“No need, I’ll do it.”

“Please, it’s no problem.” Natasha insisted, trying not to be too obvious about how she was looking at him.

“Henry,” Natasha had turned back round to head out through the doorway again, but suddenly she found the courage required to spin around on her naked feet and be at least a little daring, “I don’t have to leave straight away…”

“What?” Henry had been relieved when Natasha didn’t quit her job and chastised him for being a dirty old man, but now he was downright stunned.

“You know, we never get the chance to talk when Sarah’s not around, and I just thought that it might be… nice.” Natasha suddenly felt as though she was going to sink through the floor, and would have preferred it that way.

“Alright.” Henry surprised even himself with his response.

“Really?” Natasha looked very happy and very surprised.

“Yes,” Henry still had a hard time thinking of things to say, and he found it hard to imagine what their imminent conversation might sound like.

Natasha was so relieved by Henry’s positive response that she was almost dazed and had no real idea of what she was going to say next as she walked across the kitchen.

“Henry,” Natasha had surprised Henry by not taking a seat by the kitchen table, instead coming up so that she was now standing less than a foot away from him, “when you said that you’d be sorry to loose me…”

“Yes?” Henry looked at Natasha, trying not to stare.

“Well,” Natasha swallowed hard and then looked up at him, meeting his gaze and not allowing him to look away, “I’m just wondering if it’s just because of Sarah, that’s all.”

“What?”

“When I move away,” Natasha struggled hard both to find the right words and to try and hold back the conviction that she was acting like an idiot, “will you miss me? Not because I’m good with Sarah, but because of, well, me…?”

“I…” it took Henry several seconds to come up with his answer.