"And the Christmas lights serve to remind us to provide light to others during the holiday season and throughout the rest of the year. Sometimes it's hard to remain on our path, and the light shows us the way, even in the darkest of times."
"And wh...
Angela wasn't much for alcohol, but waking up had her feeling like she'd spent the night drinking her cares away and was suffering for it now. For once, Delilah listened to her and was not in the apartment when she emerged from her bedroom. Good; let her stay away. Let them all stay away. They were better off that way anyway.
With a pounding headache, she readied herself for another day of retail at Christmastime, yet deep down, she half-hoped that she'd walk into The White Page and see Seth sitting at that same table, focused on writing in the same journal.
When she arrived, his table was occupied by an elderly woman and her granddaughter sharing a red and green sugar cookie.
She let out a breath and turned away from the café to begin her shift. She wouldn't have even known what to say if he'd been there anyway.
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The next week went by as uneventfully as one could expect from the holiday season. Angela felt as though she was merely going through the motions—waking up and going to work, coming home and going to sleep. Wash, rinse, repeat. Even the mad rush of Christmastime retail couldn't distract her from the monotony that plagued her. It was just one busy day after the other until they all blurred into one and Angela lost track of time, regardless of it being the holiday season.
One night after another busy and mind-numbing day, she laid on her couch with the lights from her almost-dead Christmas tree providing the only light source. It wasn't much different than how Delilah had lounged last time Angela had seen her. But it wasn't like she could just call her friend when she needed her. And her phone remained eerily silent. No text messages, no calls—nothing from anyone. Playing devil's advocate, she scanned through her texts, noting that the last one she had received from Seth was his confirmation on time and place the last time they saw each other. Her fingers hovered over the keyboard, but she stopped herself.
Just then, her phone rang. Startled, she dropped it to the ground. By the time she rolled over to pick it up and see who it was, the caller had hung up. The caller ID revealed the culprits: her parents.
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Delilah knew well enough to leave her alone.
She did go so far as to leave a note on the kitchen counter in an attempt to communicate. Angela found it the day after her parents tried to call her and she refused to call them back. It asked if she wanted to get coffee in Delilah's familiar elegant script. Angela crumpled it up and tossed it into the kitchen trash barrel before she left for work.
The morning after, Angela found another note in the same spot on the counter, this one asking if she could meet at The White Page after work. Again, the note was thrown away.
With both requests ignored, Delilah didn't ask again.
