Silence by the M(in)ute

14

After Dr. Harris tells Connie she'd like to see her back in a week, both girls leave quickly.

"Why are you in such a rush to get out?" Cherry asks.

"I just don't like hospitals."

Cherry smiles and Connie raises her eyebrow as she types in 'what'.

"'Nothing. It just sounds different that's all. It'll just take some time for me to get used to your voice."

"It's not my voice, it's a voice."

Cherry glances over at Connie's frown. "Connie are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"No. I can see the look on your face like you hate this."

"I do. This voice had no emotion whatsoever, and this is not what my voice sounded like before."

"Then why'd you pick it?"

"Because it sounded fine to me, and I just wanted to get out of there. I'm only doing this for you Cherry."

Cherry's eyebrows furrow together. "I'm doing this for you. Don't you wanna talk?"

"I do, but not like this."

"Then why'd we come here in the first place? You could've said no Connie," Cherry's voice strains with anger.

"Because you seemed excited for me. Like you wanted me to talk."

"I do want you to talk."

Connie frowns. "So you don't want me to use sign language? Are you tired of that?"

"Connie you're making a big deal out of this."

"It is a big deal! I don't want this!"

"If you're doing this for me, then at least try for a week. You've only had it for a minute," Cherry exclaims.

"Cherry no."

"We wasted all that time! Why couldn't you have said something before? Why couldn't you tell me before?"

"I don't know! I just-" Connie stops typing.

"Look you have the voice box, so try it for a week okay? No point in leaving it in the dust. Why can't you see this as a good thing?"

Connie is frustrated that this box had no emotion. Of course it won't, it's a box and that's what Connie hates. The only reason she's doing this is because Cherry pushed her into and she continues doing so. Connie wonders if Cherry would leave her if she didn't get this thing. All Connie could do is sigh in return. She doesn't have the energy to argue with her right now.

"Can you take me home?"

Cherry drives to the apartments. Connie gets out with the voice box and shuts the door behind her. She jogs up the stairs and sets the voice box on her bed and then opens her desk drawer only to find the notes from the previous conversations between Cherry and her.

No cigarettes.

Connie paves through the room as her breathing quickens. She wishes she had her cigarettes to calm her, but she can't have any if she wants to be healthy. The urge grows quickly so Connie grabs her notebook instead, props herself on the window ledge, and begins drawing angrily. She doesn't get far because she flips to the page that has the unfinished drawing of the physical therapy place where she stopped because Connie saw Cherry. She throws the notebook on her bed and the other notes she kept in the sprawl along with it that leaves her bed a mess.

Connie huffs out and collects them all together. She looks at all of them remembering each moment as if it was yesterday. Tears roll down her face and all she wants is for her mom to be here to help her. She glances at Cherry's window hoping she'd be there, but she isn't. The recent memories from the week before play across her mind and she thinks about everything that has happened.

It seems such a long time ago since they've met. In the past month she's grown to really like Cherry and gone through a lot with her. Having some excitement in her life for once, having her mom in a coma, and that stupid voice box. Connie never imagined this ever happening to her, but it is and she can't wrap her mind around it.

Connie ends up storming out of the apartment to her mom's car to drive to the store. She needs her cigarettes. Everything just seems so out of place and she needs something constant. If it's not her drawings it's her smoking, and when she tired drawing she ended up chucking the notebook on her bed. Once she starts the car she hears a loud knock at her window.

"Where are you going?" Cherry says through the closed car window.

Connie rolls down her window and when she goes to get the voice box she realizes she left it on her bed. So she moves her fingers in front of Cherry to tell her she's going to get her remedy.

"Connie no. You heard what Dr. Harris said about your lungs. I'm not letting you go to the store."

I am already in the car.

Suddenly Cherry swings open the door and pulls Connie out which shocks her. Her eyes widen and Cherry slams the car door shut.

"Now you're not. Come on."

Leave me alone.

"I'm not leaving you Connie."

Why not?

"Because I care about you!" Cherry throws her hands up. "You're special to me."

Connie crosses her arms.

Cherry lets out a long sigh. "Lets go to my room."

Now you want me in your room.

"I told you why I didn't want you in my house. I don't want you to be around that. I don't even want to be around it, but you and I have no other place to be."

Everything is wrong.

Cherry cups Connie's face in hers and stares at Connie's golden eyes. "I know, but as long as we got each other we'll be fine. Okay?"

Connie nods and Cherry kisses her lightly before they walk hand and hand to her apartment.

Just like that Connie feels relaxed. Maybe she doesn't need cigarettes, maybe she just needs Cherry.