Bette glanced at her Palm Pilot, and then at Angelica. "So, tell me, what's this Andrea Hamilton like?"

Angelica, seated in her crib and surrounded by her stuffed toys, ignored her.

Bette picked up the phone, and dialled.

"I'm sorry, you've dialled the wrong number." Was the answer to the phonecall.

Bette frowned. "Andrea Hamilton, please?"

"May I know who's calling?"

"Um... Bette Porter." Bette said hesitantly.

"I don't know any Bette -- oh. Oh! Porter, huh?" Andrea paused. "Angelica's mom?"

What do you know. Tina really did use Angelica Kennard-Porter. "Yes."

"Oh. Crap, sorry about that."

"It's no problem." Bette said. "Tina told me you needed a resource person about art?"

"Huh? Oh, that. Stupid guidance counselor." Andrea muttered. "Right. Hold on."

Bette listened as there was some shuffling, and things dropping to the floor, and finally Andrea returned to the line.

"Right. You're currently dean, right?"

"Art College LA, yes."

"Why you?"

"Well, I was the Art Director for the California Arts Center -- The CAC -- for a few years. And before that I owned my own gallery."

"Any money in that?"

"Some." Bette admitted. "Takes a while, and it can be disappointing sometimes, when it's not working out."

"Okay, um... hey, it's Friday. So Angie's with you, huh?"

"Yup."

"Funny, TK went out and was back quickly."

Really. Bette realized the potential of befriending Tina's teenage neighbor.

"Okay." Andrea paused. "What happened to lead you to where you are now?"

I cheated on Tina, unraveling our happy relationship to the point that she began to question herself and her relationship with me and I'm too ill-equipped to properly respond to what she wants from me. But I'm willing to try because when we're being honest about our relationship I'm hopeless without her.

Bette glanced in Angelica's direction. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I mean, what did you study, what do you think you should've studied, that kind of things."

"Oh." Bette could answer that, too. "I studied Art History. My mother was a fan of art, and she raised me to have a passion for it. I also like the idea that everything has a story behind it."

"Yale, right? Tina makes fun of Angelica and calls her a potential Yalie whenever she bumps into something."

Bette frowned, and wondered why that was so. "Yes. Yale."

"Okay, so Art History. And I guess you took your masters."

"Uh huh."

"Then what?"

"Got some jobs, apprenticed for different curators and directors. After a while people started hiring me as a freelance curator, built up my name."

"Uh huh. Are you an artist?"

"Not really, no."

"How can anyone 'not really' be an artist?"

"I don't do it professionally."

"What medium?"

"Photography, mostly. Some pen and paper, but that's not the point."

"No muse?"

"What?"

"No muse." Andrea repeated. "I get that."

"No, that's not it." Bette frowned. This kid was getting to her nerves, calling her out even on the phone. Kind of reminded her of Alice.

"Anyway, okay, so you've built your name. Then what?"

So haphazard. Reminded her of Tina. "Then I put up my own gallery."

"Just like that?"

"Took a while, but I've been saving up for it since I could remember." Bette admitted.

"Okay, but since you no longer work as a gallery owner I assume it failed your expectations.