All That Matters

07 | Molding and Bonding

"The Momettes are reunited, and no need to ask, you already know. It feels so, so good." Yasmine smiled into the lens of her camera.

"That name is so stupid." Mila rolled her eyes with a laugh as she moved out of the frame.

"Help me with this?" Yasmine completely ignored Mila as she gestured for her to hand over the tripod on her way to the pantry.

"What's the Momettes?" Wes asked with a smile, happy and enthusiastic to be around his sister and her friends. He was always excited to be in on girl talk, and if it was appropriate, Mila always let him be. It was also cool to him to be in the budding company of Yasmine since he was only used to seeing her face through a phone screen.

"Our group name. The Alvin and the Chipmunks series is my favorite and the girl group is called the Chipettes, so I switched it to fit us. I'm Eleanor, Jilly's Jeanette, and Ms. Attitude over there is definitely Brittany." Yasmine sent a loving smile Mila's way as she paid them no attention and walked into the in-home convenience store to find something to snack on.

"I can see that." She faintly heard her little brother and Jilly agree as she chose to temporarily fill her stomach with a bag of jalapeño chips. She rushed to get back to her phone and sat in the huddle they'd created at Yasmine's island countertop.

"Speaking of," Yasmine sighed contently, a smile resting on her face as her eyes twinkled. "Clay and I are thinking of Theodore for our son's name. Theo for short."

"Girl, stop it." Jilly chuckled as she folded her arms against the cold marble.

Mila closed her phone before sitting it down, "No, forreal though, Yas. Has it even been two weeks yet of you knowing him?"

"Yes but I never said it was happening soon! It just came up in conversation during one of our dates." She lightheartedly shrugged her shoulders as she reached behind her and into the cabinets to grab four wine glasses.

"Was he able to top the mini golf date?" Mila asked with laughter behind her voice. Every time she and Clay went out, Yasmine deemed each date an irreplaceable experience, yet he was able to replace it each time.

"Yes! Ah!" She squealed as she swiftly pivoted to the refrigerator for the bottle of Rosé. "We went to this restaurant where we ate in the dark. It was so cute. I don't know how he finds these places."

"That is pretty romantic." Jilly smiled before taking a sparkling sip. "How did the topic of kids come up, though? Does he have any?"

"No, but I was talking about Halle, as usual, and he said that our genes would make the most ethereal baby. A boy of course, since we'd already have a girl." Yasmine's smile remained as she moved around her kitchen and occasionally checked her camera to make sure it was still recording. She went on and on for a while about her blossoming romance with the guy who she believed to be her dream guy.

Mila didn't want to be a projector or be a nuisance, so she didn't mention her concerns. She hoped that Yasmine was being smart and careful and not falling for the first guy she entertained after her boyfriend's death.

So she simply smiled and wished her the best with her new relationship.

"Wait, Mila, what about you and Clay's bestie?" Jilly slowly turned to Mila while Wes' neck snapped in her direction.

"Girl, after the party they were talking right in front of my door. Caught it all on the Ring camera so you can't deny it." Yasmine didn't have to look up from the red pepper flakes to know that Mila held some type of caught face. She didn't like to be put out on front street, but as friends, Yasmine believed that they should share everything.