Hello, Again

Chapter 9

Amelia had to blink thrice to make sure that she was seeing correctly.

Abby continued hammering away, her slender arms swinging back and forth with each hit, seemingly unaware of Amelia's presence, as Amelia dragged her hand through her hair and tried to come up with a single sentence that would make some sense in this situation, completely ignored by the blonde.

She finally decided upon these words, "Abigail, umm, is this – what is this?"

Abigail didn't reply

Her patience worn thin, Amelia rolled her eyes and looked around the room exasperatedly. Abby from A Lifetime Ago made her hot cocoa every time she pulled an all nighter and woke up bedraggled; this Abby pretended Amelia didn't exist for most intents and purposes.

It was most inconvenient, really.

Swallowing the bile that had risen to her throat, Amelia coughed purposefully and stared at Abigail, as frustrated at her behaviour as she was at her own lethargy, and many seconds passed until Amelia decided to break the silence with ore decisive means.

"Abby, I have a migraine."

Abby's machinations ceased for a full second; the blonde stared at the knot of wood as though it had insulted her mother, then picked up a chisel and began (quietly) shaving away a side of the wood. Amelia sighed in exasperation and collapsed on the chair next to the table where Abigail was working, unable to snap out of it.

It was the ache in her head, the catch in her breath, the emptiness in her chest that seemed to grow larger and larger every day. It was Sadness.

"...dropping by Sarah, she asked me to tell you to go pay her a visit, Amelia, are you alright?"

Amelia broke out of her reverie, and replied automatically, "I'm perfectly alright."

Abigail looked at her with concern brimming in her eyes, but the sentiment vanished and was replaced with annoyance before Amelia could take a closer look.

"Fine", Abby snapped, and returned to her work

Amelia swallowed her urge to scream and attempted a smile, "I'm really sorry Abby, I was thinking about my thesis – what were you saying again?"

"Nothing." said Abby.

Amelia sighed and tried again.

"No really, what were you saying? Something about Sarah?"

"Sarah asked you to go pay her a visit." Abby said coolly, not making eye contact, chiselling at the piece of wood with a ferocity that would have alarmed Amelia A Lifetime Ago. Our Amelia barely supressed the urge to clap her hands over her ears.

"Okay", she finally said listlessly, then got off her chair. Trying hard to regain some semblance of normalcy, she turned at Abigail.

"Abby, what are you working on?"

"My carpentry assignment", Abby replied without glancing up

"When – when did you take carpentry?"

Abigail finally looked up, her amber eyes burning, "It's my second semester, but thanks for noticing."

Something came over Amelia that she couldn't quite discern – her throat burned with urgent tears while her head filled with ire, and she stood there for a many moments, an internal battle raging silently, while Abby glared defiantly up at her.

She found her release in simply stomping away to her own room, stumbling upon a paintbrush as she stepped away, and barely registered Abigail saying "Careful, that's Sarah's," at her retreating back.