She stood there in complete silence, like her existence was a whisper, her heart seeming to quit and then restart when she heard footsteps from the other side of the door. She sucked in two deep breaths before the door opened, a chill going down her spine when she saw who answered.
"Betty! Oh wow honey you look amazing. Look at you!" Susannah Fisher stood in the doorway, her radiance more beaming than ever as she looked at the girl on her doorstep. Betty snapped into her polite manner, a smile immediately going to her lips despite the fact she was deathly pale. "Oh...oh this is so sweet! Did you make these?"
"I wish I did but it was my mom. She sent me to drop them off." Betty extended the plate towards the woman but Susannah was not the type to just take the plate and run. Even thought that's what Betty really wished she would do in that moment.
"Here come inside and I'll switch you plates." She pushed the door open wider and Betty felt her heart drop to her knees, her eyes flickering to the foyer behind her and then back to her face. She wanted to refuse but she knew there was no use, she'd never get out of it and even if she did...she'd never hear the end of it. So she shut her mouth and smiled, walking inside with a terrified look on her face. Susannah closed the door behind her, making her way towards the kitchen. Betty felt paranoid as they passed empty doorways and headed into the kitchen, the blonde woman quick to make conversation. "Tell your mom I said thank you. Steven loves brownies. These will be gone in a day."
"Oh yeah it's no problem. She's on a baking kick right now since dads out of town, she always picks up hobbies when he's gone." Betty said, her eyes tracing over the kitchen as Susannah searched through a cupboard for a different plate.
"How is your dad? Clearly busy but is he—"
"Betty fucking Graham is standing in my kitchen. I must be dreaming...hello!" The sound of another voice startled her, her head whipping to look at where it came from. Jeremiah Fisher was charging towards her, a smile crossing her lips immediately as he pulled her into a hug. He lifted her a little bit, the girl laughing as she pushed at his arm. "Holy shit. I cant believe this."
"Jeremiah...language—please." Susannah said, a cheerful tone in her voice as the boy waved her off. His eyes were glued to Betty, the girl speaking through her smile.
"What'd you think you'd never see me again or something?" She asked, shaking her head slightly at him. He shook his head back at her, quick to come up with a reply.
"Thought maybe you were gonna be jet set to Italy this summer, or London...or maybe somewhere more tropical." The mention of her European escape reminded her of who was in the house, her face going pale again as she swallowed hard.
"Nope...figured I'd spend my last summer before college right back here at home."
"Cousins is the best place to be. Especially because I'm here." His positivity radiated off of him in waves, and Betty soaked it in the best she could, the two of them sharing another smile before Susannah pulled the attention back to her.
"Alright I've got a plate for you." Betty nodded, joining her at the kitchen island and transferring the brownies from the plate she brought them on to the one Susannah found. Jeremiah exited the kitchen and was in the backyard by the time the girls finished, Susannah smiling at the girl and then lifting a brow. "So your last summer before college? Wow I always forget you and Connie are in the same grade. You decided where you're going yet?"
"I applied a few places but I think I'm going for—"
"Mom who's here?" The sound of his voice sent an instant shudder down Betty's spine, her lips parting as her head turned. The instant their eyes met he stopped where he was, freezing in the doorframe as he took her in. Conrad Fisher drug his eyes over Betty Graham, the beat of his heart feeling like it was going to burst through his chest. He felt that internal panic and for a moment he was thrilled to see her, and then the excitement faded almost instantly, the boy remembering his feet in the sand and the pain in his heart when he sat on that beach all night waiting to hear from her. Something passed between them in that moment, Susannah watching the split second interaction.
Betty's physical response was to started shaking, but she never even got the chance to freak out before the plate slipped from her fingers and crashed to the floor. The glass platter shattered on impact, Betty's lips parting in pure shock as she quickly bent down to grab the plate. Susannah gasped at the glass breaking and Conrad moved too, the boy shooting forwards to reach for the plate too.
"I'm so sorry." Betty exclaimed, Susannah quick to rush over and grab a broom. Betty's fingers reached for a piece of the plate and she saw another set of hands, her head lifting to Conrad who was helping her clean it up. Her lapse in attention cost her, the girl letting out a small gasp as a piece of the glass cut into her palm. "Ouch."
"Are you okay?" His words to her were genuinely worried, his hand reaching out to grasp her wrist. He forgot completely about the broken plate and was now dialed in on her, Betty grimacing as she looked done at her hand. She nodded but he pulled her hand open and saw the streak of blood dripping down her palm, the boy standing and pulling her up with him. "Mom can you grab a bandaid?"
"Yep I'll get it." Susannah disappeared as quickly as she spoke, Conrad pulling an entranced Betty towards the sink. He turned the sink on and ran cool water over her small cut, the girl unable to look away from him as he stared down at her hand.
"You've gotta be more careful." He said in a angrier tone than she expected, and he soon realized he had yet to hear her speak to him. He felt a grip on his lungs as he waited for some response, the boy biting the inside of his cheek so as not to make it obvious he was desperate to hear her say something to him.
"I'm fine. Really...I'm okay." She said, pulling her hand harshly from his grip and holding it to her chest. He looked at her with a glazed over look and some anguished look in his eyes, his hand going to his pocket as his other one dried over the sink. They stared at each other for a moment, and Betty thought there was no way this could've gone worse. "I'm sorry I—I'm sorry about the mess but I've gotta go. Tell your mom I'm sorry."
Standing in the same room as him became unbearable and she wasn't sure what it was that made it so hard but she took her leave, her thumb pressed over the cut so that she could stop the bleeding. She passed Susannah in the hallway and muttered some apologetic phrase, leaving the house as quickly as possible.
Conrad stood in the kitchen, his eyes staring at where she had been. The pressure in his chest alleviated and he managed to snap out of his trance when his mom came back in, the boy giving her a small dazed smile and then grabbing the broom. Susannah watched with a worried expression on her face as he cleaned the glass, not missing the way his eyes held that tortured
gaze.
