Lena inhaled sharply at Kiki calling her husband Pete, casting a worried glance toward him and holding her breath. Despite the fact the mug was obscuring most of his face, she could easily read that he was not happy, not one bit, by her use of his nickname. But then Kiki turned her attention back toward her and she gave the woman a half smile, without looking at her at all.
“Very crazy indeed,” she agreed flatly, her headache and the tension in the room making her eyes water. It wasn’t that Peter was being unreasonable, or that she was ungrateful for his presence. But all she really wanted in that moment was for the morning to pass by with as little incidents as possible. If that meant placating Kiki for a bit, so be it. The woman had just come in yesterday and already Helena was in a tug of war between her husband and her old friend.
Peter came by with plates and she offered him a very soft but very grateful, “Thanks honey,” although she was sure that the sentiment completely lost on him. He wasn’t in the mood and she was too tired to pull him aside. Instead she just took her plate and went over to the couch to eat. As far as the conversation went, she had nothing to offer. The topic was Kiki herself and at least that was something the woman was enthusiastic about.