GRACE ☾ G.BLYTHE

11| After the talk

『 11| After the talk』

I run as fast as my legs can take me, tripping over my dress a few times doesn't stop me from getting away as fast as possible. I can't believe what had just happened to me. The adrenaline rushes through my whole body and I stop when I see that I'm in front of my house. A happy and warm tear escapes my eye, when the tear falls down on the ground, it melts a little hole in the snow. I smile and walk inside.

➳

"Can you hold this for me?" Asks Gilbert, holding out a cord. I take the cord and watch him disappear behind the stage. Everyone is preparing for the annual Christmas musical, so am I. I'm not playing in it, because I am not made for show business and I have stage fright.

I walk over to Cole, who is painting, and sit on the end of the stage. "It's already looking good." I inform him. "Yeah, you're so talented Cole." I look over my shoulder and see that Tilly and the other girls joined us. "I love that bird so much. No one in the whole class can paint like you, Cole." Giggles Ruby.

Gilbert comes back from backstage and nods me to come over. "Here's the cord." I say, handing it over to him and ask, "what do you need me to do next?" He shakes his head, smiling, and says, "you need to get off the stage before something falls and hits your head. We don't want that to happen."

I look up to all the attributes hanging on cords above my head. "Is it that dangerous?" I ask, still looking up, the sound of Diana singing fades a little when Gilbert smiles. "I just don't want anything to happen to you. Especially not around this time of the y-"

People start shouting behind us and I hear Cole grunting. I look over at Cole and see that loses his balance and falls on the ground. The horrible sound of a bone cracking makes me hold my breath. Everything seems to go in slow motion. Gilbert runs over to him, while he screams out his pain.

"Oh, goodness me!" Says Diana, also rushing towards Cole, followed by the others. I stand as stiff as a board, unable to breath. My throat is burning and everything looks blurry. I try to take a few steps to Cole. I need to help him. I need to help my friend. Black spots fill my gaze—

➳

I hear the voice of my brother speak, "what happened?" My eyes feel heavy and I try to open them. My heart raises when I think about what happened to Cole. My eyes shoot open and I search for him. There's no sight of him. "Where's Cole?"

"Here, take some water first." Gilbert hands me some water, but I deny and stand up. "Whoa! Slow down." Adam puts his hands on my shoulders. "I need to know how Cole is going." "Don't worry. He is on his way to the doctor and he's going to be okay. But, his arm is definitely broken."

I look over to his painting that is still unfinished. "What about that?" I ask, and point at his decoration. "Some other people are going to take care of that." I feel so stupid for fainting. I can't imagine how he is feeling, not being able to finish his painting and having a broke arm as an artist.

"Let's get you home." Adam helps me get up and we walk out of the door. "Maybe you fainted because you were just so excited about Christmas?" I kept complaining about how I should've been there for him. "You keep doing this." Says Adam, shaking his head in frustration. "Doing what?"

"You keep blaming yourself for these dumb things, and you shouldn't. It isn't all your fault. You don't have to be there for everyone. You don't have to keep everyone satisfied. You just need to make yourself happy." He's got a point.

➳

"You like those potatoes, don't you, Grace?" Normally Adam and I would have Christmas dinner just with the two of us. But now that Adam has a girlfriend, we spend it at her house with her parents. It's pretty weird to see him with this other girl. I'm just glad that he found someone to spend these times with.

I'm also glad that her parents make these great potatoes. "Thanks for inviting us, Ms. Swan." Honestly, I like Christmas better this way. Emily's family is really nice and they even gave me a present. I'm not going to open it until tomorrow, but it is all about the gesture. I wave the family goodbye and Adam does too.

The walk home was quiet, but it feels like there is love in the air this moment right for the both of us. The talk with Gilbert was not weird, I don't think you could even say it was a talk. It felt like we both knew what we were going to say. The look he had on his face when I told him how I felt about him. The feeling my stomach had when he told me he felt the same way. I hope that feeling will never get away.