Untouchable

Chapter 4

Ruth sat on her sofa, watching her evening’s worth of Sherlock. The episode ended, she placed her mug of hot chocolate in the dishwasher and the intercom buzzed.

                “Hey.” Ruth smiled, knowing it was Evie and their parents, Melissa and John, coming over.

                “Hey, sis.” Evie giggled.

                “Hello.” Ruth said, her voice fully of joy, buzzing her family in. About a minute later her family arrived. She let them in and her Mum walked into the kitchen to sort out the take away that she brought with her every Monday evening. Evie sat on the swinging chair next to the TV which Ruth only kept out of familiarity and for Evie.

                “How’s school, Evie?” Ruth asked, sitting in her normal spot.

                “It’s good, thanks, Ruth, although Mr Hardy was acting odd today.” Evie remarked, looking her sister perfectly in the eye, as she knew Ruth preferred. Ruth could tell whenever anyone was lying simply from how shifty people’s eyes were.

                “Mr Hardy as in Noah Hardy?” Ruth asked, a little amazed that the topic of Noah teaching his little sister had never previously come up in their conversations. “He said you’re very smart; smarter than a lot of the boys in your physics. He was here on Saturday.” Melissa placed a tub of take away Chinese on the coffee table in front of the sofa and looked amazed at her oldest daughter’s comment.

                “You and Noah are communicating again?” She asked, utterly astounded. John came in from the bathroom and looked at his freckly daughter.

                “Noah’s back on the scene?” He asked, utterly amazed.

                “We are talking, yes. He knows how I work. I was getting lonely, I think. And he came to work, though I think he had a panic attack beforehand as Abbie saw me wondering around the holiday camp, trying to find Cattie. She’s left there, you know.”

                “Sweetheart, Cattie works in Co-op now.” Melissa explained. Cattie was never a bright girl, but could never apply herself, and had barely got through school to the end, so ended up working the tills fulltime in the Co-op.

                “Oh, but Abbie works there now.” Ruth smiled. She took a plate off the pile her mother had just placed down and began helping herself to the food.

                “How is work going, Ruth?” John asked, sitting next to his untouchable daughter, making sure he left 6 inches between them on the three-seater sofa.

                “It is alright. Millie sends her love. I like it because I edit lots of things to make them better.” Ruth explained. John nodded as he helped himself to dinner and his wife sat down next to him, both always making sure not to touch their fragile daughter.

                “Found out anything interesting?” Melissa asked.

                “Yeah, you have to dumb everything down for the general public.” Ruth complained as she ate her first spring roll.

                “Anything more?” John asked,

                “That Noah remembers how to act that won’t entirely freak me out. He placed his hand exactly one inch from mine on the sofa when he came over.” She smiled at Evie, so happy that even after two years there were things that someone normal could remember about her. Though she did doubt how ‘normal’ Noah really was.