Page 1 of Fragile Touch (Fragile 1)
Chapter 01
April 4 (Day 103)
Black coffee, blue mug
Organic granola, yellow bowl
Banana
Large spoonful of peanut butter
Lillian sat back and sighed, her eyes glued to the paper. “I should probably take more precise measurements,” she muttered to herself, adding a check mark beside the listing for granola. “Granola was fine, so was banana and peanut butter, but coffee? Definitely not.” Next to that one, she put a big black X. “I’ll have to figure out how I can drink coffee without it upsetting my tummy,” she said, looking at her cat as if he understood.
The cat just stared back with his usual unimpressed expression.
“Lunchtime for you, isn’t it?”
This time he did understand, and peeled himself off the kitchen table. He was a massive cat, and when he leapt off the table he landed with a heavy thud.
Lillian looked outside. The sun was shining, but dark storm clouds were beginning to darken the sky in the distance. “I think it’s going to storm, Black Cat,” she told the animal again. The sound of cat food clattering in the bowl brought the other feline running full speed into the kitchen, skidding to a stop in front of the other bowl.
“You’ve got some, too, don’t worry.” Another scoop, another clatter, and both cats were happily chowing down on their food like they hadn’t eaten in years. She looked back outside at the gently swaying treetops. “Hopefully this storm will stop what’s-his-name from having a crazy concert next door again.”
Who am I kidding? she thought. He’s going to have those parties, rain or shine. Weather can’t put a damper on fun, I guess.
Her gaze settled on the corner of the living room, where several thick blankets were nestled snugly in a huge comfy chair. A matching ottoman sat in front of the chair, and she felt herself being beckoned to the corner to spend some quality time with her current novel. Or, rather, the three she was reading at the same time.
Later, later. There was work to do around here, and she couldn’t get distracted. The sun was shining and she wanted to go on her walk before the rain came. Reading and hot tea would happen then.
After checking to make sure the litter box was clean, she pulled on her shoes and slipped out the back door. Quietly.
Everything was quiet, even how she gingerly closed the screen door and stepped lightly across her back porch.
It was always quiet. Lillian hated noise. She liked her life discreet and safe, especially now that she was figuring out how her new diagnosis was affecting her. Spontaneity was the last thing she wanted in her life at this moment.
Afternoon walks through the forest were her solace. Back in college, she had a couple of friends she would hike with on the weekends. They always talked about how lonely they’d be in nature if they didn’t have someone to be with. Lillian always thought she would like it better without other voices interrupting her thoughts and the sounds of nature.
Now there were no voices to disturb her meandering, and she relished the silence. It’s not that she hated people. She did like people; after all, her job was all about helping people. But she rarely let anyone into her inner life. Keeping a distance was her forte. A friendly distance...most of the time.
Thinking about it, her bitchy moments weren’t uncommon, only occurring when incompetent people were involved in the situation. A lot of people were incompetent, though.
Lillian took a deep breath and tilted her head back, feeling her neck muscles stretching. Oh, the only thing that could make this day perfect is if I could sleep without the pounding bass from next door.
