It has been a year since Annalise Montgomery lost her fifteen year old sister Lilly in the middle of a sunny day when she was waiting in a parking lot.
Annalise takes the case into her control when the police are empty handed. No leads, no traces, n...
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I've felt a lot of things in my life. Things I can't explain, ones I could. There was no warning when I returned to my car a year ago to find that my fifteen year old sister had gone missing.
It was overwhelming to handle the following days that set reality in. I wanted to have hope, but I didn't feel any.
As I watch Scott try his best to teach Halle how to cook, something stirs in my chest. Whatever it is, I lose my grasp on it.
Perhaps it's because for the first time in a year, I'm not lonely. I have more friends than I've ever had, Scott Walker has entered a part of my life, and I found someone who depended on me. Halle.
I am scared of losing it all, but I fear that I will.
"See? It's not so bad." Blondie says to her while trusting her with a task I would go nowhere near. The stove. Halle is standing atop a stool from the kitchen island, and she's stirring the mix Scott made.
She's a lot more focused and steady than I am. It's been nice watching the two cousins together, no matter how quiet she still is around him. When he would ask a question, Halle would look towards me hoping I would answer for her.
"It's very important that you keep moving it in circles- to make sure it doesn't burn." Blondie continues and turns the stove on a lower heat setting. "Do you think you can do that for me?" Halle nods.
When we returned to Talulah's hospital room, she had raced to her mother's bedside and whispered the question into her ear.
Scott had glanced at me curiously until his Aunt asked if I was okay with Halle spending the night at my apartment. I was, and he too liked the idea.
"How are you going over here?" Hands slide down the sides of my arms. The skin is left tingling.
Blondie still has his awareness on Halle the same way I do. We're both cautious because she is so close to a flame, but her actions are smooth and fluent. I doubt she'll burn herself at all.
I must be the only clumsy one. "I think you should really consider running some cooking classes." My smile meets his stare.
"I only like teaching you two girls." Scott rests a hand atop the island beside me. I feel it brush against my arm.
I open my mouth to reply but I'm stopped. "Annalise," Halle's little voice gains my attention, and immediately I'm at her side. "How long do I have to do this? My arm hurts."
It was spoken so quietly that Scott hadn't heard it. "You can stop if you want. I'll take over and you can change into your pyjamas?"
Her head nods eagerly and she let's go of the spoon. I help her climb down from the stool to make sure she doesn't bump the stove.
