17 Welcome Back, Betha! Wednesday, 25 December 2019 (1/2)

Mrs. Rodriguez felt glad that Betha had joined their Christmas dinner. Every year, she and Apollo celebrated with Gab and Leslie. And now, Betha was a new addition to their family. Despite her not-so-good first impression of Betha, there was something very new to her scent now: her aura had changed.

There was a reason why Mrs. Rodriguez pursued a writing career; she was very good in sensing the good and bad in people. And she used that to turn real characters into fiction and add more to their story. Hence, her well-developed characters and mind-boggling plots had resulted to bestselling fantasy novels. She knew from when she was young that the world was an incredible realm of God's creations, with different series of logical happenings and mind-bending possibilities. For some reason, she had the gift of reading and smelling a human aura. It might sound preposterous and weird like ”Phoebe of Friends” kind of weird, but she knew in her heart that humans exude certain levels of electricity that could be referred to as an electromagnetic field; this was human aura.

When she first met Betha, she saw black, magenta, white, and crystalline colors surrounding her body. It was the first time in her life that she had seen a person emit that kind of aura. And her scent had confirmed that she was one of a kind, because it was a scent of human mixed with some kind of supernatural being that she had no idea was. She new there was something about Betha, and she was scared for her son. But upon seeing her again, the black aura had completely disappeared. She only radiated white and crystalline, still an extremely rare combination of colors, but she sensed pure goodness in Betha than the that first time that she met her; she looked genuine now. And it might have something to do with the fact that she disappeared for months and whatever happened or why it had happened, she felt relieved. At least, she could fully trust her now and could genuinely be happy that she was back.

”I'm glad you're back.” Mrs. Rodriguez uttered as Betha helped her put the dishes in the kitchen sink. Gab, Leslie, and Apollo's laughter could be heard from the dining table as they talked about the time when they played the three musketeers.

Betha couldn't help but giggle at the three and she was very appreciative to hear Mrs. Rodriguez say those words. ”I'm glad that you're glad.” She smiled.

”You don't have to do that, Betha. You're our guest. You're special. You don't have to help with the dishes.” Apollo suddenly commented as he stood from his chair and approached the two most important women in his life.

”It's okay. I just put them in the sink.” Betha responded.

”Baby, she's not our guest anymore. Yes, she is still special, but let's consider her family. She can roam around or go frolicking inside this house just like Gab always does. And just like Leslie used to do when she was very young and always playing detective. Betha is welcome here anytime like it's her own house, so let's make her comfortable,” said Mrs. Rodriguez.

Apollo and Betha looked at each other with joy in their faces. ”Wow, mom. Don't make me shed tears. It's Christmas.” He said, jokingly.

”I feel so honored, Mrs. Rodriguez.” Betha said.

”I thought I mentioned to you before that you could call me mom.”

”You never even asked Gab and Leslie to call you mom before,” said Apollo.

”I did but you were such a jealous little boy. You didn't want anyone else calling me mom, so Gab and Leslie never did.”

”Okay, you're making up stories now.”

”Nope. I'm telling the truth. And you know that.”

Apollo looked embarrassed. ”Fine.”

Betha and Mrs. Rodriguez let out a silent laugh. ”I guess it's going to be hard to get used to it, but I'll try,” said Betha.

”Trying is good. I like that,” said Mrs. Rodriguez.

Gab and Leslie rose from their seats. ”This was the best meal, Andrea. I've always loved the way you cook.”

Leslie slightly pushed Gab by the shoulder for calling her Andrea.

”Gab, I swear. If you call my mom by her name again, you're not invited for New Year's Eve.” Apollo said, looking disgusted.

Mrs. Rodriguez laughed. ”Do you now see how possessive you are, my dear?”