A World of Her Own

Chapter 18

 But mostly it was just the three of them. They taught Liora some beginner phrases in ASL and Spanish sign language and she furthered their lessons with her own studies online. She also began picking up some Spanish from them. Liora had taken some Spanish in high school but had found it difficult to learn. But now it seemed to come more naturally. They would often accent their conversation with Spanish phrases and words and Liora would ask what it meant. Slowly, she was starting to build a working vocabulary.

Jason's team won the conference and even better for him, he won all his matches.He completed the season undefeated, having never lost a match. It was the perfect way for him to finish his high school tennis career. Liora sent him a text to congratulate him when she heard. He thanked her but there was no offer for them to hang out. Liora found that it didn't really bother her. Her life was becoming more full with her new friends. She did go to the church volunteer day in November. Jason came as well but they barely spoke. He sat with some of his other friends on the bus. Liora sat by herself, across from Katelynne and Christina. When they got to the apartment complex, she rushed off to find Nathaly and Adriana and spent the day talking with them and practicing her signing. She was so involved in hanging out with them, she didn't even notice what Jason was doing or who he was talking to. She had always been so aware of him, so conscious of his presence and what he was doing even if he wasn't close to her. And now that was fading. Although he hadn't left yet, he was starting to become only a memory.

Liora briefly thought about avoiding Jason's goodbye party but the rest of her family was going so she couldn't think of a way to duck out. Besides Ranga was going to be there with his parents. She hadn't seen the little boy since their last reading session at the end of October. He was a little shy when he first saw her but quickly warmed up. She spent the party listening to him tell her all about his after-school program. He had made several friends and absolutely loved it. Every month they learned about a new country and students from the class would share their cultures and traditions from their homeland. This month they were learning about India which made Ranga very happy since he was learning more about tigers. 

Kartika was also happy to see Liora and told her how much Ranga had missed her. She was as sweet and gentle as ever and Liora was reminded of their many conversations. Kartika was the first one to encourage her to open up and step out of her shell. In some ways, Liora felt a debt of gratitude to her. Kartika had also encouraged her to be friends with Jason and Christina but Liora pushed that memory aside. She didn't want to think about that now. She was making new friends and starting a new life. She knew Kartika only wanted her to be happy. And she was happy. She was happy with her new friends and she was happy sitting here and talking with Ranga and Kartika. She did wonder if Kartika noticed that Jason never came over to say hello or spend time with her but Kartika never mentioned anything. She gazed at Liora and Ranga talking together with a warm expression on her face. And before they left, she made a point of saying that she was sure Liora would be happy at her new school. Liora was sad to see them go. She had missed them once the reading sessions stopped and she hoped she would have more of a chance to see Ranga in the future.

Liora didn't see Jason until the end of the night, when she and her family were about to leave. He came over to say goodbye and thank them for coming. He hugged Liora but it had none of the warmth of his hugs in the past. He had spent the night hanging out with his tennis teammates. They still seemed to be on a high from their conference win. Jason smiled at her as he said goodbye but his face was distant. Liora went away feeling grieved for the loss of their friendship. No, she didn't think they should be focusing on getting into a relationship. She needed time to discover herself. But she missed the closeness they once shared. Still, she knew she wouldn't change anything about what she said. It had been the right thing to do.