Page 14 of Fragile Touch (Fragile 1)
Frantically, she ran through the house searching for her little speaker. It was on a low shelf in the hall closet. She turned it on to see how much battery was left. Half. That was plenty. Grabbing her phone, she connected it and instantly the energy of the house shifted.
Why don’t I use this more often? she wondered. This is really nice. Acoustic guitar sounds floated through the air and tickled her skin.
Amelia had loved, and still loved, music like this.
Feeling herself entering the memory again, she lowered herself onto the couch and lay down on her side, hugging a pillow. Black Cat jumped up and curled up between her legs and the back of the sofa.
Flaunt it while you’ve got it. She hadn’t thought of it like that before.
The night had come quicker than ever before. It seemed the more she wished it wouldn’t arrive the more time sped up, and suddenly it was 10 p.m.
“Time to go down!” Amelia’s voice echoed through the apartment.
Lillian thought about hiding, but knew it was a ridiculous thought.
She heard Amelia’s footsteps coming closer, the rapid tap tap tap of her heels against the fake wooden floorboards. Her roommate stopped at the door. “Where’s your makeup?”
Lillian shrank back. “I...don’t know.”
“Girl, you can’t go down on a Saturday night with no makeup. It’s part of the ritual, not because you don’t look good enough already.” She hopped forward and pulled Lillian to her feet, then pu
shed her into the bathroom. Before Lillian knew what was happening, Amelia was stretching her eyelid upward.
“Don’t blink,” she commanded, and proceeded to layer mascara onto Lillian’s eyelashes.
“I can’t remember the last time I wore makeup,” Lillian murmured, embarrassed. “Maybe last month.”
“That’s what happens when you stay up here all the time, working on whatever you’re doing.”
Lillian frowned. “I do leave the apartment, you know. Like a normal human being.”
“Yeah, but you don’t have a boyfriend, so there’s no reason for you to put on makeup.” Amelia winked. Lillian opened her mouth to protest, but her roommate interrupted her before she could say anything. “I know, I know. You put on makeup for yourself, not for a guy. But the guy definitely helps, since there are dates involved.”
“Can’t argue with that,” replied Lillian.
“Dates...among other things involved. Like leaving a lipstick smudge. Or ring.” She winked wickedly.
With a joking gasp, Lillian gently pushed her roommate back. “You’re scandalous! Get out of my house.”
“Who knows, maybe tonight will be your lucky night! Pucker your lips. You’re wearing this red color tonight.”
“Oh, stop it. I’m just going down to have a drink with you. I don’t have time for guys.”
Sitting back to observe her three-minute makeup job, Amelia’s pleased expression slowly melted into a smirk. “We’ll see about that.”
And something did happen that night.
Lillian tugged herself back into the present. She still lay on her side, feeling the heat from Black Cat’s sleeping body warm her legs. When she propped herself up on her elbow, a tear fell from the corner of her eye.
The memories kept trying to push themselves into her mental vision, but she shoved them back down. What should have been a fun night turned out to be a time that still caused her pain. If she managed to go a day without letting her mind wander into the past, she considered it a victory. Today was not a victory; any memory of Amelia ripped open old wounds.
“I don’t know if I’ll ever get over it,” she whispered to the air, so softly she couldn’t even hear herself. She sat up and pulled Black Cat onto her lap, hugging him tightly. He looked at her sleepily with his lemon-yellow eyes.
She wished she could call Amelia. If she could just have another phone call with her, she wouldn’t be afraid anymore. She would tell her about Cayden, about his yard and how he made hers so pretty last time; of course, Amelia would ask about his body first and his personality second.
And crap, would they be able to talk about his body for quite some time.
Drops began to gather in the front of her eyes again, so she looked to the ceiling to drain them back down. Black Cat was still staring at her face. He blinked lazily.
